Once Upon a Grind by Cleo Coyle - Review and Giveaway

I received this book in exchange for a fair and honest review

Once Upon a Grind by Cleo Coyle

A Coffeehouse Mystery # 14

ISBN: 9780425270851

Hardcover

Synopsis: From the New York Times bestselling author of Billionaire Blend comes an enchanting new entry in the “satisfyingly rich” Coffeehouse Mystery series.

Includes wicked good recipes!

When coffeehouse manager turned amateur sleuth Clare Cosi roasts “magic” beans for a Fairy Tale Fall event, she brews up a vision that leads to a sleeping beauty in Central Park; a big, bad wolf of Wall Street; and an East Side enclave with storybook secrets…

Fairy tale fever has descended on New York City. Broadway fans are flocking to Red Riding Hood: The Musical; museums are exhibiting art inspired by the Brothers Grimm; and Clare Cosi and her merry band of baristas give their coffee truck a “Jack and the Beanstalk” makeover for a Central Park festival. Clare’s coffee hunter ex-husband contributes a bag of African beans with alleged magical properties. His octogenarian mother entertains customers with readings of the grinds, but Clare remains skeptical–until she receives a vision that helps her find a young model’s body in the park’s woods.

The police dismiss “sleeping beauty” as the victim of a drug overdose. Then Clare uncovers evidence that points to a list of suspects–from a New York Giant to quite a few wicked witches–and a cold case murder that reaches back to the Cold War. Now Clare is really in the woods with a dangerous predator on her heels and an investigation that leads from a secret Prince Charming Club right back to her own NYPD detective boyfriend. If she doesn’t solve this mystery, those magic beans predict an unhappy ending.

Review: This is one of my favorite cozy series to read. Cleo does not disappoint with Clare trying to solve the mystery. I think this one was even more fun as it has the fairy tale theme, which reminds you of the childhood stories we all know. All of the characters are Village Blend are so like-able and fun, that I enjoy "visiting" them with each book. Another thing that I enjoy is that Cleo takes you on a few twists and turns so you don't solve the mystery too soon. This is such a fun book that you can read it in a day. I look forward to the next installment in this series. 

About This Author

CLEO COYLE is the pseudonym for Alice Alfonsi, writing in collaboration with her husband, Marc Cerasini.  CLEO COYLE grew up in a small town near Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. After earning scholarships to study writing at Carnegie Mellon and American Universities, she began her career as a cub reporter for The New York Times. Now an author of popular fiction and New York Times bestselling media tie-in writer, Cleo lives and works in New York City, where she collaborates with her husband (also a bestselling author) to pen the Coffeehouse Mysteries for Penguin. Together Cleo and her husband also write the Haunted Bookshop Mysteries under the name Alice Kimberly. When not haunting coffeehouses, hunting ghosts, or rescuing stray cats, Cleo and Marc are bestselling media tie-in writers who have penned properties for NBC, Lucasfilm, Disney, Fox, Imagine, and MGM. In their spare time they cook like crazy and drink a lot of java. You can learn more about Cleo, her husband, and the books they write by visitingwww.CoffeehouseMystery.com.

Author Links

Visit Cleo online: www.coffeehousemystery.com

Friend Cleo on Facebook:www.Facebook.com/CleoCoyle

Follow Cleo on Twitter: https://twitter.com/cleocoyle/

Guest Post:  A NOTE FROM CLEO

Thanks to Angela for hosting us today and happy holiday greetings to everyone! For over a decade, our wonderful readers have been meeting us once a year at the Village Blend coffeehouse, where coffee and crime are always brewing. If you are new to our Coffeehouse Mystery series, no worries. You can read Once Upon a Grind as a stand-alone novel.

To Marc and I, this latest entry is more than a murder mystery. It’s also a novel about the magic and power of story. That’s why we chose the most basic and beloved stories of our culture—fairy tales—to serve as our theme.

As our Coffeehouse Escape blog tour progresses this month, we’ll share more about writing the book, and we’ll give you a new link to something special at each stop. We hope you’ll join us.

Read the Prologue and First Chapter of ONCE UPON A GRIND by clicking here.

SECRET CODE: The 1st of the 9 words in Cleo’s Secret Code Contest is IF (Learn more about entering Cleo’s Secret Code giveaway here.)

May your holidays be bright!

~ Alice and Marc (Cleo Coyle)

Giveaways:

We are lucky enough to have two giveaways here today. One that I will do and one by Cleo Coyle. Be sure to enter both. 

My Giveaway is for 1 hardback copy of Once Upon a Grind - US residents only. 

Prize Pack from Cleo includes: PRIZE DESCRIPTION:

Cleo Coyle's Coffeehouse Escape Tour Giveaway - Prize Package Includes...

* An autographed copy of Cleo's brand new book, ONCE UPON A GRIND, in its beautiful first-edition hardcover format

* A complete set of all 13 Coffeehouse Mysteries published to date, each one personally inscribed by Cleo to the winner 

* A durable, custom-designed Coffeehouse Mystery Tote Bag 

* A freshly-roasted package of Billionaire’s Blend, a hand-crafted coffee created by One Good Woman Fine Coffees and Teas as a tribute to Cleo's recent bestseller BILLIONAIRE BLEND.

* A Coffeehouse Mystery cup, featuring a favorite saying of Madame's, the octogenarian owner of The Village Blend: “Survive everything. And do it with style.”

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