Clare Cosi understands life’s ups and downs better than most. On the upside, Clare has obtained a new honey for her coffee shop, the Village Blend. Her mentor and ex-mother-in-law, Madame, has been friends with Bea Hastings for years and Bea is an expert beekeeper. Bea’s honey is highly sought after in many circles and Clare is thrilled to not only have this prized honey for the Village Blend but also incorporating it into a spring drink her upcoming nuptials to Mike Quinn, an NYPD Detective. On the downside, Mike Quinn is too busy with work and keeping his department together, he barely makes the time to see Clare. Is he getting cold feet? Is he just too busy for marriage? Clare doesn’t know, but she is going to find out.

While doing a taste test for her newest honey-infused concoction, a swarm of bees invades the Village Blend. NYPD sends out their bee unit to capture and investigate where this swarm of bees came from. Clare puts two and two together and knows they are Bea’s bees. But where is Bea? Those bees are her world, and something must be horribly wrong for the bees to be seeking warmth from the Blend. It turns out, Clare was right, and she and her ex-husband Matt find Bea clinging to life having fallen from her rooftop greenhouse. As Clare digs into what happened to Bea, she also must dig deep and get Mike Quinn to open his heart again.

HONEY ROASTED is the honey on top of…well…everything. The powerhouse writing duo that makes up Cleo Coyle has done it again with this 19th installment of the Coffeehouse Mysteries. What do I love about these books? Everything, but let me try to explain. Clare. She is a no-nonsense, heart of gold, powerhouse of a lead character. Love interest Mike Quinn brings the NYPD link that offers insight into the inner workings of police investigations. Matt is that happy-go-lucky, yet fierce, ex-husband who has nothing to lose and everything to gain. The Village Blend is a cozy mystery lover’s dream setting with a coffeehouse, a lounge area, plus a dreamy apartment. The writing itself is extraordinarily intricate. Every time I start one of these books, I’m transported to Clare’s world. No detail goes overlooked. From the smell of the coffee to the feel of the warmth from the fireplace, you’re there.

HONEY ROASTED needs to be on every mystery lover’s to be read list. Better yet, do yourself a favor and start at book one and let Clare and the gang take you on the adventure of a lifetime. One of the best things that came out of the last two years for me was getting reacquainted with this series and passing it along to family and friends. I hope it does the same for anyone who reads these books.