"The First in The Grilled Cheese Cozy Mystery Series Serves Up a Seriously Gouda Mystery"
Reviewed by Sandra Martin
Posted January 27, 2022
Mystery Cozy | Mystery Culinary
UP TO NO GOUDA by Linda Reilly is the first in the new Grilled Cheese Mystery series and it delivers up some delectable sandwiches as well as a compelling mystery with memorable characters in a small Vermont town.
After her husband’s death, Carly Hale has returned to her quaint hometown of Balsam Dell to open her own grilled cheese eatery. With the help of a part-time waitress, Suzanne, and nineteen-year-old culinary wiz, Grant, the grilled cheese shop is a hit in town. Unfortunately, Carly’s building has just been sold to a local businessman, Lyle Bagley. Carly briefly dated Lyle in high school and Lyle now wants Carly out of the building so his fashionista girlfriend can start her own boutique. Carly is crushed. She doesn’t want to relocate, and her business is just starting to take off. She’s angry with Lyle, and when Lyle’s dead body is found by a dumpster behind her eatery, Carly is looking like the prime suspect.
Fortunately, Lyle had a lot of enemies and as the police start investigating, it is discovered that Carly’s employee, Suzanne, was last seen arguing with Lyle at a restaurant. Lyle contributed to the demise of Suzanne’s marriage by leading her ex-husband down a dark course. Carly can’t afford to lose Suzanne and she knows her employee is innocent, so Carly embarks on her own investigation. There are a lot of suspects to cover including Lyle’s lovelorn employee, a disgruntled brother, an anxious newspaperman, and a shady local criminal. Carly has her work cut out for her and she has some grilled cheese sandwiches to cut as well. Can she keep her eatery open and track down a killer in her hometown?
UP TO NO GOUDA is a great start to a new series. Readers are introduced to entrepreneur Carly Hale and her hometown of Balsam Dell. Carly is smart and relatable. She has lost her husband in a car crash and is starting her life over. Several colorful townspeople are also introduced and will provide great material and secondary characters for future mysteries. The plot is solid with clues and suspects sprinkled throughout. The outcome could have gone several ways and the identity of the villain is surprising and wraps up the mystery nicely. This is a promising and entertaining new series by Linda Reilly with all the right ingredients for success. Delicious cheese sandwich recipes included!
SUMMARY
The first in a delicious new culinary cozy series featuring a grilled cheese eatery owner who must solve murders in her small town before she is put under lock and brie
Back in Balsam Dell to heal after the death of her husband, Carly Hale is finally pursuing her lifelong dream—opening Carly's Grilled Cheese Eatery. After only five months, business is booming as Vermont vacationers and townspeople alike flock to lunch on her Party Havartis and other grilled cheese concoctions. All but Lyle Bagley, Carly's one-time high school boyfriend and now town bully who just bought the building that houses her eatery and wants Carly out. After a muenster of a fight, Carly's forced to put her nose to the rind and find a solution to keep her business afloat.
That is...until Lyle is discovered dead behind the dumpster of Carly's shop, and one of her employees becomes the prime suspect. In order to save her eatery and prove her friend's innocence, Carly must sleuth out the killer before she's the one who gets grilled.
With a delightful cast of characters, an inventive amateur sleuth, and a whole host of cheesy hijinks, Up to No Gouda is the perfect cozy murder mystery to melt into.
ExcerptCarly had only seen Tiffany a handful of times, and each time she’d been dressed to the nines. Today was no different. Clad in a satiny white halter top over skinny red slacks, her face made up to perfection, she strode toward Lyle on red stiletto heels that echoed off the diamond-patterned tile. Looking slightly embarrassed, she opened her purse and pulled out a legal-sized envelope. She gave the envelope to Lyle.
Lyle took it from her and set it on the counter in front of Carly. He slipped his arm around Tiffany’s tiny waist and gave her a little squeeze. “This is your official notice, Carly. You need to be out of here by the end of July. If you need help removing the fixtures, I can get a crew in here. But the date is firm. Anything left here on August first will be demolished.”
Carly swallowed back a huge lump of pride. “Are you sure I can’t have another month or two?”
“Sorry, Carly. No can do. This place has to be gutted and all the restaurant fit-ups removed.”
Gutted. The word alone made Carly’s stomach turn.
It was then that Carly realized Suzanne had been glued to her stool, glaring at Lyle as if he were the devil himself. She hadn’t spoken a word, but her face had gone a scary shade of gray. She stood, now, snatched up a metal napkin dispenser, and slammed it down on the counter. Lyle flinched and Tiffany let out a startled squeal, while Suzanne’s pointed finger hovered about an inch from Lyle’s nose. “One of these days, Lyle Bagley, you’re going to get what’s coming to you, big time. You can bet on it.”
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Comments
1 comment posted.
Re: The First in The Grilled Cheese Cozy Mystery Series Serves Up a Seriously Gouda Mystery
Great review I love it, I want to read this new series,
Penney
(Penney Wilfort 10:17am January 28, 2022)
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