Not as bad as the first one. Enjoyed this one much more. Charlotte wasn't quite as pushy and intrusive as she was in the first, yet she still feels this compulsion to investigate, even though her childhood friend (and disappointingly not her boyfriend) is now the chief of police in the small Ohio town. Since the town is small, and proportionately, the police force is small (the chief and one other officer), she seems to feel it's her civic duty to help investigations.What a crock. Just a writing device to move this character along. However, she is less annoying in this book than than the first. I couldn't abide her in the first and almost hated her. She still exhibits very annoying tendencies in this book; such as leaving her cheese shop at the drop of a hat to investigate her whims and fantasies. SERIOUSLY? We're supposed to take a woman, now in charge of her family heritage (the cheese store) as a admirable character; yet, instead of tending to her family business, she leaves the business matters in the hands of her assistant (also a terrible snoop and budding detective) to drop every thing and investigate her latest theory.Certainly not at all the best of series, but maybe there is growth here. I really, really have no love or sympathy for most cozy heroines. They are just to nosy, too self-important, too confident in their abilities and too blind and self-deluding to think they are the only one capable and willing to investigate and follow up on the leads. To them, the police are bubbling idiots. This may have been a good plot device in the early years, but now its tired, trite and just plain stupid. And this is what they really are - to stupid to live heroines; ready to go at the drop of a hat to investigate or better yet, confront suspected killers, only to embroil themselves, and worse, other in perilous situations.I guess after this rant, I realize I've had it with cozies. They were fun and enjoyable in the beginning, but after all this time, I think they have diluted and damaged the mystery genre. I don't think they are something I want to perpetuate. I want the golden age of mysteries back. Had to put book #1 on hold so read this one, #2, out of order. I'm afraid it spoiled it for me. Seemed sophomoric. ..like the author followed the formula for a cozy mystery. I didn't connect with Charlotte or really any other character, but maybe it's as a result of not learning about them in the first book. I'll read #1 when it's available but that's it for this series (although the recipes at the end look pretty good!).
What do You think about Lost And Fondue (2011)?
This is a great mystery with wonderfully intriguing characters. And fantastic recipes.
—skimage
Makkelijk weg-lezertje maar met weinig verrassingen.
—bestmood
well written series continues to keep me guessing.
—Micah
I loved the treasure hunt aspect of this story.
—BookLoverFelicia
