Kristina A. reviewed on 11/22/2019 + 1528 more book reviews

In Cold Chocolate by Dorothy St. James is the third story in A Southern Chocolate Shop Mystery series. In Cold Chocolate can be read as a standalone if you are new to the series. Charity Penn owns The Chocolate Box in Camellia Beach, South Carolina where she is currently finishing up renovations to the shop. The sea turtles will soon be hatching so Penn has created a delectable treat in their honor that is flying off the shelves. On the night of the hatching, Cassidy Jones is killed, and it looks like antagonistic Jody Dalton is responsible. Penn would love to avoid this investigation, but Jody's son asks her to please help his mommy. Despite being warned to keep her nose out of the case, Penn is soon knee deep in suspects. I wanted to give this series another chance after not having been enthralled with Asking for Truffle. Charity Penn is a nice character and I just love the descriptions of the chocolates that she creates for the shop (they have me pining for a chocolatey treat). The island sounds like a lovely place to live, but there are too many mean people in this story for my liking. There were some slow sections that could have been peppier and some areas that could have been eliminated completely (seemed like filler). It was interesting to learn about the hatching of sea turtles. I had no idea they were considered a delicacy (that is just terrible and disgusting). I see why they need people to keep an eye on the hatching ground. The mystery was uncomplicated, and the guilty party can be identified before the coroner removes the body. I did enjoy the dog, Stella and her antics. She was a delightful addition to In Cold Chocolate. While In Cold Chocolate was not the right fit for me, I suggest you obtain a sample to judge for yourself. In Cold Chocolate is a light-hearted cozy mystery with sun, sand, sweets and sea turtles.

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