Cruel Candy

The Cozy Corgi Mysteries, Book 1

By: Mildred Abbott

Narrated by: Angie Hickman

Length: 5 hrs and 28 mins

Publisher's summary

Estes Park, Colorado: picturesque mountains, charming shops, delightful bakeries, a cozy bookstore...and murder.

Winifred Page and her corgi, Watson, move to Estes Park to hit the reset button on life. Fred is about to open her dream bookshop, and the only challenges she anticipates are adjusting to small-town life, tourists, and living close to her loveable mother, Phyllis, and hippy stepfather, Barry.

When Fred steps into her soon-to-be-bookshop for the first time, she expects dust bunnies and spiders...not the dead body in the upstairs kitchen. The local police have an easy suspect - Barry.

Determined to prove quirky Barry innocent of murder, Fred puts on her detective hat, and with Watson by her side, she explores her new town and gets acquainted with her fellow shopkeepers. Could one of her friendly neighbors be the real culprit? And what would be the motive for killing the owner of the Sinful Bites candy store? The secrets Fred discover put her at odds with the local police sergeant and threaten her cozy future in Estes.

With snow falling outside, all Fred wants to do is curl up by the fire with a good book and Watson snuggled at her feet. But before she can begin her new life and put her plans for her bookshop into action, Fred and Watson have a mystery to solve....

©2017 Mildred Abbott (P)2018 Mildred Abbott

Meh

I really wanted to like this book. The story wasn't half bad. I just couldn't get past the narrator. If you like listening to what sounds like a 12 year old girl reading the book outloud, and a book where the voices are either childish or over 70, this is the book for you. If you prefer a narrator voice more in line with the age of the main character, and a narrator who has a good range of voices, this is not the book for you. I gave up on it and removed future books from my library.

Plot flaws rescued by good narration

well that and the good humour throughout.

But the writing is so awkward it's jarring at times. Still, maybe the author will improve in subsequent books. I'll continue with this series for now

Won’t make my top 25 mystery series

I’m not sure if it was the story itself or the narrative but this book won’t make my top 25 mystery series and I won’t be listening to any more books from this series. I had a hard time getting past the narrator’s little girl sounding voice for a 38 year old woman.

Too much body shaming for me.

I only got through chapter 4. As early as chapter 1, there were passages criticizing a fat candy shop owner who love to eat butter and sugar versus a skinny candy shop owner who makes all healthy candy. In chapter 4 the main character talked about feeling little next to a taller female character. I liked the setup, but feel that body shaming is not needed for a good cozy mystery.

Really cute book!

I enjoyed the cozy mystery. Entertaining and light hearted. Love to listen to audiobooks that are fun and also keep you going wondering “who done it?!” Excited for the next listen.

Cute start to a new series

Fred moves to Estes Park to be with family and open a book store The local police have an easy suspect—Barry. Determined to prove quirky Barry innocent of murder, Fred puts on her detective hat, and with Watson by her side, she explores her new town and gets acquainted with her fellow shopkeepers. 

This book has some likeable characters; Barry, her mother and her relatives and adds in just a bit of drama with a little romance developing, so have high hopes for series. The town is cute and look forward to learning more about the characters and the budding romance.

Spoilers and update: By book 3, I realize I no longer like the protagonist and stopped listening. 1) She is childish and borders on narcissistic. Became frustrated with the continued "Don't tell me what to do even though I know I'm wrong!" comments. 2) Tries to be snarky, but comes across as pompous and bratty 3) Irresponsible dog owner. Perhaps the author thinks this is cute, but rather, it is unhealthy for Watson and unrepresentive of a proper owner dog relationship. Sorry, I just can't get over feeding her dog too many blueberry scones! Fred says I know it isn't good for you, but going to give you all these baked goods anyway. By book 8, she will have to roll Watson out of bookstore like in Charlie and Chocolate factory.

Even free, I no longer suggest this series, and I have returned. I am really sad as I had high hopes.

A Fun Cozy Mystery

Wini"fred" and her tenacious corgi Watson move home to Estes Park, Colorado to start over by opening her
dream bookshop. The discovery of a
dead body in her new shop space is
where the story begins. It continues
to evolve by introducing a variety of
quirky locals, her colorful & loving
family, along with the potential for romance between an attractive police Detective & a rugged park Ranger.
When her Stepfather is arrested Fred
is determined to prove him innocent.
Suspects abound & the plot moves along
quickly providing just enough conflict &
suspense for an enjoyably light & funcozy
mystery.

Cute cozy. Narrated, apparently, by a baby

The story was pretty good, modern elements plugged into tried and true mm formula. Mostly likable characters. But that baby voice. Idk if I can get through more installments if all read by this narrator. Everyone is a baby, except for Lois, an older character who sounds like the Wicked Witch from Oz. One other thing: More Watson, please, if I am to endure the lisping toddler voice.

Could be a cute story but the narration is too hard

I even slowed the speed down to try to get into this story but the voice is too child like and not much devecrsity through the characters. The mom sounds like she 10 not 70. Maybe this would be a better read. I enjoy easy plot detective stories to unwind.

Overall a good listwn

The plot and and quirky charactersake for a good listen. The narrator for me detracted from the enjoyment. She sounds like a young woman due to a rather high pitched voice which also makes it difficult to provide a different voice for each character. Males lack a deeper tenor, and many of the females sound like young children. The narrator does provide a great deal inflection which keeps the story interesting.