Welcome to Cozy Wednesday!
I am delighted to share my thoughts with you about
Scone Cold Dead by Maddie Day today!
(This book was on my reading calendar much closer to its release date, but my medical adventure messed that up.)
Scone Cold Dead (A Country Store Mystery)
Cozy Mystery
13th in Series
Setting – Indiana
Publisher : Kensington Cozies (April 1, 2025)
Mass Market Paperback : 320 pages
ISBN-10 : 1496742281
ISBN-13 : 978-1496742285
Kindle ASIN : B0DB3WGBPD
Audio CD ASIN : B0DSYJTRXD
Audiobook ASIN B0F15LVGB1
After a body is found in a local farmer’s field, country store and café owner Robbie Jordan suspects that a newcomer in South Lick, Indiana, may not be a stranger to everyone in town . . .
Robbie is just weeks away from giving birth. While her husband Abe scrambles to get the house ready for their baby’s arrival, Robbie makes last minute arrangements to keep her shop and restaurant, Pans ’N Pancakes, up and running when she’s on maternity leave. And it seems Robbie and Abe aren’t the only ones grappling with anxiety—a stranger is causing a stir in town and Robbie’s Aunt Adele appears unusually preoccupied at the baby shower . . .
But when someone finds a body in the ram field on Adele’s sheep farm, it’s Robbie’s turn to be worried. Especially after Chief Buck Bird uncovers a troubling link between Adele and the possible murder victim. Robbie has no choice but to knit the clues together and solve this mystery before anything else gets flocked up . . .
Dollycas’s Thoughts
Robbie and Abe are so excited as the birth of their baby gets closer. Abe is finishing up getting everything ready at home while Robbie gets her staff at Pans ’N Pancakes ready for her to go on maternity leave.
Then, a mysterious man comes to town looking for Robbie’s Aunt Adele. Others seem to know him, too. Before he can meet with Adele, his body is found on Adele’s sheep farm in the ram field. When Chief Buck Bird learns the man had a past connection to Adele, he needs answers. Adele becomes pretty tight-lipped about the whole situation.
Could Adele be responsible for the man’s death? The last thing Robbie needs at eight and a half months pregnant is another murder investigation, but she has to clear her Aunt Adele any way she can.
The characters Maddie Day has created for this series are stellar. I became invested in them in Book 1, Flipped for Murder. In every installment of this series, they have grown in realistic ways. New characters were introduced, and all had a purpose and made the series stronger. Robbie has made a true home in South Lick, Indiana. She made new friends and fell in love. She has become a beloved member of the community and made her Pans ’N Pancakes a welcoming place for South Lick residents and tourists. The woman has a huge heart and will help anyone in need, even if they are a suspect in a murder. This time, she scared me a bit with “practice contractions” and her little ventures to check some things out.
The mystery in Scone Cold Dead is a little different and has a slower pace, mostly due to Robbie’s delicate condition. She stopped herself several times, thinking about the baby she was carrying, trying to be extra careful when she went off to investigate. There were several twists to unravel, but I closed in on the final one a bit before the characters.
The birth of Robbie and Abe’s baby had a bit of excitement, but everyone ended the story just fine. With this being the final book in the series, Ms. Day left all the characters in good places. Some moving on to new adventures, others are firmly in place where they are meant to be, and one with some exciting news. I am really sad that this will be my last visit to the wonderful little town of South Lick.
Scone Cold Dead is filled with well-developed characters and a well-plotted mystery. I have looked forward to each new book in this series and enjoyed them all. I highly recommend the entire Country Store Mystery series. If you have missed it, please start at the beginning and enjoy seeing the characters evolve and grow. If you are a fan, you will love this story and be both happy and sad at the end.
Thank you, Maddie Day, for taking us along on Robbie’s journey. It has been quite a run. She is a character I won’t forget. She is right: She “had a knack for solving murders, but that has no place in a baby’s life” – A perfect ending for the series and a Perfect Escape.
I voluntarily reviewed an Advance Reader Copy. This does not affect my opinion of the book or the content of my review. Thank you to the author, Kensington Cozies, and NetGalley for providing me with an ARC.
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About the Author
Maddie Day is a talented amateur chef and holds a PhD in linguistics from Indiana University. An Agatha Award-winning author, she is a member of Sisters in Crime and Mystery Writers of America. She lives with her beau and an energetic kitten north of Boston
As Edith Maxwell, she writes the Local Foods Mysteries 
You can find all of Maddie’s/Edith’s identities at www.edithmaxwell.com. She blogs every weekday with the other Wicked Cozy Authors at wickedcozyauthors.com. Look for her as Edith M. Maxwell and Maddie Day on Facebook and @edithmaxwell and @maddiedayauthor on X/Twitter.
Also written by Maddie Day
Coming August 26, 2025
Written as Edith Maxwell
Thanks to the publisher, I have 1 Paperback Copy of
Scone Cold Dead to give away!
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Disclosure of Material Connection: I received this book free from the publisher. I was not required to write a positive review. The opinions I have expressed are my own. Receiving a complimentary copy in no way reflected my review of this book. I am disclosing this in accordance with the Federal Trade Commission’s 16 CFR, Part 255: “Guides Concerning the Use of Endorsements and Testimonials in Advertising.”
Sounds like a book I will enjoy reading.