Holiday Grind

Coffeehouse Mystery #8

by Cleo Coyle

When Village Blend manager Clare Cosi finds a red-suited body in the snow, she adds solving Santa's slaying to her coffeehouse menu, only to discover the jolly old soul had a list that he was checking twice-and the folks on it were not very nice.

Genres: Mystery, Cozy Mystery, Christmas, Fiction, Cozy, Audiobook, Holiday

367 pages, Hardcover

First published November 3, 2009

About the author

Don't miss the newest title in Cleo's long-running Coffeehouse Mystery series (with more to come), NO ROAST FOR THE WEARY, a National Mystery Bestseller and triple #1 Amazon Category Bestseller. Join Cleo's Coffee Club for bonus recipes and giveaways: Click Here to Subscribe to Cleo’s Free Newsletter

CLEO COYLE is the New York Times and Publishers Weekly bestselling pseudonym for Alice Alfonsi, writing in collaboration with her husband, Marc Cerasini. With more than 1 million books sold, they have gained an enthusiastic following. Cleo's "relenlessly entertaining" (Criminal Element) novels have been translated into Spanish, Japanese, and Czech. Their books have earned starred reviews from Library Journal and Kirkus, Best of Year selection honors from multiple reviewers, and have been recommended by Booklist as among the best culinary mysteries for core library mystery collections.

When not haunting coffeehouses, hunting ghosts, or wrangling their rescued stray cats, Alice and Marc are New York Times bestselling media tie-in writers who have penned properties for Lucasfilm, NBC, Fox, Disney, Imagine, Toho, and MGM. One of those projects (ghostwritten by Alice Alfonsi) was named by Entertainment Weekly as the best media tie-in book written that year.

CONNECT WITH CLEO at CleoCoyle.com and CoffeehouseMystery.com

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CLEO'S TWO BESTSELLING SERIES:

Cleo’s Coffeehouse Mystery series, celebrated for pioneering both the “urban cozy" and “coffee cozy” mystery genres, follows the adventures of amateur sleuth Clare Cosi, a single mom with a complicated love life who manages a Greenwich Village coffeehouse and a crew of quirky baristas who helps her solve perplexing crimes.

Cleo’s Haunted Bookshop Mystery series, hailed as a highly original and "utterly charming" (Mystery Scene) blend of cozy and hardboiled genres, features an earnest young New England widow who catches criminals with the help of a gumshoe ghost, the irrepressible spirit of a tough private detective who’d been gunned down in her bookshop decades before.

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LATEST BOOK NEWS:

The newest title in Cleo's long-running Coffeehouse Mystery series is NO ROAST FOR THE WEARY, on sale April 1st and already a national mystery bestseller and triple #1 Amazon category bestseller. Cleo's previous release, BULLETPROOF BARISTA, was a "wildly entertaining" (Criminal Elment) national mystery bestseller; a #1 category best seller for Amazon; and honored with 2 Best of Year list selections by reviewers. It is now availalbe in a new paperback reprint edition along with the previous bestselling book in the series, HONEY ROASTED, "A honey of a tale" (Kirkus Reviews).

Cleo's latest Haunted Bookshop Mystery releases include THE GHOST AND THE STOLEN TEARS, praised by Kirkus as "a gem of a story." And THE GHOST GOES TO THE DOGS, a #1 category best seller for Amazon, which Fresh Fiction called "amazing and unique." Cleo is now writing the next Haunted Bookshop Mystery. Subscribe to Cleo’s Free Newsletter for updates on the pub date!

Reviews

[María · Rating 1 out of 5]

Bueno, voy a intentar escribir esta reseña por tercera vez, porque tengo mucha ira dentro y no consigo encontrar las palabras adecuadas.

Me tranquiliza ver que las reseñas en inglés son bastante más COHERENTES que las que he leído en español, que pasan por alto la misoginia FLAGRANTE de este libro porque supongo que, no sé, les da igual.

Les parecerá normal que un poli durante dos interrogatorios cosifique a una mujer de la forma más denigrante posible y varias veces. Y que el personaje principal lo pase por alto una y otra vez, incluso su compañero chino al que trata de forma racista insiste en que ES UN BUEN POLI. ¿Y sabéis cuál es el mensaje final? QUE TODOS MERECEMOS AMOR Y QUE A LA PROTAGONISTA LE PARECE BIEN QUE ESTÉ EL TÍO TONTEANDO CON SU HIJA.

De verdad, yo esto no me lo creo. Es un puto cozy mistery sobre la Navidad. Como se nota que el marido de la autora coescribe con ella, por el amor de Dios. Para colmo, en cada libro la protagonista (que, se insiste en ello a menudo, tiene MUCHO PECHO) acaba semidesnuda disfrazada CONTINUAMENTE. Empieza a ser un recurso bastante siniestro.

La trama en sí no tiene mucho aquel, ni es buena ni es mala, tampoco creo que yo sea objetiva para juzgarla en este momento. Solo quiero destrucción. Y que quién sea que esté publicando estos "cozy mistery" le eche una reflexión profunda.

Ni que decir tiene que ya he empezado mi lista de "Peores lecturas del 2025" y que no volveré a leer nada de Cleo Coyle.

[Caitlyn · Rating 1 out of 5]

Just truly awful. Just a terrible story full of poorly fleshed-out characters doing inexplicable things weirdly. I fucking love hating these books.

There are full quotes worth criticizing, but I've just started including them in my updates because they are too juicy to save for the end. Instead I just wanna point out my rising tide of insight as I went through this particular novel: similar to reading the third book in this series, I suddenly noticed things I'd been finding unpleasant for hundreds of pages.

1) These books have kind of dumb and irritating stereotypes as characters. I have seen this pointed out by other reviews in earlier books, but this was the first novel where it reached truly eye-roll levels. The juxtaposition of everybody's favorite Christmas tunes really threw into relief how fucking basic Coyle's character-building is. How about the gay white guy likes musicals, and the black guy likes jazz, yeah, totally. Next let's have them all pick three culturally typical holiday foods and describe them in detail, we call that characterization in the biz. Lazy. As. Fuck. It was like she'd just googled "what do jamaicans eat at christmas" and then made it a latte.

(BY THE WAY. This bitch's lattes would cost, like, $8. I'm not shitting you. Like, every syrup is some kind of handmade masterpiece, they're always zesting fruits and shaving chocolate and shit. I call bullshit. It's like when Clare supposedly invented the caramel mocha in New York City, it is just not reasonable.)

At least she stopped doing that thing where she makes a note that Ester Best's last name used to be more Jewish, because that was more than unnecessary, thank you for not doing that. (Also thank you for not saying "my pride Joy" when you see your daughter anymore, that was old the second time you said it.)

2) Clare is, at literally every turn, being sexually harassed. Everyone is always catcalling her or making suggestive comments to her or ogling her. It just isn't reasonable.

I in no way want to say that 45-year-old women cannot be sexy. They very much can. I just want to say that it seems somewhat unlikely to me that every man in the world would want to hit on a 45-year-old mom. She works in a coffee shop/bakery, not as a yoga instructor, I don't think she's probably the hottest chick in NY. These guys aren't hitting on the women around her, so what is it about Clare that she attracts this much attention?

Also, like 80% of the people who harass her are in uniform. Like, public servants. Police officers and firemen mostly. That is not a pretty depiction of those institutions, especially considering that she kind of jacks them off at the same time. Like, "wow firefighters were so brave during 9/11 and cops are so hard-working and underappreciated and also they can't help but comment on my tits". Really odd choice.

3) Clare is always coming back from fancy events dressed in vintage or super expensive clothes and then just throwing on an apron and getting behind the bar. Bitch, really? You're not going to take off your friend's thousand dollar Jackie Kennedy outfit before you steam milk? What world do you live in?

I can't even with more of this. I'm just done, I'm not even going to bother making a longer list because literally everything is wrong with these books.

[Annie · Rating 4 out of 5]

HOLIDAY GRIND is the perfect concoction for those cozy mystery lovers you like a little bit of action but also want something to get you into that holiday mood. As you may know, I’m a huge sucker for holiday themed novels and when I learned that Cleo Coyle had not one, but two in this series, I got really excited.

This book is book eight in the Coffeehouse Mystery series. Although it’s a book that is well into the series, you can definitely read these as standalone since each new book features a different crime. In this particular book, Clare Cosi is expecting a traveling Santa to arrive at her coffeehouse to bring some Christmas cheer to her employees and loyal customers but when he doesn’t show she grows concerned. She goes out to find him and discovers him dead in an alley. That’s when the investigating occurs and in this one, Clare gets herself into a few messes that I found hilarious.

I freaking love Clare. She’s a good mix of curious without being dumb about it. I can understand her drive, especially with this one since the victim is a good friend of hers. If you’re a Romance addict like me, then you’ll be happy to note there are some good scenes with Clare’s hot boyfriend, Mike Quinn and her ex-husband, Matt. Man, let me tell you, I love these guys. Mike is a little more quiet, a little more serious while Matt is more of your typical ladies’ man. I love both and am extremely jealous that Clare has both men in her life in some capacity. In Romance, you’ll never see an ex so frequently in a series except when they appear as the villain so I LOVED that we get to explore this dynamic in this series. If you can’t tell already, I’m hooked and I’m looking forward to reading more from Cleo Coyle.

[Raquel San Martín · Rating 3 out of 5]

La temporada navideña ha llegado a la cafetería Village Blend. Clare Cosi, la gerente y barista principal, no solo está trabajando en la creación de bebidas navideñas, sino que está tratando de resolver lo que cree que es el asesino de su amigo, Alfred Glockner.

📚La policía cree que se trata de un atraco típico, pero las pistas no cuadran. Cuando Clare encuentra a Alf disparado por la espalda vestido de papá Noel encuentra pistas que apuntan a un asesinato.

📚Otro gran misterio acogedor de la "dama del café". Me encanta la curiosidad lógica que tiene Claire que la lleva a investigar cualquier misterio que tenga la historia. Esta, una vez más, tiene una trama interesante con grandes giros que te harán hacer cábalas para saber el culpable.

🤓En conclusión, otro misterio acogedor esta vez con toques navideños que me ha entretenido, no es de las series de los cozy que más me gustan pero sin duda quiero seguir leyendo más misterios de la dama del café.

[Emmalynn · Rating 3 out of 5]

Claire is still dumb and why does every man have to leer and view her as a sexual object of her clothes constantly keep coming off 🙄🙄
Matt needs to get over her, he’s married again!!
The situation with Mike’s ex wife was unnecessary.
Overall it was an okay way to pass a weekend day

[Morgan · Rating 2 out of 5]

Not finishing this because I read the series out of order and skimmed to the ending. Predictable most of the time.

So, here's what bothers me.

If we're supposed to have an empowering female detective in this day and age, why is she being sexually harassed in every freaking book? It's fine describing her looks, so readers can visualize what the character looks like. However, are most male NY police officers a leery twat? I know every cop is different based on their personalities, but you would think that many would have enough common sense to understand putting their jobs at risk voicing their sexual desires towards people in the holding cell or interrogation room. What's worse is that Sergeant Emmanuel Franco is acting like a true pig and we're supposed to like him in later books when he dates Joy. How does a slimy cop turn over a new leaf? Hardly happens in real life, so unrealistic and leaves a bitter taste in my mouth.

To the next point: When it comes to the actual female police detectives, Soles and Bass, they are pretty flirty as well. I don't know if I'm coming off as a prude, but if real police officers are supposed to be serious while having some dry humor, then that disturbs me a little. We know Matt is hot, but you would think any straight female or gay male cop wouldn't act like a scatterbrain moron around smexy suspects or witnesses. The only time I would think that any smart cop would fall short on is not suspecting an old lady of doing anything.

Last point: Being an amateur detective. Understanding this is a cozy mystery (although it gets a little cynical and morbid at times), I don't care about the coffee/recipe facts. In fact, the author does alright imbedding her java jive with the mysteries. However, when it comes to Clare sleuthing, either she is reluctant on doing it or just bulldozes into it. Many times, she isn't right about the murderer or the motive. I don't expect her to know everything, but there are moments she is completely way off the radar. The only thing I find hilarious is that she knows how to weasel her way past the suspect's comfort zone and gain new leads from there. Every time the unknown assailant tries to kill her, she comes back like a nasty yeast infection. Criminals beware!

[Shelby · Rating 2 out of 5]

This was a standard mystery novel, and I did enjoy some of the characters and the recipes/coffee tips....

But after reading the paragraph were a girl describes how being leered at by construction worker air Jordans isn’t nearly as bad as being leered at by “Mexicans and Middle Eastern men whose eyes bulge and tongues roll out” whenever she walked by (because she was curvy, ofc) I couldn’t get through the rest of the book. After that point, every time a non-white character was mentioned I was stopping to scrutinize it. Detective “do-rag Franco” for instance?

It’s absolutely a fantastic thing for writers to include characters of color in their novels. It’s realistic and should be something obvious/automatic, honestly. But this....obviously I’m not the right person to say exactly how a nonwhite character should be portrayed, and there are hundreds of ways to portray them. But I can tell you that that single paragraph threw the rest of the novel into a bad light. I can’t believe it passed through the editing table.

[☆☆Hannah☆☆ · Rating 3 out of 5]

This was more of a 2.5 rating for me. Clare really got stupid and hypocritical in the last couple of chapters. She forgot to look at her own life and see what she was mad about with Mike was stupid considering her ex husband. The mystery part of the story was good though. The only thing that would have made this better is if Joy hadn't showed up at the end. I can't stand that girl.

[Chelsea Cupps · Rating 1 out of 5]

Disappointed by the racist references to the two new cop characters. Cleo Coyle and Berkeley Prime Crime should know better.

[Los libros de Baker Street · Rating 3 out of 5]

Entretenido, pero de menos calidad que los anteriores de la saga. Se nota mucho que había libros entre medias que no se han traducido.

[Laratitadelibros · Rating 4 out of 5]

Viajamos a Nueva York para reencontrarnos con nuestra protagonista Claire a la que ya conocimos en entregas anteriores "Un capuchino mortal" y "Café hasta la muerte"
En esta nueva aventura Claire descubrirá el cuerpo sin vida de Alf Glockner, el papa Noel del Village al que había contratado esa misma noche para sorprender a sus invitados que manifestaban haber perdido la ilusión navideña.

Tras este hallazgo conocemos a dos nuevos policías que no le pondrán las cosas fácil a Claire, menos aún cuando la hija del difunto y antigua empleada de la cafetería le pide ayuda para destapar la identidad del verdugo que le ha quitado a su padre.

Tras leer todos los libros publicados en castellano de la autora tengo que reconocer que este ha sido mi favorito. La ambientación navideña así como la complicidad que tienen los personajes sin olvidar el misterio que se planea desde las primeras páginas me han tenido pegada a esta historia.

No es una historia con grandes giros pero si con ese no se qué haciendo que las ganas de leer no hagan sino aumentar a lo largo de la lectura para llegar a un desenlace que no me esperaba y que sin duda he disfrutado.

Una lectura ágil, amena, entretenida y muy adictiva que además incluye en las ultimas páginas recetas ideales para estás fechas. ¡Muy recomendable!

[Ariadna · Rating 4 out of 5]

Al principio me costó adentrarme en la novela, pero creo que el problema es el orden de publicación que ha decidido tomar Alma. Este libro no es el tercero como se quiere hacer ver, por eso hay cosas que han pasado en la vida de Clare Cosi que no concuerdan en el momento en que lo dejamos en el segundo libro. La verdad es que eso es un punto en contra, porque me hubiese encantado leer sin spoilers el como se desarrolla la relación de la protagonista con Mike Quinn.
A parte de lo anterior, el misterio ha estado en la misma línea, y me ha sorprendido bastante el doble homicidio y la confusión que eso genera a la hora de resolver el misterio.
Por otra parte, los personajes secundarios son sublimes, Matt con esa personalidad vivaracha y Mike con esa calma.
Deseando poder continuar con la saga.

[Marion · Rating 3 out of 5]

I wanted to read this whole series but stopped after the second book. So jumping ahead to this holiday book was nice to catch up with the characters. Thankfully, the sex scenes and language were toned down which is why I don't want to read the entire series anymore, but it was still a bit racier than my comfort level.

In this book, I like how Cleo Coyle keeps pulling back layers of the characters who all seem so real. It's a classic mystery with some red herrings that had me guessing until the end whodunit. Of course, her coffee and food descriptions with recipes in the back make these fun reads too.

[Kylah · Rating 4 out of 5]

I call these "cheesy murder mysteries" but this was less cheese than i thought id be getting into. Most murder mysteries its rare that the vigilante actually gets in trouble for interfering with the police and in this book i was pleasantly surprised to see this happen in this book. This seemed much more realistic than others I've read. Good holiday read.

[Rebecca · Rating 4 out of 5]

The more I read of this series, the more I love it. I’ve read the most recent few and have been jumping around with the older ones and they are a delight. I love Clare’s dedication to holiday cheer and how her boyfriend is a police detective but never talks her out of (and even encourages her in) sleuthing. All the characters are vibrant and I love getting to know her coffee staff more with each book. I was shocked and pleased by the complicated mystery as it unraveled and loved the ending.

🎧 Notes
This is the first audiobook I’ve tried for this series and I loved it! The New York accents, the drama, and the characters were vibrant and the story telling was so well done!

[Under the Covers Book Blog · Rating 4 out of 5]

HOLIDAY GRIND is the perfect concoction for those cozy mystery lovers you like a little bit of action but also want something to get you into that holiday mood. As you may know, I’m a huge sucker for holiday themed novels and when I learned that Cleo Coyle had not one, but two in this series, I got really excited.

This book is book eight in the Coffeehouse Mystery series. Although it’s a book that is well into the series, you can definitely read these as standalone since each new book features a different crime. In this particular book, Clare Cosi is expecting a traveling Santa to arrive at her coffeehouse to bring some Christmas cheer to her employees and loyal customers but when he doesn’t show she grows concerned. She goes out to find him and discovers him dead in an alley. That’s when the investigating occurs and in this one, Clare gets herself into a few messes that I found hilarious.

I freaking love Clare. She’s a good mix of curious without being dumb about it. I can understand her drive, especially with this one since the victim is a good friend of hers. If you’re a Romance addict like me, then you’ll be happy to note there are some good scenes with Clare’s hot boyfriend, Mike Quinn and her ex-husband, Matt. Man, let me tell you, I love these guys. Mike is a little more quiet, a little more serious while Matt is more of your typical ladies’ man. I love both and am extremely jealous that Clare has both men in her life in some capacity. In Romance, you’ll never see an ex so frequently in a series except when they appear as the villain so I LOVED that we get to explore this dynamic in this series. If you can’t tell already, I’m hooked and I’m looking forward to reading more from Cleo Coyle.

*Reviewed by Ann

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[Barb · Rating 4 out of 5]

I would actually call this 3.5 stars. I enjoyed the story once it started moving. I am grateful the author doesn’t describe the intimate scenes because in this book Claire is acting like a horny teenager. Unfortunately there were a lot of parts that seemed incomplete or rushed, even some relationships seemed tenuous and not well established.

I will go and read Dickens “A Christmas Carol” based on this book.

[Nora · Rating 4 out of 5]

Cozy crime con todos sus elementos: cafetería kuki, dueña metida a investigadora de un asesinato, novio policía. Y funciona: una trama con intriga, humor, fácil de leer y que engancha. Lo recomiendo.

[Daryl Gerber · Rating 5 out of 5]

Really enjoyed this read. The coffeehouse isn't the main focus. The story about a homeless Santa is and it's compelling

[emily · Rating 4 out of 5]

4.5⭐

such a cozy christmas mystery read! it kept me interested the whole time and i couldn't predict the ending.

[Natalie · Rating 4 out of 5]

I can always count on the Coffeehouse Mystery series by Cleo Coyle for a fast, enjoyable read. The mysteries are always intriguing and the murderer tough to guess, but not impossible. Toss in Clair's romance with detective Mike Quinn and a healthy amount of coffee recipes and references, and you've got a comforting, intriguing, fresh story that feels as though you've just picked up a latte from the Village Blend and are ready to settle in by the fire.
In this installment, Clare is hot on the trail of the murderer of a local man dressed up as Santa (because this is a Christmas themed novel, of course) and sticks her neck out further than ever before to solve the mystery- since the victim was a friend of hers. The pace picks up rather quickly as there are several moments where Clair's life is seriously in danger, and it made me want to keep turning the pages to see how she was going to get out of her latest jam.
New characters are added to the series already long list of regulars, and instead of detracting, it only made the story more interesting. I also loved the references to the novel A Christmas Carol- I'm a sucker for Dickens!
I'm not sure why it took me so long to get to this one, but it makes me want to pick up #9 right away. I'd recommend this quick mystery during the holidays, or any time of the year, really!

[Rachel · Rating 3 out of 5]

This was an engaging, fun mystery. I liked the main character, coffeehouse manager Clare Cosi. The mystery itself kept my interest, too. Clare's friend who dresses as Santa and collects money for charity gets murdered, and the police think it's just a mugging. Even Clare's NYPD detective boyfriend thinks so. But Clare is sure there's more going on, and of course she uncovers the truth after many mishaps and missteps.

While I did enjoy this mystery while reading it, it faded from my consciousness awfully quickly. Two days later, and I'm struggling to recall character names and plot details. Like a foamy latte that I barely remember an hour later, it was frothy and tasty while it lasted, but not ultimately a favorite. Still, fun while it lasted!

[Holly Stone · Rating 3 out of 5]

Clare Cosi is at it again in this 8th book of Cleo Coyle's Coffeehouse Mysteries our favorite barista manager is pulling shots making delightful holiday lattes and even dressing as Santa's Helper as well as helping New York City's Finest solve crime when her friend Alf Glockner is shot to death in an alley the police are satisfied to call it a mugging gone wrong But Alf's daughter Vicki asks her one time boss if she could look into her father's death what Clare finds is not a mugging gone wrong but full out murder

[Liz · Rating 4 out of 5]

A nice relief from the last two! The mystery here was great. I was interested and wanted to keep going until I found out who it was, and I certainly did not predict the culprit. I also am a Christmasphile, so that was a great combo.

Only took a star off for Matt’s gross comments on Victoria’s Secret models/catalogue (post-it’s? Really? Is he a 13 year old boy?! Gross), Clare’s response to Mike’s handling of his relationship with his ex-wife, and Clare’s constant use of the word ‘germane’ in the beginning (honestly get a new word). Otherwise enjoyed it and looking forward to the next one.

[Bianca Bonavento]

3⭐

Blanca Navidad y café negro es parte de la saga Coffeehouse Mystery en el que nuestra protagonista Claire tiene un nuevo caso que resolver. En esta entrega hay que resolver el asesinato de Papá Noel.

Este libro posee una trama super interesante y atrapante. Además, el misterio de la muerte tiene varios giros a lo largo de la historia. Aunque me gustó mucho todo esto, en esta entrega diferentes situaciones de misoginia que en la actualidad resulta chocante para los lectores e inadmisibles.

[Mainon · Rating 4 out of 5]

I needed a tasty little morsel to get me out of work mode and into the holiday spirit, and this cozy mystery certainly fit the bill. Coffee lovers will get plenty out of the delicious- sounding drink descriptions (and the litany of recipes in the back of the book), and mystery lovers will have fun figuring out whodunnit. Fair warning, there's a bit of steamy (steamed milk?) romance and suggestive language, though I wouldn't call it graphic.

[Glen · Rating 3 out of 5]

It's Christmas time in New York, and somebody murders a volunteer Santa Claus. The cops blow her off, so our sleuth is determined to investigate. Of course, she finds more than she bargained for. Plus her daughter is not coming home for Christmas, and her paramour is working, and her ex-husband's marriage doesn't seem to be working out, just like I suspected.

There's a lot of chaos, but it all comes out at the end.

[Toni (T.C.) LoTempio · Rating 5 out of 5]

What can I say that i havent' said already about this series. another great one! There's always a twist at the end, and the characters are so finely drawn you think they're sitting right next to you. Love, love, love!

[Amy Ingalls · Rating 3 out of 5]

This was what you would expect of a cozy Christmas mystery. I liked the mystery in this one, but the stuff with Mike's ex was a bit odd, especially the lack of communication between him and Clare. Also, a bit hypocritical of her to be mad at him given how often Matt is in the picture.

[ElaineY · Rating 2 out of 5]

A boring installment. I lost interest early.