Death by Chocolate Raspberry Scone

By Sarah Graves

Ellie and Jake (Jacobia) are best friends and business partners in the Chocolate Moose, a small bakery in Eastport, Maine. Death by Chocolate Raspberry Scone finds the pair dealing with a complex web of murders in the middle of a sweltering summer and hectic tourist season. There isn’t a body, just an abandoned boat and a non-grieving widow left with three children and a mystery. Her husband has shown her an antique gold coin which is missing too.

On the home front, Jake’s large old house is bursting at the seams with extended family lined up outside the only bathroom. An expansion is not progressing according to schedule and winter is closing in.

Sharks play a huge role in this mystery from attacks on the investigators to the possibility that they are involved in several deaths or at least the “disposal” of the remains. A group of shark scientists are having a convention in the town, and Ellie has promised three dozen Chocolate Raspberry Scones. Ellie is a creative genius when it comes to her baking, but she has yet to perfect a recipe for this treat.

Jake’s sweet grandson Ephraim plays a big role in this cozy mystery. This four year old loves making music on a variety of noisy instruments from a kazoo to a toy trumpet, and this interest leads to a discovery that is critical to the plot.

Another intriguing character is Glenna LaFarge, known locally as the “witch of Walk Island.” Despite all the somewhat scary  legends that have emerged around her, Ellie and Jake embark on one of many boating adventures in the book to confront Glenna and try to uncover some of the many secrets surrounding murders, a kidnapping and theft in the small tourist town. Jake and Ellie both show their daring and brave side as they track down the murderer. There is a fair amount of tension in this mystery, but there is also some humor sprinkled in as Jake knows how to laugh at herself and the crazy situations she finds herself in.

I received a complimentary copy of this book in exchange for an honest review. Opinions expressed in this review are completely my own.

Rating: 5/5

Category: Mystery, Fiction

Notes: 1. #7 in the Death by Chocolate Mystery Series, but could be read as a standalone.

    2. Includes a recipe for a version of Chocolate Raspberry Scones. As a chocolate lover and a scone lover, this sounds very good.

Publication:   April 23, 2024—Kensington

Memorable Lines:

…I still couldn’t make a sound past the jagged chunk of fright stuck in my throat. It was a shark, a ridiculously large one from what I could see of its dark shape moving under the water, still coming straight at us.

It’s another thing I’ve learned over the years: You can cry all you want, but it doesn’t fix anything; when you’re finished, you still have to get up and do something about whatever it is.

I got up and poured more coffee at the credenza near the door. The fancy contraption that brewed it looked complicated enough to refine uranium in.