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Bite-sized Bakery #1
Murder By Chocolate
What’s the worst that can go wrong on a blind date? Murder.
Ruby Holmes wants to travel, sell delicious baked treats from her food truck, and never stay in one place for too long. Then the unexpected happens: upon arriving in Carmel Springs, Maine, she’s asked on a blind date by a handsome fisherman.
When Ruby goes to meet him, she finds his dead body instead. A murderer has struck, and the cunning detective who ‘runs’ the town names her as the prime suspect. Ruby can’t run, but staying might mean falling victim herself.
Can she solve the murder in time?
Ruby Holmes wants to travel, sell delicious baked treats from her food truck, and never stay in one place for too long. Then the unexpected happens: upon arriving in Carmel Springs, Maine, she’s asked on a blind date by a handsome fisherman.
When Ruby goes to meet him, she finds his dead body instead. A murderer has struck, and the cunning detective who ‘runs’ the town names her as the prime suspect. Ruby can’t run, but staying might mean falling victim herself.
Can she solve the murder in time?
110 pages, Kindle Edition
First published October 11, 2019
863 people are currently reading
976 people want to read
About the author
Rosie A. Point
139 books616 followersRosie A. Point is a USA Today Bestselling cozy mystery author who loves writing about food, small towns, and cats. Her favorite books are ones you can snuggle up with under a cozy blanket on a winter's day. Born and raised in South Africa, her books are all set in small towns in the United States. She dreams of visiting the places she writes about in her books.
Rosie wants to hear from you. Whether it’s about a recipe or one of her books, you can contact her on her website. Join her reader club today!
https://www.rosiepointbooks.com/
Rosie wants to hear from you. Whether it’s about a recipe or one of her books, you can contact her on her website. Join her reader club today!
https://www.rosiepointbooks.com/
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 144 reviews
March 12, 2021
short and sweet!
October 23, 2021
This book was really enjoyable! A while back I've read another book from this series and I had enjoyed it as well. So I'm happy that I was able to read the first one and get a glimpse on how everything started! I can't wait to read the next adventure Ruby and Bee will get themselves into!
March 12, 2022
Not the worst, but in terms of food truck cozy mysteries, Harper Lin definitely did it better with Sweets and a Stabbing.
I will say I did enjoy the characters in Murder By Chocolate (although not enough on their own to buy the next book). Ruby and Bee are both set up to be given a good backstory that I wanted to find out, but nothing is revealed in this installment, so it kind of seems like the only hook they provide. In short, I'm not sure what to think of all of this.
As for the mystery, it was pretty predictable and relied more on everyone cheating on each other than on any actual plot device. Most of this was easy to figure out from the beginning, and it seemed ridiculous to follow through with it. I did not get a lot out of the story in this way.
I will say, this book makes me want to reread and continue with Sweets and a Stabbing and Harper Lin's Pink Cupcake series more than it actually makes me want to continue with this series. So I guess that isn't a great advertisement for the book as a whole. Overall, it was very mediocre.
I will say I did enjoy the characters in Murder By Chocolate (although not enough on their own to buy the next book). Ruby and Bee are both set up to be given a good backstory that I wanted to find out, but nothing is revealed in this installment, so it kind of seems like the only hook they provide. In short, I'm not sure what to think of all of this.
As for the mystery, it was pretty predictable and relied more on everyone cheating on each other than on any actual plot device. Most of this was easy to figure out from the beginning, and it seemed ridiculous to follow through with it. I did not get a lot out of the story in this way.
I will say, this book makes me want to reread and continue with Sweets and a Stabbing and Harper Lin's Pink Cupcake series more than it actually makes me want to continue with this series. So I guess that isn't a great advertisement for the book as a whole. Overall, it was very mediocre.
May 16, 2020
Ruby Holmes is eager to escape her evil ex and her past as an investigative reporter by traveling around selling delicious baked goods from a food truck. She's partnered with an older woman, Bee, who does the baking and Ruby will handle the people aspect. Excited for her new venture and eager to open in Maine, Ruby can't sleep a wink her first night. While walking on the beach that night, she meets local dude Owen Pelletier who asks her on a date! Ruby doesn't really feel like dating anyone but what harm can meeting Owen just once do? Apparently a lot because Ruby arrives at the restaurant to find it closed and Owen dead. The police automatically suspect Ruby because she's a newcomer to town and shut down the food truck. Ruby is determined to clear her name and get back to business.
This story is OK. It was a pretty typical cozy. The whodunit was a surprise. I didn't guess until the end, before Ruby. The writing is fairly pedestrian and I didn't feel connected to Ruby or Bee in any way. Owen is a super creep. It's a dark, moonlit night and he hits on a complete stranger by scaring her with a ghost story. EW! The revelations show that I have better instincts than Ruby. No wonder she has an evil ex. Ruby isn't all that clever either. She stumbles around confronting suspects trying to get answers and willingly goes off with strangers and murderers. So much for investigative reporter instincts. She's also a cat person and for some reason I don't connect to cat loving heroines. I'd rather have a dog. Bee is fun but a bit of a mystery. I suspect she may have ties to law enforcement or something similar.
Detective Jones is "the incarnation of every small town mean police officer cliché." That line from the novel sums him right up. He's stupid and lazy. He wants to suspect Ruby because he doesn't believe any of the townspeople could have committed murder because he's never investigated a murder before. It's easier to believe an outsider did it. There is another guest at the B&B but he's never questioned. No one else is a suspect except Ruby. What the heck? Other local yokels include Grace, a waitress at the seafood restaurant where Ruby found Owen's body. She sure does love to gossip especially to complete strangers. Doesn't she have anything better to do? Miller, the cook at the restaurant, is a giant moron. He can't get his story straight but he goes straight to Ruby's suspect list because the one thing that's consistent is that he does not like Owen. I don't like Miller either but I don't think he's smart enough to be a murderer. Owen's Uncle Benjamin is the restaurant lobster supplier in town. Something happened to make him not want to sell lobster to the Lobster Shack. Could that be motivation for murder? There doesn't seem to be any family feeling there. Hannah, Owen's sister, is scary. She's big, loud, mean and temperamental. She goes ballistic on Ruby without having any facts to go on. Ruby thinks Hannah is scary enough to be a murderer. I say that's just so completely awful! As much as I WANT to murder my siblings sometimes, I'd never actually do it.
I didn't care who killed Owen and I didn't care enough about Ruby to want to read more of these books. They're short and simple reads for a bit of light bedtime reading but not for me.
This story is OK. It was a pretty typical cozy. The whodunit was a surprise. I didn't guess until the end, before Ruby. The writing is fairly pedestrian and I didn't feel connected to Ruby or Bee in any way. Owen is a super creep. It's a dark, moonlit night and he hits on a complete stranger by scaring her with a ghost story. EW! The revelations show that I have better instincts than Ruby. No wonder she has an evil ex. Ruby isn't all that clever either. She stumbles around confronting suspects trying to get answers and willingly goes off with strangers and murderers. So much for investigative reporter instincts. She's also a cat person and for some reason I don't connect to cat loving heroines. I'd rather have a dog. Bee is fun but a bit of a mystery. I suspect she may have ties to law enforcement or something similar.
Detective Jones is "the incarnation of every small town mean police officer cliché." That line from the novel sums him right up. He's stupid and lazy. He wants to suspect Ruby because he doesn't believe any of the townspeople could have committed murder because he's never investigated a murder before. It's easier to believe an outsider did it. There is another guest at the B&B but he's never questioned. No one else is a suspect except Ruby. What the heck? Other local yokels include Grace, a waitress at the seafood restaurant where Ruby found Owen's body. She sure does love to gossip especially to complete strangers. Doesn't she have anything better to do? Miller, the cook at the restaurant, is a giant moron. He can't get his story straight but he goes straight to Ruby's suspect list because the one thing that's consistent is that he does not like Owen. I don't like Miller either but I don't think he's smart enough to be a murderer. Owen's Uncle Benjamin is the restaurant lobster supplier in town. Something happened to make him not want to sell lobster to the Lobster Shack. Could that be motivation for murder? There doesn't seem to be any family feeling there. Hannah, Owen's sister, is scary. She's big, loud, mean and temperamental. She goes ballistic on Ruby without having any facts to go on. Ruby thinks Hannah is scary enough to be a murderer. I say that's just so completely awful! As much as I WANT to murder my siblings sometimes, I'd never actually do it.
I didn't care who killed Owen and I didn't care enough about Ruby to want to read more of these books. They're short and simple reads for a bit of light bedtime reading but not for me.
March 24, 2021
Bite-sized
I read this book quickly. I don't know if it was because it was due to it being short (few pages) or if I enjoyed. Both are true.
I read this book quickly. I don't know if it was because it was due to it being short (few pages) or if I enjoyed. Both are true.
October 27, 2021
Book 1 Ruby decided she wanted to run a good truck with baked goods. Her older friend Bee ( well she really just met her Ruby put an ad in paper and Bee responded) and her were going to go to town's and serve their delicious sweets ( well actually Bee would) . They ended up in the 1 st town Carmel Springs. The truck was closed for the day. But a handsome man named Owen would like to try something so Ruby said that she had something Mid Side Chocolate mini cake. She was going to eat it herself. But anyways he ask her on a date. She accepted. So when she went to meet him at a restaurant named the Lobster Shack it was closed right and no one was there.Ruby was thinking why would he ask her to go here.When she went in she discovered he was dead the weapon was a lobster mallet. The story goes on with how The Lobster Shack employees Grace his girlfriend and Muller Owen sister Hannah boyfriend were suspious. I really thought it lacked something in the story. But Bee was hilarious she seemed like a cool grandma.
May 12, 2021
I couldn't put it down til I was finished reading
I would recommend this book to everyone. No lovey dovey talk, lots of action and mystery. There is even a cat.
Lots of twists and turns, drama, mystery.
Live these types of books
I would recommend this book to everyone. No lovey dovey talk, lots of action and mystery. There is even a cat.
Lots of twists and turns, drama, mystery.
Live these types of books
December 6, 2020
This is the first book in this series, so it was pretty light on the past history of Ruby and Bee and I will assume that in the later books it will fill them out more, or at least I hope the author does, because at this point there is not much to them.
I went a head and gave this book a 4, but what I really wanted was a 3.5. It wasn't bad enough to give it a 3. It's a super fast read, I read it in under 24 hours.
This would be a great "on the plane travel book"
I went a head and gave this book a 4, but what I really wanted was a 3.5. It wasn't bad enough to give it a 3. It's a super fast read, I read it in under 24 hours.
This would be a great "on the plane travel book"
April 12, 2022
had potential , didn’t deliver
Rating: 1/5
I try not to leave negative reviews - especially for self pubs - so I’m gonna start with some positives. The plot was good. The idea of a guy ending up dead in a closed restaurant after orchestrating a date fits right in with the genre while still having the potential to be original. I enjoyed that aspect. I also enjoyed Bee’s sense of humor and her lease on life.
What I didn’t enjoy was the book itself. The writing felt very repetitive and the MC was flat. We get it, she’s got some sort of sordid mysterious past. Also, the last few pages? What a joke.
But also, I didn’t like how easy it was to skip a page or two ( or six) and not miss anything. If the author had spent a little more time developing her other characters, and maybe drawn out the ending a little more, the book would have felt more engaging. I just wasn’t buying into this one.
I won’t be picking up the next book in the series.
Rating: 1/5
I try not to leave negative reviews - especially for self pubs - so I’m gonna start with some positives. The plot was good. The idea of a guy ending up dead in a closed restaurant after orchestrating a date fits right in with the genre while still having the potential to be original. I enjoyed that aspect. I also enjoyed Bee’s sense of humor and her lease on life.
What I didn’t enjoy was the book itself. The writing felt very repetitive and the MC was flat. We get it, she’s got some sort of sordid mysterious past. Also, the last few pages? What a joke.
But also, I didn’t like how easy it was to skip a page or two ( or six) and not miss anything. If the author had spent a little more time developing her other characters, and maybe drawn out the ending a little more, the book would have felt more engaging. I just wasn’t buying into this one.
I won’t be picking up the next book in the series.
November 21, 2020
Ruby and Bee, two bakers are off in their food truck to deliver happiness everywhere they stop at as they travel around the United States spreading joy….only on Ruby’s first date with a fisherman, she walks on him dead, in the restaurant he told her to meet him in. 184 pages
November 10, 2021
Cute short story about two women, Ruby and Bea travelling the country in their food truck. They stop in Maine, and Ruby is invited to dinner by a customer. When she gets to the diner, which is for some reason closed, she discovers his dead body, with a lobster mallet near by. Naturally, the duo has to investigate the murder as Ruby is a suspect. What they discover is nothing but a Peyton Place soap opera but everything is eventually figured out. They decide to stay in the town for a few more weeks and the book ends just as newcomers arrive at the guest house they are staying at. Not a cliff hanger, as the case is solved, but clearly a small intro to the next book.
December 29, 2021
Seaside cozy mystery
While I liked the characters in the story, there were questions and mysteries left unanswered. I hate that. They weren't little questions either. They weren't cliffhangers as far as I could tell. No reason for them to be in the story if they weren't going to be solved.
While I liked the characters in the story, there were questions and mysteries left unanswered. I hate that. They weren't little questions either. They weren't cliffhangers as far as I could tell. No reason for them to be in the story if they weren't going to be solved.
November 20, 2022
Short and sweet
This was indeed a bite sized mystery as the name suggests! Ruby and Bee are quirky and the
mystery about their pasts seems interesting enough to make me want to read more in this series.
This was indeed a bite sized mystery as the name suggests! Ruby and Bee are quirky and the
mystery about their pasts seems interesting enough to make me want to read more in this series.
July 30, 2020
Cute, cozy mystery
June 30, 2022
Short and clean mystery. I would recommend this as a transitioning book from teen to young adult.
It was just okay from this seasoned mystery reader.
It was just okay from this seasoned mystery reader.
January 29, 2023
Short and sweet.
August 23, 2024
Love a cute cozy mystery. Great narration.
May 21, 2021
Cute Travelers Mystery!
This book left me wanting to read even more about Ruby and Bee's food truck travels...and we definitely need to learn more about Bee's past. So come along for the ride!
This book left me wanting to read even more about Ruby and Bee's food truck travels...and we definitely need to learn more about Bee's past. So come along for the ride!
May 28, 2022
No lobster
Book needs a little more proof reading. It also seems to me that it needs more transition. Not bad but with a little work could be so much better.
Book needs a little more proof reading. It also seems to me that it needs more transition. Not bad but with a little work could be so much better.
February 12, 2020
This is a fun new series featuring a traveling food truck...at least the author won't be killing off all the residents of the same town! I enjoyed the relationship between Ruby and Dee, although I suspect that Dee's smart mouth will get them into trouble on more than one occasion. Great twist to the final reveal. I definitely will read more stories about this duo, and hope that I learn more about the pair's unrevealed past.
October 17, 2019
Ruby Holmes is on a mission to follow her dreams. She has bought a food truck and plans on traveling to see the sights, selling yummy baked treats, and never staying in one place for long. When her trusty new side-kick on hand, Ruby arrives in Carmel Springs and is soon invited on a date with a handsome fisherman. When she meets him at the appointed place, she finds an empty restaurant and one very dead body. So much for getting back into the dating pool.
The local detective doesn’t appear to like outsiders in his town and soon puts Ruby on his number one list of prime suspects. To make sure she stays in town, he goes all out to impound her food truck and make sure it is returned a mess when he has to release it for lack of evidence. Ruby isn’t going to take things lying down and decides she is going to find the real murderer before her dreams as completely shattered.
If you love cozy mysteries with a well-written storyline, main characters that are loveable and the perfect heroine, quirky characters, curmudgeons of a detective, and lots of wit and humor, then this book is just what you are looking for.
I received a free copy of this book via Booksprout and am voluntarily leaving a review.
The local detective doesn’t appear to like outsiders in his town and soon puts Ruby on his number one list of prime suspects. To make sure she stays in town, he goes all out to impound her food truck and make sure it is returned a mess when he has to release it for lack of evidence. Ruby isn’t going to take things lying down and decides she is going to find the real murderer before her dreams as completely shattered.
If you love cozy mysteries with a well-written storyline, main characters that are loveable and the perfect heroine, quirky characters, curmudgeons of a detective, and lots of wit and humor, then this book is just what you are looking for.
I received a free copy of this book via Booksprout and am voluntarily leaving a review.
January 26, 2020
Fast food or fast murder
A good start to a new series. However still making my mind up about the two main characters. Each obviously has a story to tell but what it is we have as yet no clue. The plot is as old as the hills - love and jealousy.
Well they've made it and are now in a small town with her new business. A food truck. And completely different to her past life. However a date leads her to finding a body, meeting a detective that thinks she did it, having the entire community suspicious of them and then being fed lies and tall tales. The more they find out about the dead man the more of a troublemaking Casanova he appears. Add in a confiscated food truck which is then trashed when returned, affairs and hurt feelings. Will the two women work out who the killer is?
A good start to a new series. However still making my mind up about the two main characters. Each obviously has a story to tell but what it is we have as yet no clue. The plot is as old as the hills - love and jealousy.
Well they've made it and are now in a small town with her new business. A food truck. And completely different to her past life. However a date leads her to finding a body, meeting a detective that thinks she did it, having the entire community suspicious of them and then being fed lies and tall tales. The more they find out about the dead man the more of a troublemaking Casanova he appears. Add in a confiscated food truck which is then trashed when returned, affairs and hurt feelings. Will the two women work out who the killer is?
September 27, 2020
Meh
Too many improbables for me. Two women who barely know each other (bait to lure us in to buying more books in the series to discover their secrets) decide to drive cross country in a small food truck, stopping in small towns here and there for a few weeks and setting up as a mobile bakery. Given that they need to pay for gas, lodging, meals and supplies, I don't see how they expect to last on the road for long.
In a plot twist I always find weak and too convenient, a hostile character becomes amiable just in time to reveal a major clue.
The women rush off to find the murderer and perhaps make a citizen's arrest. At least one of them called the police first, for a change.
It's not hard to figure out who the killer is, and the next murder is telegraphed on the last page. Oh well. It was short and free.
Too many improbables for me. Two women who barely know each other (bait to lure us in to buying more books in the series to discover their secrets) decide to drive cross country in a small food truck, stopping in small towns here and there for a few weeks and setting up as a mobile bakery. Given that they need to pay for gas, lodging, meals and supplies, I don't see how they expect to last on the road for long.
In a plot twist I always find weak and too convenient, a hostile character becomes amiable just in time to reveal a major clue.
The women rush off to find the murderer and perhaps make a citizen's arrest. At least one of them called the police first, for a change.
It's not hard to figure out who the killer is, and the next murder is telegraphed on the last page. Oh well. It was short and free.
September 17, 2020
New author to this avid reader. Enjoyed the premise of a food truck mystery with a variety of tasty treats. While I am not fond of first person narrative, Rosie A. Point is an accomplished writer in first person. As a retiree, I related with silver haired Bee, Ruby's employee. Pets always add another dimension to the story. I am fond of cats. Well crafted page turning mystery.
October 11, 2019
Murder does not take a vacation, even in picturesque Carmel Springs, ME where lobster should be the only thing on a person's mind, not a lobster mallet to the head. Food fraud, politics, and infidelity, which one is enough to kill for? Find out as you follow Ruby, Bee, and their food truck in this introductory bite sized cozy.
I received a free copy of this book via Booksprout and am voluntarily leaving a review.
I received a free copy of this book via Booksprout and am voluntarily leaving a review.
October 20, 2020
This was the first book in the series and the first book I've read by this author. It's a cute cozy mystery that was light and a quick read. I've ordered the box set and I'm looking forward to reading the next book in the series.
January 14, 2020
Great start
Great start to the series. Characters are new and fun. Setting is different and can't wait to see more of the adventures of Bee and Ruby.
Great start to the series. Characters are new and fun. Setting is different and can't wait to see more of the adventures of Bee and Ruby.
February 27, 2021
Quick read. Nothing of great substance in the storyline though. This can be read just to pass some time or just before going to bed 🤷♀️.
November 10, 2022
It was a cute story with all the elements of a cozy mystery stuffed into 110 pages. The dialog was not great. For example:
“As in the tool? The tool used to crack open the lobster shell and get to the succulent meat inside?”
This doesn't work because no one speaks like this...unless they are obnoxious, or Kronk from The Emporer's New Groove. It would me more realistic if it were along the lines of, "As in the tool? The tool used to crack open the shell to get to the meat?" and I know that wasn't great either. Also, while I appreciate the "ayuh" in the text, it was only one of two Mainer slang phrases in the book. I had a difficult time buying that the story was taking place in Maine.
I gave the Author 2 stars for effort, but between the iffy dialogue and the tell instead of show descriptions, I wasn't impressed. The whole thing felt like it was thrown together for a middle school writing assignment. It wasn't great for as hard as I felt like the author was trying.
“As in the tool? The tool used to crack open the lobster shell and get to the succulent meat inside?”
This doesn't work because no one speaks like this...unless they are obnoxious, or Kronk from The Emporer's New Groove. It would me more realistic if it were along the lines of, "As in the tool? The tool used to crack open the shell to get to the meat?" and I know that wasn't great either. Also, while I appreciate the "ayuh" in the text, it was only one of two Mainer slang phrases in the book. I had a difficult time buying that the story was taking place in Maine.
I gave the Author 2 stars for effort, but between the iffy dialogue and the tell instead of show descriptions, I wasn't impressed. The whole thing felt like it was thrown together for a middle school writing assignment. It wasn't great for as hard as I felt like the author was trying.
May 7, 2022
It was cute, short and well, I was going to say simple but not really because the end kind of confused me as to what the true motive was. The main character Ruby needs more personality because she fell kind of flat and was just a cardboard cutout narrating the story. I can’t even remember what color her hair was or anything else about her. Also, there’s no lore to these characters. We know that they are running from their past, but what about their past? Do they even have family members? Also, I would rename the book to “Murder by Lobster: A Lobster Shack Mystery” since lobsters are talked about soooo much in this book. Why name it “Murder by Chocolate” and slap a chocolate cake on the cover if it’s just going to be themed around lobsters the whole time? However, I did enjoy this story and will try book 2.
Displaying 1 - 30 of 144 reviews