Biscuits and Slashed Browns: 12/21/21

Biscuits and Slashed Browns by Maddie Day is the fourth book in the Country Store mystery series. A judge for the annual maple festival and cook-off is found murdered on one of the participating farms. Robbie decides to help solve the murder because she can't believe the farm owners are at all involved. She also has a vested interest in a positive resolution because her line cook is the farm owners' son.

In clearing the cook's family Robbie stirs up other trouble. There's a missing chef's knife that points to another friend. The inclusion of an obvious clue reminded me of Cat Trick by Sofie Kelly (2013). With that in mind I found honing in on the actual killer an easy task.

That said, near the end there is hair raising action. Robbie gets into trouble again but manages to hold her own fairly well. She also has a network of friends who are able to come to her aid.

Each book, this one included, expands the world of Brown Country. Maddie Day is careful to create a diverse cast of characters to inhabit her town and surrounding countryside. In this book she includes a family with an Indian father, American mother and their adult son. These characters aren't there to teach Robbie (or anyone else) a lesson. They just happen to live in the same place as she does and happen to be caught up in the same unfortunate murder.

The fifth book is Death Over Easy (2018).

Five stars

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