Book Review: Case of the Bleus by Korina Moss (Cheese Shop Mysteries #4)

Stars: 5 out of 5

Pros: Characters we love in a page turning mystery

Cons: Climax could be a little stronger

The Bottom Line:

Clues to a rare cheese

Compete with clues to murder

In can’t put down book

You’ll Get the Bleus if You Skip This Book

I’ve been working at getting caught up on several different series this year, and one of those is Korina Moss’s Cheese Shop Mysteries.  The fourth came out a few weeks ago, and I made it a priority to get it read before the end of the year.  I’m glad I did because I enjoyed Case of the Bleus.

These books center on Willa Bauer, owner of Curds & Whey in Yarrow Glen in Sonoma County, California.  It’s now been about a year since Willa opened the shop, and she is enjoying her new life and the friends she’s making in the community.

She’s also thrilled that the Northwest Cheese Invitational is being held at the new convention center just outside of town.  That means she gets to show off her shop to her former co-workers, who are in town for the event.  Sadly, their boss, Max, has recently passed away, leaving behind the secret of his award-winning Church Bleu cheese.  Everyone is hoping when the will is read that they will be the one to inherit the secrets behind the valuable cheese.  Well, everyone but Willa.

Unfortunately, one of Willa’s former co-workers is killed within hours of the will being read.  Did the secret of the cheese lead to her death?  Can Willa figure out what the cryptic clue that Max left behind means?

Really, this book has dueling storylines, the murder and the hunt for the cheese.  Both are equally compelling, and they weave in and out of each other since one provides a possible motive for the other.  The result was a book I never wanted to put down because I had to know what was going to happen next.  And the suspects that kept me guessing.  The climax was a tad weaker than I would have liked, but it did answer all my questions.

But what I really found as I read this book was how much I love the characters and the community that they’ve formed.  Yes, I knew I liked them, but I was smiling so much at getting to spend more time with them here.  There are some sub-plots involving their personal lives that make me anxious for the next book to come out so I can find out what will happen to them next.

Which does bring up that fact that this is book four in a series.  You can jump in here since anything you need to know about the characters and their relationships is explained.  Yes, that does mean there are some minor spoilers for the previous books, but they are minor.  Naturally, I’d advise you to read the series in order, but if you want to jump in here, you won’t be too lost.

As always, I have to give a shout out to the fact that these are set in Sonoma County, where I grew up.  It’s always a delight to read about the area even if Yarrow Glen is fictitious.

If this book leaves you hungry for cheese (and it will), you’ll be happy with the three recipes we get at the end.

Case of the Bleus left me anything but blue.  Fans of the series will be delighted to catch up on Willa and the gang’s latest exploits.

Be sure to grab the rest of the Cheese Shop Mysteries.