A COLD DOSE OF MURDER

Chloe Barnes wants nothing more than to build up a healthy clientele for the weed-themed bakery she started in Azalea Bay, California, when her Grandma Rose needed help with the side effects of chemotherapy. So, she reluctantly agrees to be interviewed by podcaster Calista Bryant on the Azalea Bay episode of Starch Nemesis. Calista, who’s normally a tough critic, raves about Baked by Chloe, saving her harshest words for Starr Bright’s health-and-wellness cafe, Sprout. When Calista turns up dead and the police suspect Starr, Chloe springs into action to save her fellow entrepreneur. The puzzle is standard shopkeeper cozy fare, with lots of suspects, a romantic side plot, warnings from the police to leave detection to the experts, and a tense confrontation with the killer when those warnings go unheeded. Adding cannabis to the heroine’s signature confections provides a quirky twist, although readers should be cautious when it comes to the two recipes George appends. She obviously knows a lot about the chemistry of cannabis, and those recipes carry a warning that their potency can vary with both the strain of the plant and the consumers’ personal tolerance. Like solving murders, however, creating edibles whose ingredients include psychoactive drugs is probably best left to professionals.

Feb 25, 2025 - 07:16

Chloe Barnes wants nothing more than to build up a healthy clientele for the weed-themed bakery she started in Azalea Bay, California, when her Grandma Rose needed help with the side effects of chemotherapy. So, she reluctantly agrees to be interviewed by podcaster Calista Bryant on the Azalea Bay episode of Starch Nemesis. Calista, who’s normally a tough critic, raves about Baked by Chloe, saving her harshest words for Starr Bright’s health-and-wellness cafe, Sprout. When Calista turns up dead and the police suspect Starr, Chloe springs into action to save her fellow entrepreneur. The puzzle is standard shopkeeper cozy fare, with lots of suspects, a romantic side plot, warnings from the police to leave detection to the experts, and a tense confrontation with the killer when those warnings go unheeded. Adding cannabis to the heroine’s signature confections provides a quirky twist, although readers should be cautious when it comes to the two recipes George appends. She obviously knows a lot about the chemistry of cannabis, and those recipes carry a warning that their potency can vary with both the strain of the plant and the consumers’ personal tolerance. Like solving murders, however, creating edibles whose ingredients include psychoactive drugs is probably best left to professionals.