A review by beate251
A Corpse Among the Carolers by Debra Sennefelder

funny lighthearted mysterious medium-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? Character
  • Strong character development? Yes
  • Loveable characters? Yes
  • Diverse cast of characters? No
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

3.0

Thank you to NetGalley and Beyond Page Publishing for this ARC.

This is book 7 of A Food Blogger Mystery. Hope Early lives in Jefferson, Connecticut with her boyfriend Ethan, dog Bigelow and cat Princess. She is a food blogger and cookbook writer and in her spare time solves murders in her idyllic Hallmark small-town community.

The town is gearing up for Christmas, there is a Snowflake Market and a Jingle Bell Stroll. Then Hope discovers that the Santa, a local man, has been murdered and starts sleuthing though she gets no help from Detective Reid.

This has a huge cast of people that are her family, friends or neighbours, like her sister Claire and her best friend Drew who has a new puppy. Unfortunately, I don't think the mystery was very interesting. Also, I felt like an intruder in a close-knit community I don't know because I haven't read the other six books.

There is a lot going on besides the amateur sleuthing, Hope is a kind of whirlwind who constantly bakes and organises, and I found it kind of unbelievable that her character would be so reckless and get herself into danger so easily.

After the murderer is unmasked, friends and family get together to eat and drink too much mouthwatering food, which is nice, and we get a couple of recipes at the end, but unfortunately the measurements are in imperial only. I liked how Christmassy it all was, but the ending was too sickly sweet for me. 

You might enjoy this book more if you've read the previous books, just for the development of the community relationships, and if you like the Grilled Cheese Mysteries by Linda Reilly, who are very similar.

As it is, it is a nice fluffy holiday read, but the central mystery isn't too taxing or memorable.