Kristina A. reviewed on 4/28/2023 + 1528 more book reviews

Murder at an Irish Bakery by Carlene O'Connor takes us to Kilbane, Ireland where a baking competition is being filmed in the old flour mill that houses the local bakery. Garda Siobhan O'Sullivan, who has a legendary sweet tooth, is thrilled that she is one of the officers handling crowd control. At the end of the first timed bake, the curtains are pulled back and a legendary chef is dead. Siobhan and her colleague sift through the suspects and clues. Can they serve up the killer by the end of the contest? Murder at an Irish Bakery is the ninth An Irish Village Mystery. It is best if you have read the first book in the series before embarking on this one. There are a number of characters (Siobhan has a large family) and it can be challenging to keep them all straight. The story is well-written with a developed main character. I did find the pacing to be lethargic. The repetition and detailed descriptions aided in the sluggish pacing. The mystery was entertaining. I enjoyed solving this whodunit. I liked that the author was creative. She really thought out of the box with this mystery. I appreciated the solid wrap up at the end during the interesting reveal. It appeared that Siobhan and Macdara spent more time yearning for baked goods than solving the crime. It was funny at first, but it does become tiresome after the tenth time. If you like pastries, you will enjoy all the luscious descriptions (there are so many of them). There is humor sprinkled throughout the story. Siobhan has a large, loving family. She has done a wonderful job raising her siblings. You can also tell that Siobhan loves her husband and is happily married. I liked the heartwarming family scene at the end. Murder at an Irish Bakery is a Celtic cozy with competitive contestants, a bevy of baked goods, a departed protestor, an anonymous supporter, a butchered baker, a happy husband, and special siblings.

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