Inside the box you will find : A fudgy Terrys choc orange brownie , a delicious white choc and gingerbread blondie , a choc Christmas tree cupcakes , a gingerbread cupcake , a NYC Terrys triple choc cookie , a white choc and gingerbread cookie! And a mixture of Christmas sweets 'n' treats! Perfectly presented in a Christmassy box🎅🏻

I also guessed who the killer was very early in the book but I believe that has more to do with me being genre savvy rather than a failing of the author's. It was such a cute addition how often Ava referred to Aurora Teagarden or the Hallmark Mystery Channel, referencing her wealth of cozy mystery knowledge to try to prove her own innocence. While she seriously makes light of the fact that she’s the prime suspect in a murder she didn’t commit, I loved the references 🙂 And I agree with her best friend Ruby … the girl doesn’t understand that the situation she’s in is DANGEROUS! There was so much to love about this book. The cute kitten, the bumbling 'investigation' that Ava does, the horrible Francine that part of you is so glad about what happened to her, Ruby the ever faithful friend and of course the sexy policeman just gives you a nicely balanced cast of characters.

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There is just enough cute romance that it isn't nauseating, and as soon as someone talks to animals, you have me won over.

I enjoyed this author's attempt at my favourite genre. She hit a lot of the marks of a good baking cozy. However I feel she fell a bit short on why her main character would be invested in solving the mystery she finds herself embroiled in, as well as the reasoning of why the local police detective investigating said case would be interested in a romantic relationship with her. Why she wants to be in a relationship with him is made uncomfortably clear - because he's hot. (Also, not specific to Ms. Siefert's work alone but, can't we have a cozy where the main character is NOT involved romantically or familially with the local police force? Please?)Are the monks of Assumption Abbey uniquely blessed by a fruitcake-loving almighty? Your guess is as good as mine. Raised Evangelical, my dubious faith now mostly involves asking an unseen God to keep my transatlantic flight in the air until I’ve lived long enough to see how I look with a platinum blonde shag. But like I said, I can’t help but envy the monks’ steadfastness—and if anything, the whole operation is awfully poetic. The rest of the monks are Cistercians, members of the Trappist movement’s slightly more liberal predecessor. The Cistercians hail from Assumption’s brother monastery in Vietnam. The Vietnamese monks vary in age from their late twenties to sixties, and they’ve essentially taken over the abbey to ensure the operation continues after the last Trappist passes away. Perhaps surprisingly, the Vietnamese newcomers are equally passionate about the fruitcake game. “Fruitcake isn’t something that’s necessarily a popular thing in Vietnam, at least not in the traditional sense,” Hampton says. “We also found that the Vietnamese monks didn’t have much of a taste for sugar.” Still, the power of the holy fruitcake compelled them—not only have the Vietnamese monks taken over bakery operations, they’ve also created a strong Vietnamese customer base for the abbey. Now, Hampton estimates that cakes shipped to Vietnam make up roughly two or three percent of sales every year. The monks weren’t surprised by Hampton’s assessment. Once again, these are iconic cakes, and the monks know it. “We try to keep first things first by remembering that our essential vocation is to seek God truly as monks,” says Father Cyprian. “In his Rule for Monasteries, St. Benedict tells us to do everything for the glory of God, so we try to make good quality products.” Emphasis on the quality. The monks don’t care about deconstructing the cake or turning it into a foam or exploring any of the other trendy ways people bastardize age-old recipes. Instead, the monks lean into faith. Faith that their recipe works every time, faith in their lifestyle of contemplation and study. Faith that God will continue to provide, even in a horrifying year. too cutesy. too many characters. I could tell it was a spin-off & since i hadn't read other books by writer that was a bit annoying and made me feel a little left out. This was a first time read by this author for me.

To recap, this book for me was not enjoyable. It feels like I'm cutting myself from flavorful food and wasting my time over frothy and airy junk food. Ever since I marginalised cozies I have been doing well. But it is proving difficult to turf them out forever.

As well as not being fun to read, cozies are a terrible subject for a review. One cannot get creative as there is no room to. The choice of the victim is usually better than the choice of the culprit. The saving grace of this cozy is that it takes a joke and turns it into a plot twist.