#amandaflower

Welcome to Cozy Wednesday!  I am delighted to feature Blueberry Blunder by Amanda Flower today!

Blueberry Blunder (An Amish Candy Shop Mystery) Cozy Mystery 8th in Series Setting - Ohio Kensington (May 23, 2023) Paperback ‏ : ‎ 336 pages ISBN-10 ‏ : ‎ 1496734637 ISBN-13 ‏ : ‎ 978-1496734631 Kindle ASIN ‏ : ‎ B0BFC5DZQ1

Bailey King, star of TV’s Bailey's Amish Sweets, is building her dream candy factory in Harvest, Ohio. But no sooner is the frame of the new building up than she finds the dead body of a surly contractor who has a long list of enemies—including people in the Amish community. To add to the drama, Bailey is being filmed by a crew for her upcoming show. . . When Bailey’s TV producer pitched a reality show about building the factory, Bailey was shocked that the network picked it up. She’s not shocked that many of the Amish working on the jobsite refuse to be on camera. However, local community organizer Margot Rawlings is ecstatic—because the filming coincides with Harvest’s First Annual Blueberry Bash. Margot believes the media attention will make Harvest the most popular destination in Holmes County. But now, the county may become known for all the wrong reasons . . . Bailey will have to sift through a crowd of angry villagers and thousands of blueberries to solve the murder, save her new venture, and protect her Amish friends. At the same time, she and her longtime boyfriend, Aiden Brody, are making big decisions about their future together—a future that may be in jeopardy if Bailey is the next pick on a killer’s list . . . Recipe Included! Dollycas's Thoughts We arrive in Harvest, Ohio just in time for the First Annual Blueberry Bash complete with a Blueberry Princess, blueberry pies, and blueberry fudge. While Bailey King has been busy making tons of fudge she also has to deal with a contractor who has stopped working on the Swissman Sweets Candy Factory until she pays him more money. She is not falling for his games. If he can't abide by the contract they signed including the payment schedule he was fired. To add more stress her network has green-lighted a reality show about building the factory so she has a cameraman and a pushy producer following her everywhere she goes. Margot Rawlings, the organizer of all the special events in Harvest is practically dancing with glee about the project because it includes the Blueberry Bash and it will bring tons of tourists to the little town that thrives on visitor dollars. But tragedy strikes soon after the first day of the bash when Bailey finds her former contractor dead in her shell of a factory. It isn't long before she finds out he angered quite a few of his customers, even some of the Amish. So she has another murder mystery to solve and the police's main suspect hits pretty close to home. She is excited that her boyfriend Aiden is coming back to Harvest to take his career in a new direction but he isn't going to like her getting involved in another murder. Can she track down the real killer, get the factory back on track, and really plan a future with Aiden? Or will she be the killer's next victim? Ms. Flower has created a very strong core cast of characters in her Amish Candy Shop Mystery Series, both human and animal. The humans are so genuine and true to life in a small town where the English and Amish reside close together. Many are unsure about Bailey's factory including her Amish grandmother but Bailey hopes they will see the many good things the factory will bring, like jobs. Bailey and others like community organizer Margot Rawlings are very mindful and consider the Amish community in everything they do. Bailey also opens her heart to people like her cousin who has left the Amish way of life to pursue a life among the English. As for the animals, Jethro, the miniature pot-bellied pig spends a lot of time with Bailey in this story but her rabbit and the candy shop's kitten are always around too. I love how they all get along so well together, better than most people. Bailey's contractor was not a nice man and he was clearly hiding something. After his death so much was revealed that the suspect list really grew. Bailey worked hard trying to get answers and I love tagging along with her and she tries to get all the clues and evidence to fall into place. In Blueberry Blunder she is hindered by a television producer with her own agenda especially when Bailey is trying to get information from members of the Amish community who don't allow their pictures to be taken or their happenings filmed.  Bailey was their champion and I loved how she stood up for them. The ending served up quite a surprise, someone I thought maybe was behind everything but I discounted them early when I clearly should have kept them on my list. I will say the ending though was a bit abrupt as a conversation turned into a huge reveal. I was like WHOA! That was not how I thought that would happen. I loved being surprised but still thought there would be more tippy-toeing around before the guilty party would be apprehended but it was a great conclusion for the mystery. After the mystery was all wrapped up a wonderful event took place followed quickly by another. I had a tear or two in my eye. Thank you, Amanda Flower for such a fantastic ending. Blueberry Blunder has everything cozy lovers love. Fabulous characters, a marvelous mystery, perfect amounts of humor and romance all set in a town everyone would love to visit.  I am so excited for this series to continue.

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About This Author Amanda Flower is a USA Today bestselling and Agatha Award-winning author of over thirty-five mystery novels. Her novels have received starred reviews from Library Journal, Publishers Weekly, and Romantic Times, and she had been featured in USA Today, First for Women, and Woman’s World. She currently writes for Penguin-Random House (Berkley), Kensington, Hallmark Publishing, Crooked Lane Books, and Sourcebooks. In addition to being a writer, she was a librarian for fifteen years. Today, Flower and her husband own a farm and recording studio, and they live in Northeast Ohio with their two adorable cats. Author Links: Website  Pen Name Website     Facebook    Twitter    Goodreads    Pinterest

Also by Amanda Flower

In Farm's Way: An Organic Cozy Mystery (Farm to Table Mysteries) Cozy Mystery 3rd in Series Setting - Michigan Poisoned Pen Press (February 24, 2023) Mass Market Paperback ‏ : ‎ 312 pages ISBN-10 ‏ : ‎ 1492699977 ISBN-13 ‏ : ‎ 978-1492699972 Kindle ASIN ‏ : ‎ B09Z7C5S4F

When the biggest catch at the annual Ice Fishing Derby is the body of brewmaster Wallace, Shiloh must reel in the killer before her farm goes belly-up.  Shiloh Bellamy still expects the last few Winter months to be busy with repairs, spring planning, and networking with local businesses. She might even be able to broker a new partnership with Fields Brewery and its organic brewer's association. Well, she could if the owner, Wallace, wasn't found murdered at the county Ice Fishing Derby. Once again, Shiloh gets tangled up in the investigation when the police ignore an entire crop of suspects to blame one of her friends. She'll have to dig deep to find the truth, reel in a killer, and convince her city-slicker pug to wear his winter boots. But with Bellamy Farm still struggling, can Shiloh spare the time to look into the town's fishy characters? Or will her dream farm be the next thing floating belly up? Dollycas's Thoughts Winter in Cherry Glen means plenty of ice, snow, and slippery roads. It also means the annual Lake Skegemon Ice Fishing Derby. Shi's dad Sully will be out on the ice with Quinn and Hazel. This year it also means a contest at Fields' Brewing Company to name a new brewmaster. Each contestant had to enter a cherry beer. Shiloh has plenty to keep her busy trying to come up with ways to save the family farm but her best friend Kristy's husband Kent is one of the finalists in the contest so she had to go to the party. Kristy thought for sure his cherry stout would win but when owner Wallace Fields announced the winner it wasn't Kent. The next day Shiloh arrives at the derby to drop her father off and work in the Cherry Glen booth with Kristy. She gets waylaid on her way to the booth when her pug Huckleberry drags her over to see something under the ice. It's Wallace Fields and he won't be catching any fish or brewing any more beer.  The police quickly place Kent at the top of the suspect list which means Shiloh is going to have to break a lot of ice to get them to take a look at a bunch of other suspects. She has to be careful too or she could be the next one swimming with the fishes. My heart was just breaking for Shiloh several times during this story. She is working so hard to keep the family farm and make the repairs it needs. Going organic may be the answer but it's a long process.  That is a lot of weight on her shoulders. Then her relationship with her father has not improved much at all. Seeing him have a great relationship with Hazel makes things even harder. She is happy they are friends and have fun together, she just wishes for a similar relationship with him herself. Then there is Quinn, who put Shi firmly in the friend zone when they would be great as a couple raising Hazel together. He is going to be sorry if she moves on with someone else. All of Ms. Flowers's characters are interesting with great real-life connections. I do love Shiloh's pug, Huckleberry. He and my dog have a lot in common when it comes to proper attire for canines in the winter months. Too Funny. Three stories in and I am very invested in these characters. There were several viable suspects when it comes to the brewery owner's death. I really enjoyed the way Shiloh threw herself into her investigation, even if it did put her into some tricky situations. The police warned her several times to butt out of their case. As they predicted her pursuit of the truth took an ugly turn that set up a scary reveal. It gave me chills. The guilty party was not on my radar at all. Readers were introduced to several new characters in this book and my focus was cleverly diverted to a different one by the author. Winter in Michigan is pretty darn similar to that in Wisconsin. So the weather outside my window was the same as it was at the derby and the Bellamy farm.  A nice furry blanket, a Christmas present from my daughter-in-law, and a couple of cups of hot chocolate kept me warm and toasty as I read about the frigid weather in Cherry Glen and the surrounding area. In Farm's Way was full of cherry beer and winter fun, a captivating mystery, and true-to-life characters. I really enjoyed the entire story. There are some more interesting times ahead for Shiloh so I am counting the days until I can return to Cherry Glen and the Bellamy Farm next year.

Your Escape Into A Good Book Travel Agent

About the Author Amanda Flower, a USA Today bestselling and Agatha Award-winning author of over twenty-five cozy mystery novels, started her writing career in elementary school when she read a story she wrote to her sixth-grade class and had the class in stitches with her description of being stuck on the top of a Ferris wheel. She knew at that moment she’d found her calling of making people laugh with her words. In addition to being an author, Amanda is a former librarian with fifteen years of experience in Northeast Ohio. Author Links: Website  Pen Name Website     Facebook    Twitter    Goodreads    Pinterest

Also by Amanda Flower

Coming May 23, 2023

Coming October 24, 2023

Good Day!  Flowers and Foul Play by Amanda Flower comes out tomorrow (5/8).  Check out my review of the first book in A Magic Garden Mystery series.  Fiona is in for a magical adventure.  Happy Reading!