Pressing the Issue

Pressing the Issue by Daryl Wood Gerber is the sixth book in A Cookbook Nook Mystery series. Jenna Hart is busy getting the Cookbook Nook ready for the Crystal Cove Renaissance Fair. Bailey Bird, though, is of little help since she is out of sorts. Bailey is getting married in two weeks to Tito Martinez at Baldini Vineyard. Lola Bird has not helped matters by telling Bailey that she has a bad vibe about the nuptials. Bailey receives a cryptic message from Nick Baldini and it sounds like he is in trouble. Jenna and Bailey rush to his home to find him on the floor with blood coming from a head wound. They check for a pulse and find their King of the Renaissance Fair, Nick is dead. Jenna quickly contacts Police Chief Cinnamon Pritchett who warns Jenna to stay out of the investigation. The murder weapon turns out to be a winepress that Nick had shown them earlier in the day. Bailey is thrown into a tailspin. What will happen to her wedding? Jenna quietly (does not want to incur Cinnamon’s wrath) begins asking questions to find out more about Nick and who could have wished him harm. Time is running out because soon the Renaissance Fair visitors will be departing, and the killer could be hiding among them. Who could have committed this dastardly deed? Will Bailey and Tito have their wedding?

Pressing the Issue can be read alone. Everything a reader needs to know is included in the book. Returning to Crystal Cove is like visiting old friends. It is a charming town with welcoming townspeople, a beach, and inviting shops. The main characters are warm, friendly and relatable. It was lovely to catch up with Jenna, Bailey, Kate, Rhett and Aunt Vera. The descriptions of the Renaissance Fair are vivid. I enjoyed reading about the costumes, food and activities (the Renaissance Fair speak was entertaining and amusing). It felt like I was there enjoying it with them. There are delightful book descriptions (cookbooks and some cozy mysteries). The tantalizing food narratives will have your mouth watering (recipes included at the end of the book). I appreciated how the author incorporated Charlotte Bessette of Fromagerie Bessette into the story (from the Cheese Shop Mystery series written under her Avery Aames pen name) and her mention of Ohio State University (Go Buckeyes). The mystery was enticing, but avid cozy mystery readers will find it child’s play to solve. There are several suspects and some good misdirection that will lead readers down the wrong path. I do wish that Police Chief Pritchett would start working with Jenna on the investigations. Cinnamon knows that Jenna’s natural curiosity will not keep her away from looking into a case and Jenna is good at ferreting out information. I found the ending to be endearing. I am rating Pressing the Issue 4 out of 5 stars.

I enjoy the book, but there are so many glaring inaccuracies that it’s hard to stay focused. They say to write what you know, and I really wish the author would do that because she clearly has no experience or knowledge of certain things

With Bailey and Tito's wedding quickly approaching, Jenna is helping them with last minute details, including finalizing details at Baldini Vineyards, the venue for the reception. But when they receive a cryptic message from Nick Baldini on Bailey's voice mail, Jenna and her friends rush up to the vineyard where they discover Nick's dead body. Despite all of her friends warning her to stay out of it, Jenna begins questioning several of the potential suspects. Unfortunately, she learns that Nick recently had verbal altercations with many of those same people, leaving her with too many suspects and too many motives. The twists and turns in the story kept the reader guessing through to the end, though I did have a sense of who the killer might be earlier. Nonetheless, it did not detract from reading about Jenna's mind set in solving the murder. The Renaissance Fair background also provided an interesting backdrop to this story. Throughout the fast-paced story, there are detailed descriptions of many of the stalls with their crafts and activities that make the reader feel as if they are actually part of the story. There are also delectable descriptions of Renaissance food, such as a meat pasty, with the recipes included at the end of the story. Disclosure: I am voluntarily reviewing this Advanced Reading Copy.