Dying for Strawberries by Sharon Farrow - Review

I voluntarily reviewed an ARC copy of this book

Published: October 25, 2016

Number of pages: 288

Genre: Cozy Mystery

Series: Berry Basket Mystery #1

Synopsis:

With seasonal crowds flocking to its sandy beaches, lively downtown shops, and the Berry Basket, a berry emporium with something for everyone, the lakeshore village of Oriole Point is ripe for summer fun—and murder.

Much has changed for Marlee Jacob since she returned to Oriole Point, Michigan, three years ago. Between running the Berry Basket, dodging local gossip, and whipping up strawberry muffins, smoothies, and margaritas to celebrate the town’s first annual Strawberry Moon Bash, the twenty-nine-year-old hardly has time for her fiancé, let alone grim memories of her old life in New York . . .

But unfortunately for Marlee, Oriole Point is muddled with secrets of its own. First her friend Irina disappears after an ominous dream. Next the seediest man in town threatens to crush her business. Then an unknown person nearly kills her on the night of the Bash. When she discovers a dead body while searching for Irina, Marlee realizes she’ll have to foil a killer’s plot herself—before the past permanently stains her future.

My thoughts:

I thought this was a good beginning to a new cozy series. It would be so much fun to visit the Berry Basket during the Strawberry Moos Bash without the murder of course. I can just taste those strawberry muffins. The author did a good job with giving us some charming characters to fall in love with as well as a location we will want to keep visiting. This was a quick read for me as I could not wait to find out who was the murder. Marlee seemed to like to get herself stuck in bad situtations but luckily always came out on top in the end. I think it is a good mystery when I have a difficult time figuring out the "whodunit" and this book did that for me. I am looking forward to more books in this series and to see what happens next. 

About the author:

Sharon Farrow is the latest pen name of award winning author Sharon Pisacreta. Born and raised in Detroit, Michigan, Sharon has been a freelance writer since her twenties, with her first novel released in 1998. Published in mystery, fantasy, and romance, Sharon currently writes The Berry Basket cozy mystery series. She is also one half of the writing team D.E. Ireland, who co-author the Agatha nominated Eliza Doolittle and Henry Higgins mysteries.

Although Sharon has lived in Rhode Island, New York and New Jersey, she calls Michigan home, specifically the beautiful coastline of Lake Michigan. Indeed, she is so enamored of the sand dunes, orchards and beaches of western Michigan, she set The Berry Basket mysteries in a town very similar to the one she is lucky to live in.