A MIDSUMMER NIGHT’S FUDGE is the tenth book in Nancy Coco’s Candy-Coated cozy mystery series. This is a classic cozy mystery. The story opens with everybody enjoying themselves at the first Midsummer Night’s Festival and the crowning of the Midsummer Night’s Queen. There are yummy treats, exotic costumes, and friends sharing a laugh. What could go wrong? Suddenly an idyllic setting turns dark when jealousy and violence erupt, and somebody is murdered. With her beloved pup Mal, assorted friends and co-workers, and a gaggle of elderly local amateur sleuths, Allie tries to find the motive for Winona Higer’s murder. Was somebody else the real target? Was it the obvious motive, or some secret shenanigans at the heart of the mystery?

As Allie hunts for clues and chases down alibies, she becomes entrenched in things like committees, sewing circles, and local petty gossip. Yikes! The committees she doesn’t mind so much, but each bit of gossip she hears and each direction she gets pulled leads her somewhere different. It becomes hard to tell what’s important and what’s trivial. Readers must decide for themselves whether the murders have to do with the Midsummer Night’s Queen, or if that’s merely a red herring. The hidden motives for seemingly random murders feel like the key to everything for Allie, but the murderer acts increasingly unhinged. Soon nobody feels safe. I like how Allie has a lot of support as she plays the part of an amateur detective. Her friends and loved ones balance out the sense of danger and malevolence.

A MIDSUMMER NIGHT’S FUDGE casts a sinister glow over small-town life. Although Allie’s police officer boyfriend tries to steer her away from investigating, I thought he did a good job of not sounding like an overprotective parent. If anything, as the danger escalates, I thought Allie was taking a few too many risks for my taste. The recipes included throughout the book are, predictably, tasty. The story moves very quickly and doesn’t lose momentum. I look forward to reading Nancy Coco’s next “Candy-Coated” mystery.