Through the Grinder

By: Cleo Coyle

Narrated by: Rebecca Gibel

Length: 8 hrs and 8 mins

Publisher's Summary

There's trouble brewing at the Village Blend. Business is booming--but Clare's customers are starting to die. Soon after stopping at the coffeehouse, a regular jumps to her death in the subway. Or was she pushed? Detective Quinn is convinced that someone has an axe to grind, especially after the "suicide" of another female customer. Unfortunately, his prime suspect is Bruce Bowman--the new man in Clare's life. Bruce is the perfect blend of rugged good looks and potent personality. Too bad the women in his life keep turning up dead. Now Clare will risk her heart--and her life--to follow the killer's trail to the bitter end…

©2004 The Berkley Publishing Group. All rights reserved. (P)2011 AudioGO

Sit back and relax with a cup of coffee.

Would you recommend this audiobook to a friend? If so, why?

I would and I have loaned my copies to friends and finally gave the entire hardback collection to my local library. I have read most of these in paper version so it is nice to see that Audible is finally beginning to carry some of this type of light reading. Coyle's coffee house series follows a standard format but she always makes me laugh and I have learned a lot about coffee. If you have to have a book that you want to analyze and rip apart for style, deep story content and technical correctness then please do not bother to select this book. But if you want a light enjoyable listen while you relax, knit, sew, garden, etc. pick one up Coyle's coffee house books sit back and enjoy.

Any additional comments?

Now, Audible, how about the Tea Shop Mysteries by Laura Childs? Drayton is a hoot and all the characters would be a wonderful challenge to a narrator.

Who is "The Genius"?

This husband and wife team definitely writes one of the best cozy series going. The mystery is exciting and I learn more and more about coffee and New York with each continuing book. My favorite type of cozy! This is the second in the series and unlike some cozies, there is nothing repetitive or unnecessary within the story line.

There is someone calling themselves "The Genius" pushing women to their deaths, making it look like a suicide. Meanwhile, back at The Village Blend coffee shop, finding interesting and deserving men to date becomes a topic in the shop. Clare, store manager and divorced from the store's owner's son, Matteo, is trying to monitor her grown daughter's dating choices. In doing so, the store hosts a social gathering where men and women can meet and match themselves with potential dates. While checking out men for her daughter, Clare meets her own "Mr Right", but her policeman friend warns her that this man is a suspect in these recent murders. Clare believes he's not the murderer and sets out with Matteo to find the real murderer.

Suspense builds as we read the inner thoughts of "The Genius". Clare's relations continue with her divorced husband, cooking school student daughter, and meddling mother-in-law which is a fun story in itself. Clues point to a variety of people, with a shocking surprise in the end. Definitely will continue with this fun series!

I really wanted to like this book but...

It took me a while to read the first book in this series. I had to put it down after the first few chapters. But when I came back to it months later I was able to finish it. Now a couple of years later I gave the second book a try. I won't buy the third. This book is too wordy. Cleo spends too much time describing the scenery and enough on the mystery. The lead character Claire, is annoying. The idea of joining a dating service to screen men for her daughter is ridiculous. She needs to get a life and let her have her own. Claire then goes on to find an attractive man who may or not be a murderer but that doesn't stop her from going out with him. She then proceeds to interrogate him and search his house. If she thought the man was dangerous why go to his house? If she didn't think he was dangerous why interrogate him and search his place? Also, why did he allow himself to be interrogated? That entire scene was unrealistic. Speaking of unrealistic, I can go on and on about the relationship with her ex husband. But I won't because that would be a bit like Cleo Coyle and her descriptions of New York. Needless to say that the ex husband adds unnecessary drama and silliness. The characters in this story are flat and I can't find a reason to care about what happens to them. This series is not for me and I won't be buying anymore of it.

I'm still loving this series!

I really enjoyed all the descriptions of the city. And of course as a coffee lover I like hearing the tidbits on how to make the perfect cup of Joe. At the heart of this installment is Claire's desire to protect her adult daughter, the way that love continues to link her to her ex-husband Matteo, and the delicate balancing act she must have between maintaining a civil relationship with her ex for her daughter's sake and finding a new romantic relationship for herself. The story centers around online/speed dating and its most negative and dangerous aspects. Personally, I enjoyed this book just as much as I enjoyed the previous one. To me, the thing that's different about this series is that the books don't have the same cliff-hangers at the end that most series do. I like that you can listen to one or two books and come back to the series at your own leisure without that incessant wondering about what's going to happen next. I don't know if this series is right for everyone. But if you enjoy murder mysteries, coffee houses, and can relate to the happiness that comes from making something delicious in the kitchen, this book (and series) might be just the right mix for you.

a thriller but also a love letter to New York City

This book was more Thriller than it was a cozy mystery, my usual genre. I enjoyed all the information about coffee and this visit to New York City.

Too much going on

I like these coffee house mysteries because they are usually like a quick fix with the bonus of a few coffee tips. This particular episode of the series was not one of the better ones. There were too many murders and too much going on. Narration kept switching between Claire and the killer. The killer wasn't the least bit interesting and the murders were stupid. Claire's involvement in the murders felt forced and I really felt myself not caring. And normally Rebecca Gibel does a pretty good job as reader. But this book had so many characters, her voice changing attempts started to get on my nerves.

I will probably listen to more Cleo Coyle mysteries, but I will probably skim through the hard copies first just to see how many murders are involved.

Labels for the men are hilarious.

In this 2nd book in the Coffeehouse cozy mystery series Clare Cosi, manager and part owner of “The Blend” coffeehouse, decides to join her daughter in online and a speed dating party in order to keep an eye on her and the men she is interested in, as well as, getting back in the dating game herself. The labels that Clare gives the men at a speed dating event, are not only funny and priceless but also paints an interesting picture that can be easily visualized.

Now for the mystery... Life changes for both of them when a customer apparently commits suicide by jumping in front of a subway train with one of the coffeehouse's cups in her hand. This is followed by other deaths connected to the coffeehouse. The book then becomes somewhat of a thriller rather than the usual cozy.

However, as I said in my review of the 1st book, “Now for the lacking fifth star. The coffee and tea making went WAY overboard… I love coffee but enough is enough!” One reader called it a “gimmick" but I would call it a “gimmick” gone wrong. It overpowers the mystery. Don’t you think "a voice like stale coffee--wrung out and bitter" goes a bit overboard?

A Cozy With an Extra Shot of Espresso

Where does Through the Grinder rank among all the audiobooks you’ve listened to so far?

Through the Grinder the second book in the Coffeehouse Mystery series was a great listen that kept me hooked and excited to find out who the killer was. I tend to hop around between Audiobooks based on my mood (sometimes I need a guilty pleasure chick lit) but I stayed with this one and finished in just a couple days.

Who was your favorite character and why?

Claire is great. She's very relatable. In this book we get to see her less vulnerable as she puts drama with her ex, and flirtation with the detective on the back burner and shows some spunk and backbone. Just because she is a mom, and business woman doesn't mean she can't still be sexy. I enjoy that she isn't always proper, but always stays respectable.

Great book!

Second in the series, and I can't wait to keep going! Enjoyable characters and an easy to listen to narrator.

Another Fun Coffee Story

This is the second coffee house book I've listened to. I'd call them "cozy mysteries". Light and charming. The characters from the first one return, and I enjoy the consistency. I continue to like all the coffee trivia, and the accidents/murders in this one are most interesting. I'll probably go on to another in this series