The first book of a new series. I started reading and couldn't put it down. Refreshing to read.
Sophia coming home to Rumford with a broken heart and stays with mom and dad .
I just loved mom (bitsy) with her dry wit which was brilliant made me laugh and so did her matchmaking.
I guessed who the killer might be half way through the book but that didn't stop me finishing the book .
A very good book , will be on the look out for her next in the series.
Thankyou net gally for letting me review this book .

OMG I didn't want this book to end. It was so good. I love the story line and the people are great. I could just taste all the stuff Sophia made. I was happy to see the recipes at the end. Who doesn't love a southern mama? Bitsy was a awesome. She had just enough charm that she didn't over power the story or make you want to hate her. I am going to look forward to fallowing this new story and find out how Sophia does with her new adventure. I received this early copy for a honest review.

After she finds her boyfriend cheating on her, pastry chef Sophia Cummings leaves New York City to her family and the small, Southern town she left, Rumford, Kentucky. She reconnects quickly with her high school girlfriends, and agrees to a request from one to bake her cake for her upcoming nuptials in just a few days. However, when they are at the Rumford Country Club designing the cake, they follow a scream to an employee who has just found the body of the club chef. Sophia knows something is up with way he was killed, and lend her assistance to the local sheriff who wants to place the blame on her former boss. Plenty of people wanted Emile dead, but can Sophia whittle down the list and make sure the wedding goes off without a hitch?

This is the first book in the Southern Cake Baker Mystery series. It started off strong, lulled just a bit in the middle, and finished well. The characters are likeable and quirky, and as a Northerner, I had fun learning some of the Southern sayings I'm not used to. The author is able to put the reader on location, whether it be at the country club, Ford's Bakery, or Sophia's parent's home. Well written and a good read. I am looking forward to the next book.

Yum, who can resist cake? A quick, well-written and enjoyable ready with quirky characters that I love. Enjoyed the twists on the typical recipes as well. Looking forward to more of this one.

I DEVOURED this book in one sitting. It's so good that I couldn't put it down! now I am EAGERLY awaiting the next installment in this series. I don't want to wait!!!! I highly recommend this one to those looking for a new cozy mystery series to start. It looks like it's going to be an absolute FAVORITE series of mine in the future.

Cake and Punishment
A Southern Cake Baker Mystery, Book #1
Tonya Kappes
5 Stars

Synopsis:

In the first of a delectable new Southern-set baking cozy series, Sophia Cummings, pastry chef extraordinaire, must craft the perfect cake for an old friend’s wedding while sifting through the suspects in a murder.

Bucolic Rumford, Kentucky has glowing fields of bluegrass, a fine selection of bourbons, and now a professional pastry chef. Broken-hearted Sophia Cummings has come home from New York City. She’s not there a minute before she’s charmed into making her high school friend Charlotte’s wedding cake. The kitchen at the Rumford Country Club seems perfect until Chef Emile’s body is discovered, sprawled near the stove, a cast iron skillet on the floor close by.

With one look at the shiny, new frying pan, Sophia knows it’s not Emile’s. She offers her knowledge to Sheriff Carter and her talents to Evelyn, the manager, who needs an interim chef. The mood in the country club is grim: Emile’s peppery personality had burned members and staff alike. Sophia wonders which one of them burned him?

Perfect for fans of Joanne Fluke and JoAnna Carl, Cake and Punishment―with authentic Southern recipes!―will satisfy your sweet tooth. (Goodreads)


Review:

When reading anything written by this author, there are a few things you can be certain of: exceptional characters, a homey setting, humor and a great mystery. And of course all of those things are found in this book.

Sophia is a hardworking, honest, funny woman. She is a great pastry chef and when she makes creations that others enjoy, that makes her very happy. She has returned home from Manhattan after she caught her boyfriend cheating on her to try and heal her heart and head. She is not planning on staying, only visiting. But somehow she finds herself agreeing to making the wedding cake for one of her highschool friends. Then she finds herself agreeing to help out her old boss by being the chef for the country club until they can find a replacement. The regular chef has been murdered. As if that is not enough on her plate, she decides that she has to figure out who the murderer is.

The characters are well developed and well rounded. I enjoyed getting to know Sophia and her family and friends. Her mother is a real piece of work, bossy and meddling, but she sure does love Sophia. Sophia enjoys spending time with some of her friends from highschool, and the longer she visits, the more she realizes that she misses her hometown.

The writing style flows smoothly and the book is an easy read. Although there is a lot of action in this book, it is as much character and dialogue driven as it is action driven. The author is very talented in her descriptive writing and she knows how to create the perfect Southern small town, with the traditions and the nosiness and the helpfulness of neighbors.

The mystery was well plotted and well paced. There were enough suspects to consider and clues to sift through and that made this mystery difficult to solve.

I would recommend this book to anyone who enjoys a well crafted cozy mystery. I think this author has another great series to add to her name.

I received a free copy of this book from NetGalley in exchange for a honest review. I would like to thank NetGalley and Crooked Lane Books for the opportunity to read and review this book.

Sophia returns to her small town in Kentucky where she grew up after she catches her live in boyfriend 'messing around' with another person from The Manhattan, the fancy restaurant they all worked in. The town is really small, and her mother Elizabeth aka Bitsy is known for her gossiping along with her friends at the Country Club and the other clubs they belong in. There are no secrets in this town....no sir! If anyone knows it, everyone knows it! Sophia also is a pastry chef. Her mother talks her into going to the country club with her, and of course she is the talk of the town.....until the Head Chef from the country club is found dead. Sophia just can't help but think that something isn't quite right with the way the Chef was killed. She gets talked into baking all kinds of things, but insists she is returning to New York and not staying in Rumford. Then there is the easy on the eyes Sheriff Carter. He can help mend a broke heart can't he? This is a humorous tale that has a lot of southern sayings in it. But who killed the Chef? Why? Can Sophia find out? I would like to thank Net Galley for a copy of this book. The review is voluntary and of my own opiniion.

I read this book in one sitting. One of the best cozies I've rad this year. Fast, fun, with excellent characters. There was never a dull moment. I loved the interaction the main character had with the Sherrif. I can't wait for the next.

Sophia Cummings left the bright lights of New York and a restaurant career behind when her heart was broken. Back home in Rumford, Kentucky, she gets sweet talked into making a wedding cake for her best friend Charlotte. Things get dicey when the chef at the country club where Charlotte plans to hold her reception is murdered. Conked on the head with a cast iron skillet that Sophia knows right away is not his own – it’s brand new. Suddenly, Sofia’s quiet retreat to her hometown becomes a whirlwind as she helps the police with their investigation and takes over for dead chef Emile at the country club. A well written cozy culinary mystery that kept me reading into the night