THE CHOCOLATE RACCOON RIGMAROLE is the eighteenth book in JoAnna Carl’s “Chocoholic” cozy mystery series. This mystery is much more complex than originally seems at the outset. Situations and characters aren’t what they appear to be. The small town of Warner Pier is besieged by the Cookie Monsters – burglars who appear harmless but whose intent might be more insidious. Because of the initial low impact of these burglaries, they are on the periphery of this story initially. Things get more serious when somebody is murdered. Is the death connected to the recent robberies? Who is involved and what is the real purpose? Questions mutate into more questions with each passing day.

This is not your traditional murder mystery in some ways. This is, however, a super story for readers who enjoy a brain teaser and formulating theories. Chocolatier Lee Woodyard and her husband get involved because a lot of the action takes place in the alley next to Lee’s chocolate shop, and one of her longtime beloved employees stumbles into the thick of things. Dolly Jolly is beside herself when her boyfriend Mike Westerly’s name keeps coming up in the investigation. It’s often very uncertain for the sleuths in the story, as well as readers, whether Mike is a target by local villains or whether he is somehow involved in perpetrating the shenanigans around town. I was unsure right up until almost the very end. In that way. JoAnna Carl does a fabulous job of drawing out the suspense and giving the story a Hitchcockian flare. There is a great balance between the moments of creepiness and fear for the main characters and the lighter and more traditionally cozy elements of this mystery.

THE CHOCOLATE RACCOON RIGMAROLE leads readers down many twisted trails before coming to a surprising yet satisfying conclusion. I love the relationships between Lee and other characters. Her husband Joe and her friends, family, and employees are all so supportive in her sleuthing. I think that makes a refreshing change from mysteries in which the female amateur sleuth is looked at as a misbehaving teenager. I look forward to JoAnna Carl’s next “Chocoholic” mystery.