Customer Reviews

The Long Quiche Goodbye (CHEESE SHOP MYSTERY)

5 star:		(16)
4 star:		(10)
3 star:		(4)
2 star:		(3)
1 star:		(3)

 

 

The Fromagerie Bessette, know by the residents of Providence, Ohio, as The Cheese Shop, has been passed down to another generation. Charlotte Bessette is the new cheesemonger and her cousin Matthew is the wine expert and Grandmére and Pépére are trying to retire but are still spending many hours at the shop. Some renovations have been made and a wine annex has been added and the grand opening is just minutes away. The cheese platters are out and the wine bottles opened and the doors thrown wide and the shop starts to fill with people.

But there is an undercurrent of tension, Grandmére is also the mayor of this fine little town and the election is right around the corner. Her opponent, Kristine, and a few of her friends are in high rally mode. Her husband, Ed, owns most of the buildings in the area and he is a complete leech, cheating on his wife and moves around through the party pinching, leering and acting highly inappropriate with most of the females in attendance. He also is threatening to evict the owners of The Cheese Shoppe and many others on the street which causes him to have a heated conversation with Grandmére.

Even with the the tension, Charlotte and Matthew know they have a success on their their hands and are very excited until "a shriek cut the air" and Charlotte rushed out of the store and found the leech's body dead on the sidewalk and Grandmére covered in blood.

Everyone including the Chief of Police doesn't believe Grandmére killed this man, but she was the one with the knife in her hand and covered with blood, she is placed under house arrest. Charlotte finds herself suspecting everyone and doesn't think the Chief is investigating enough so she starts investigating on her own to prove her Grandmére's innocence.

I LOVED IT!!!!!

Yes, I LOVED IT!, with one caution, do not read on an empty stomach, the story is filled with yummy descriptions of wonderful cheeses, wine and quiches and it includes recipes at the end. My stomach was ready for some of that cheese all the way through. I suggest you pour yourself a nice glass of wine and make up a little cheese platter and then curl up to read the "quichey" mystery with your snacks ready.

I loved the characters, even the mean and unstable ones. There was the perfect amount of humor and the plot had several twists and turns to keep you turning page after page. There is also a budding romance on the horizon. This was a really good debut to the cheesy new series and I definitely have an appetite for more.

You may visit Avery at [...]



Disclosure of Material Connection: I received this book free from The Berkley Publishing Group, a division of Penguin Publishing. I was not required to write a positive review. The opinions I have expressed are my own. I am disclosing this in accordance with the Federal Trade Commission's 16 CFR, Part 255 : "Guides Concerning the Use of Endorsements and Testimonials in Advertising."

Avery Aames' new series will become a favorite of all cozy lovers. The Long Quiche Goodbye combines all the elements of other cozies, good food, wine, recipes, and small town amateur sleuthing, but increases the standard by which cozies are measured through her fresh and descriptive narrative and solution to the plot, which is not obvious. I already look forward to reading the next book in the series because this one was a treat to read.

The action centers around the cheese shop owned by Charlotte Bessette, the main character, and Matthew, her co-owner cousin. Although the shop was originated by their grandparents, Charlotte and Matthew put their own signatures on the shop, and during its grand re-opening murder occurs on the sidewalk just outside. Charlotte's investigation of the murder is as natural as the cheese sold because the police chief places her grandmere at the top of the suspect list. The secondary characters, Matthew and his twin daughters, Charlotte's best friend and grandparents, her exAmish assistant, the town folk and her potential lover, add complexity to the plot with secondary storylines that spread like blue veins enriching Roquefort.

Nicely sandwiched into Charlotte's day-to-day business, Aames includes information on the cheese industry, production, storage, presentation throughout the book. I would buy this book not only because of the story, but to keep as a reference. Aames describes cheeses that I've never heard of or tried before, but now will seek out.

If you love other food based series, try this one and enjoy a mini vacation to Providence, OH.

As others have already covered the plot I'll just pass along a few things I found to be so special in The Long Quiche Goodbye. Wonderful characters that you can't help but get involved with, great storyline, and the the town of Providence is a place you won't want to leave. I can't wait for the next book. I guess I'll just have to read this one again! Avery Aames is definitely an author I'm going to be watching.

I really enjoyed reading the first book in this series. Charlotte is a very believable character as
she does make errors along the way. It was fun to see her delve into the murder as well as see her
try to interest Jordan.

The secondary characters were also fun and multi-faceted. The description of the cheeses made
my mouth water.

I will be looking forward to the next installment. I really loved reading this book, Avery!

I rather enjoyed reading this book. Charlotte is a wonderful character who along with her cousin Matthew, have taken over the cheese shop from their grandparents. It gets really interesting just in the first few chapters to keep you hooked through out the whole book. Matthew and his daughters are so cute and funny. The grandparents keep you on your toes and are a cute couple. Then there is Jordan and Urso, makes you wonder what is going to happen between them and Charlotte down the road. I did not figure out who the killer was till towards the end. I was thinking it was one person then another etc. It was an exciting read not to mention the wonderful recipes at the end. There are several I am going to try. I am already looking forward to the next book.

Charlotte owns a cheese and wine shop. One day, someone is killed, outside of Charlotte's shop, and she wants to find out who the real killer is. Honestly, that's pretty much the plot, and I use that term with a grain of salt.

For this "cozy" Mystery, there's nothing new. All of the "cozy" mysteries follow the same plot. Someone owns a shop and a body is found on location, and the person that owns the shop must find the real killer. Usually, that person is a divorced woman and the ex husband usually has a nickname, i.e. The Jerk, The Idiot, The Dirtbag, and in this book, he's Creep Chef. The women in these mysteries usually pass all of the day to day operations to their "assistant" b/c they're to busy trying to do the work of the police, who I guess are to dumb to solve the crimes without the shop owners help. Again, this is what happens in this book.

In these mysteries, there is so much fluff, and the same for this book. It's obvious that the author knows a lot about cheese, and wine, but does she need to tell us everything that she knows? For me, it dragged the plot down with so much needless information. Also I grew tired of all the gossip the townspeople were doing. "Did you hear about this person...." "No, you have it wrong, this is what happened....." "Boy are you wrong, I know what really happened......" "None of you are right, here's what happened......" Please, enough. It doesn't add to the plot, and takes away from it. So much useless and needless info. Heck, we as the reader, get to go on an inspection of where honey is made, and it has nothing to do with the plot.

I also grew tired of "This cheese is so yummy!" "This has to be the best cheese I've ever eaten." "Glad you like that cheese, thats' my favorite too, here's how it's made." Who cares?? This happens all through the book. Instead of all the fluff, I'd have to have some cat and mouse between Charlotte and the killer.

Oh, and we can't forget the "store owner who is single and thinks someone is so hot, but I can't talk to him, much less date him" seriano. That's in this book too, and doesn't add to the plot. There are other "fluff" plots that don't add to the mail plot.

As much as food was a topic in the book, there wasn't that many recipes, just four of them. I'd have liked to see more of them in there.

The characters in the book were highly annoying. Also, there weren't any plot twists. This read is just bland and mediocre at best. This follows the same formula as other cozy mysteries, and doesn't quite make the cut.

I say skip it. Unless you want to read how many people like a certain cheese. I know there's a second book in the series coming out, but I plan to skip it.

The first book in a new cozy mystery and set in a cheese shop, Charlotte's nasty landlord, Ed, is killed outside of her shop. Charlotte's grandmother is accused of being the murderer. To clear her grandmother's name, Charlotte begins to investigate and gets herself into some tight spots along the way. I loved that this book had a Ragdoll cat in it, since I have three myself. A great culinary mystery, I cannot wait to read the second book of the series.

I could tell you how much I enjoyed reading The Long Quiche Goodbye, but since you don't know my tastes, that doesn't really help, does it? I also don't think it's particularly helpful for me to rehash the plot. After all, so many other reviewers have covered the plot points already. And some have done it so much better than I can.

What I do want to say is that it is so refreshing to read a book where the family ties are strong and real. From Charlotte (the main character) to her cousin, grandparents, and young nieces, every bit about their interactions is so genuine, you'll close the book feeling as though you really know these folks. Not only that, but you'll count the days until you can visit them again - I'm already looking forward to the next book coming out. It's rare to find a book with such a loving, caring family supporting the amateur sleuth as she investigates murder and mayhem.

I thought the story was great, the characters (yes, even the background characters) well-defined and fun, and the title was tres magnifique!

My only complaint? That I didn't have cheese paired with wine nearby to enjoy as I read. When I pick up Avery Aames' next installment in the Cheese Shop Mysteries, I'll be better prepared. Couple of new cheeses, nice glass of wine, favorite comfy reading chair. Ah. bliss.

Charlotte Bessette and her cousin Matthew have recently taken over the family's gourmet cheese shop in the small town of Providence, Ohio. They are doing some remodeling and adding an area to host wine tastings. Everything seems set for a wonderful grand reopening, until someone is murdered just outside the shop's front door.

The police have one suspect, Charlotte's grandmother. And they have good reasons, including the fact that Charlotte's grandmother was found kneeling over the victim covered in blood. But Charlotte knows there has to be another killer. Can she find that person and clear her grandmother?

I almost passed on this debut, but I'm glad I gave it a chance. The characters are fun. At first they seemed a bit flat, but as the book progressed, I thought I got to know them. The plot was a little slow to get going, but once it did I was hooked and had to see how it would end. Of course, the constant talk of cheese made me hungry, especially since I love cheese.

I will keep my eyes open for further books in this series, which is well worth sampling.

Charlotte and her cousin Matthew have taken over The Cheese Shop from their grandparents. They update the interior, add a wine shop and plan a spectacular grand reopening. Things are going great until Ed Woodhouse and his overbearing wife Kristine threaten to sell the building out from under them.

Juggling the demands of running the shop, helping Matthew raise his twin daughters and trying to catch the eye of handsome cheese supplier Jordan Pace are more than enough to keep Charlotte's plate overflowing. Things get really complicated when dead body is the surprise guest at the grand reopening and Charlotte's grandmother is the prime suspect. Can Charlotte keep The Cheese Shop going and solve the murder proving her grandmother innocent?

The Long Quiche Goodbye is a mouth-watering read. The characters are well developed. The reader will be intrigued by them and eager to learn more about them, even the less than loveable ones. Charlotte is a strong female character with a sharp mind and a kind heart. She's definitely a character worth following. This new series has a lot to offer mystery and cheese lovers alike.