Review

It’s Christmastime at the Pennyfoot Country Club and there are many preparations remaining. Cecily Sinclair Baxter is excited for the upcoming holidays but starting to get nervous that not everything will be done in time. The hotel is short-staffed and Cecily also agreed to host one of the housemaid’s wedding. Things get even worse when one of the Pennyfoot’s guests is found murdered on the beach and it’s up to Cecily to solve the crime before her nemesis Inspector Cranshaw arrives and ruins Pansy’s wedding, along with the hotel’s other Christmas plans.

Mulled Murder is an enjoyable holiday mystery and from the author’s note at the beginning of the book, it appears it will be the final book in the series. It wouldn’t be a Pennyfoot Holiday mystery without Cecily scrambling to get ready for Christmas while trying to solve a murder. As usual, Cecily’s friend Madeline is on hand to decorate the hotel and the sometimes overbearing Phoebe is planning a grand pantomime. What’s different in this book is Cecily’s husband Baxter instead of forbidding her to get involved in the murder investigation actually wants to help her. This is the first time in a long time of reading these books that I liked Baxter and could understand what Cecily saw in him. His partnership with Cecily in the investigation added to it and gave the story a fresh feel.

As much as I have always liked Cecily and Madeline, the real stars of this book and of the series are the household staff. The rapport between the cook Mrs. Chubb, housemaids Pansy and Gertie, and temperamental chef Michel are priceless – full of both humorous as well as touching moments. I love these characters, and seeing them interact on the job and in their personal lives are my favorite parts of the book. Gertie and Pansy both have some great moments in this book, so long-time readers won’t be disappointed. New readers could catch up and enjoy the story, but since this is the last book in the series, it would be better to read some ozf the prior books that build up to the events that take place in Mulled Murder.

The only downside of the book is a bit too much happens which the reader only hears about after the fact. It’s disappointing that after a build-up throughout the book, the reader doesn’t get the payoff of getting to see some of the events unfold. There also seems to be an over-abundance of smarmy men this time around which becomes creepy, but unfortunately doesn’t add anything to the murder investigation.

Overall, Mulled Murder is a fun, holiday cozy. I will miss these books and especially the characters of Cecily, Gertie, and Pansy, but I’m happy that author Kate Kingsbury does the characters proud when wrapping up this delightful series.