As I’m Irish I enjoyed reading a couple of murder mysteries themed around Saint Patrick’s Day. The first one I picked up is a culinary tale, largely set indoors due to the inclement weather at this time of year. Maddie Day's FOUR LEAF CLEAVER takes place at Pans ’N Pancakes, the café and B&B in the Country Store Mysteries, set in South Lick, Indiana.

Robbie Jordon has, by the time of this eleventh mystery, married Abe O’Neill, of Irish heritage, and gets on great with his teenage son Sean. They are about to host a cooking competition. Quite a few tales today include a televised bake-off, cookery contest, or similar. The fussy producer running the show is Tara O’Hara Moore. Vic, the media professional, is kept busy setting up camera angles, and young Jaden, the production assistant (dogsbody) is run off his feet. As the contest is sponsored by a heritage brewing firm, each of the eight contestants must include Hoosier Brewing Company's Irish stout in their dishes. The contest is a great way to introduce new characters, and a host of suspects when the inevitable murder occurs.  

Police detective Buck Bird is required to take charge of proceedings on the day of the contest, and sadly, the show is postponed. Robbie doesn’t let problems get the better of her but starts fretting about how to interview suspects, how to break bad news, and when she should take down the shamrock decorations. Her friends and staff, Danna Beedle and Turner Rao, are hugely supportive. Robbie had something of an instant star crush on contestant Liam Walsh, who looks like actor Liam Neeson, but amusingly as the story continues, the gloss wears off.

We don’t get a lot of actual detail about television equipment, lighting levels, sound checks, and so on. But there’s enough, and the tiny crew is under such pressure that they would not have time to stand explaining to anyone, so the level of information provided comes across as realistic for that occasion. By contrast, there’s plenty of chat and production about food. A few days’ worth of meals are planned, prepped, made fresh, or frozen ahead of time. Robbie is comfortable with cooking and caring, and she needs to fret about how long she’ll be closed. Naturally, the whole town comes to eat and gossip. The atmosphere does get to feel claustrophobic. When Robbie gets a break to visit a different venue, seeking clues, that’s a complete contrast which works well to add diversity to the situation.   

I feel author Maddie Day worked her contest theme well in FOUR LEAF CLEAVER – the cleaver refers to an item found near the scene of the crime. People who prefer a quieter-paced small town mystery may not be entirely happy, but the busy pace is set by the cookery contest so a lot of interesting detail is shown, and the recipes are at the back as usual. Choose your own stout and enjoy the occasion.