Bait and Swiss: A Cheese Shop Mystery (Cheese Shop Mysteries)
Cozy Mystery
6th in Series
Setting – California
Publisher : St. Martin’s Paperbacks (April 29, 2025)
Mass Market Paperback : 304 pages
ISBN-10 : 1250893941
ISBN-13 : 978-1250893949
Kindle ASIN : B0DCTNFYY9
In Korina Moss’s Bait and Swiss, Yarrow Glen’s newest business gives one unlucky resident the swiss of death.
It’s been almost two years since Willa Bauer opened Curds & Whey in Yarrow Glen, and both cheesemonger and cheese shop are thriving in the Sonoma Valley. While Willa doesn’t eat chocolate, it’s true that life is like a box of chocolates. Unfortunately, life’s latest curveball is that Willa’s ex fiancé and ex-best friend―the reason for her chocolate aversion―are opening a chocolate pop-up shop across the street. By the end of the shop’s first day, the town’s newest reporter is the victim of death by chocolate. Now Willa’s ex wants her to be Swiss Congeniality, solve the case, and save the day. As much as Willa wants to hit him with the nearest cheese wheel, she can’t stop herself from saying yes. And it’s not long before tourists decide to stay clear of town until the killer is caught. To save Yarrow Glen, Willa and Team Cheese have some work to do.
Dollycas’s Thoughts
Death by chocolate – not cheese. You would think that would keep cheesemonger Willa Bauer out of the investigation, and she would concentrate on celebrating the 2nd anniversary of her Curds & Whey cheese shop. But no, she has a connection to this crime. Her ex-fiancé and ex-best friend have surprisingly arrived in Yarrow Glen and have opened a pop-up chocolate shop. The chocolate shop that made the chocolate creams that killed the town’s newest reporter. Her exes have asked her to help clear their names and their pop-up.
Willa really has no desire to help them, but their pop-up was coordinated with the new bakery in town owned by Archie’s friend Hope, who was already taking a big chance by completely changing a successful business. Plus, an unsolved death will hurt the whole town of Yarrow Glen.
So, it’s time for Team Cheese to get together and cream the killer before it’s too late!
There is nothing I like better than a multigenerational group of people that comes together to solve mysteries. I also enjoy when coworkers become genuine friends who truly care about each other. Willa, Baz, Archie, and Mrs. Schultz fit both to a tee. It is easy to get invested in their lives. Right now, they are all dealing with romance issues. Mrs. Schultz has an admirer, but she sees a different side of him in this story. Archie and Hope are now trying to be friends, and he is worried about how that will go. Baz dates, but could he have finally found the right woman? Willa and Heath’s relationship was going in the right direction until she became a person of interest in the current case.
The mystery Ms. Moss has penned is complicated; Was the new reporter the actual target? Could the target have been his boss? Was it Willa who was supposed to die? Did her actions land her on the suspect list, or are both true? How were the chocolates tainted? Could someone from Yarrow Glen have tinkered with the treats? Involving people from Willa’s past was hard for her. Could she trust them after how they hurt her? Team Cheese did their best to follow every clue, but a secret had to be disclosed to get the investigation truly moving in the right direction. The reveal caught me off guard, I was right there with Willa when we both got an enormous surprise. The showdown was suspenseful and painful for our protagonist, but the truth prevailed.
I always enjoy my visits to Yarrow Glen and to Curds & Whey. Willa’s anniversary celebration didn’t go as planned, but I loved all the things they had planned for the day, with costumes, games, and plenty of cheese. The author’s attention to detail in her descriptions took me right into the shop and everywhere Willa and Team Cheese went, even to a dumpster in an alley. That scene was pretty funny.
Readers will be craving cheese while reading. May I suggest you flip to the recipes at the back of the book and whip up Ms. Schultz’s Swiss or Miss Dip, then grab some pretzels or crackers to snack on as you enjoy this story.
Bait and Swiss is an excellent addition to this series. The pages were flying. The characters entertained. The mystery was well-plotted and written. There was some humor to tickle the funny bone. And plenty of cheese to tempt the taste buds. Willa’s betta fish, Loretta, was “wiggling happily in her fishbowl” at the end of the story. I was happy too and can’t wait to see what Ms. Moss has planned for her next Cheese Shop Mystery.
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 St. Martin’s Paperbacks and NetGalley for providing me with an ARC.
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