I appreciate the publisher allowing me to read this book. I loved this book full of great characters and an intriguing story.

A Bread Shop Mystery Book 6.

Ivy Culpepper works at the bread shop, Yeast of Eden. She is also starting up a photography business and likes to help solve mysteries in her spare time. When Nessa Renchrik, a member of the School Board, is found dead in the boardroom at the district office, Ivy starts asking questions to find out who killed her and why.

I really enjoyed this book! The characters were great. My favorite character was Mrs. Ranford. She brought fun and humor to the story. It gets a little preachy about immigration and privilege but brings up issues to think about. The writing was great with enough description to create a clear imagery which makes the storyline easy to follow. I liked this book so much I want to go back and read the other books in the series. I also love books that have recipes at the end. This book has a few bread recipes and a recipe for Sausage, Kale, and Potato Soup that I can’t wait to try. I highly recommend this book to cozy mystery lovers! It would also be perfect as a beach read!
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Thank you NetGalley and Kensington Books for the ARC in exchange for my honest review!

I’ve learned that cozy mysteries probably aren’t my jam - this was my first foray, so I’m not sure that I’m the best person to “review” this book. I’m giving 5 stars because it wouldn’t feel right to give anything less in a genre I’m unfamiliar with. It was cute, sweet (literally), and fun to follow along!

I love this series. It’s a fun, light, quick read. I enjoyed it and would recommend it to others. It checked all of the boxes I look for in a cozy

I have been working my way through the Bread Shop Mystery series and with the next one coming out this month, I wanted to read this one first. I enjoy this series set in small town Santa Sofia, on the northern California coast. Vincent van Dough focaccia is being touted on Instagram as the best thing since sliced bread, and bakers all over are artistically recreating the painting using bread and other food items. Yeast of Eden is creating their own Vincent van Dough focaccia for the school's spring fling. It is also Billy and Emmaline's wedding so there is a lot going on. While getting ready to leave on their honeymoon, the police captain that will be in charge while Chief Emmaline is away, takes a call to find out that the local school board president has been murdered. Of course Ivy steps in to help, but he doesn't want her help or intrusion.

The victim in this book was not well liked at all. There were so many suspects, but the captain zeroed in on Miguel, Ivy's boyfriend. All the regulars were here including Mrs. Brandford (Penelope/Penny) and Olaya. Once again, Penelope surprises Ivy and the reader with some of her skills and knowledge. This book also deals with issues surrounding immigration and illegal workers, which was actually quite sad. Olaya is the owner of the bread shop, and she is so smart and a great character. I loved the sound of her focaccia in this one. This book kept me guessing throughout most of the book, but I did figure out the killer before the reveal. That did not affect my enjoyment of the story at all. This was a fun cozy mystery with a well written plot. The characters are well developed and really drive this series. If you love cozy mysteries with food and great characters then I recommend you pick up this book or any in the series.

I really liked this cozy mystery. We’re back with Ivy at Yeast of Eden (this is the 6th bread shop book) and the garden focaccia trend I’d sweeping the internet. I actually baked a few of these myself!
Ivy is baking a batch for the school district, and when the school board president is murdered, ivy jumps in to investigate.
I like the writing and plotting, it kept me reading until the end. The characters feel like visiting old friends. I recommend this book, 4 stars.
Thanks to the publisher and NetGalley I received a complimentary copy of this book. Opinions expressed in this review are completely my own.

Death Gone A-Rye is the sixth installment in the A Bread Shop Mystery series set in Santa Sofia, CA and featuring Ivy Culpepper, part time baker at Yeast of Eden. Ivy's brother Billy is marrying her best friend, Sheriff Emmaline "Em" Davis and Ivy couldn't be happier for the couple. Captain Craig York is a new hire for the department and is attending the wedding when he receives a call that sends him whispering in Em's ear. There has been murder and it's Nessa Renchrik - School Board President.

With Em away on her honeymoon, Captain York takes over the investigation and not only does he rub Ivy the wrong way, but he sets his sights on Ivy's boyfriend Miguel Baptiste as the killer. It seems that Miguel dated Nessa several years ago and the breakup was not amicable. Desperate to clear her beau's name, Ivy sets out with the help of her elderly neighbor Penelope Branford and Olaya Solis, owner of the bread shop to roll out a killer.

A fast paced plot dealing with infidelity and immigration presents a handful of possible suspects. The relationships between Ivy, Miguel, Olaya and Penelope will have you wishing you lived in Santa Sofia. Oh, and did I mention the mouthwatering bread descriptions? I actually dusted off the rarely used breadmaker and whipped up a loaf for dinner.

I received an advanced copy of Death Gone A-Rye from NetGalley via Kensington Publishing. While not required to write a review I am happy to offer my honest opinion.

This was a book my mom requested when I gave her access to my net galley account and I never got a review from her .

Ok, I'm all caught up on this series and all I can say is, I WANT MORE!
When the local school board president is murdered, the big question is not who killed her, but rather, who DIDN'T want to kill her? Despite a list of suspects that grows longer with every person she talks to and every fact that she finds out, Ivy soon realizes that the new detective investigating the case in her best's friend's absence has his eyes solely on Miguel, Ivy's boyfriend. With the help of her friends, it's up to Ivy to figure out who put an end to the victim's nastiness once and for all.
Author Winnie Archer has created an amazing series that gets better with each and every book. The mix of a diverse cast of characters, each of whom is interesting in their own rights, a beautifully described setting, and of course, the mysteries themselves, all combine to draw readers in and hold their attention until the very last page.

The sixth book in the “A Bread Shop Mystery” series, Death Gone A-Rye is the first one that I have read. I found it enjoyable and exciting, with enough variation to make it stand out from the crowded cozy market. A bread shop mixed with Mexican culture and the murder of a school board president keeps readers enthralled and delighted. However, when the sheriff goes on her honeymoon, trouble shows up at the party.

Characters in this book are entertaining, intelligent, and easy to like. Old and young alike are of value and add a little spice to the cast. Suspects are everywhere it seems, and all of them have a good motive for killing Nessa, some better than others. Nessa wasn’t well-liked for a good reason. Em being away on her honeymoon adds a new character, York, the new Captain on the force, to the mix and a bit of disgruntlement from Ivy and others. The bread shop is a wonderful location that brings people together, and the description of the food is divine. Ivy’s hopes and dreams add to the depth of the character, as does her relationships with friends, co-workers, neighbors, and of course, Miguel. The timeliness of the plot has readers asking for more. The killer, once uncovered, may come as a surprise to many, but ultimately, readers will know the moment they realize who the culprit is that it couldn’t be anyone else.

There are plenty of twists and turns in Death Gone A-Rye; red herrings smoothly integrate into the story and may not be noticed. When Em gets back from her honeymoon, the case is solved, and everyone is happy once more, or almost everyone. The bread recipes will thrill readers and their desire to try them out for themselves may be overwhelming, leading to all new delights in the kitchen. Fast-paced, action, suspense, and a cast of spunky, heartfelt, and loyal characters with great personal relationships are the makings of a fantastic read, and this book has that in spades.

Princess Fuzzypants here: Right after the wedding of Ivy’s brother and best friend, her friend, the Top Cop in town, is informed of the murder of a prominent woman. As she is about to leave on her honeymoon, she asks Ivy to get involved in the investigation even though she has a newly hired detective to handle the case. It required a bit of a stretch in credulity but I was willing to go along with it. She may have had a premonition that her new hire would focus on Ivy’s boyfriend as the primary suspect, on some pretty feeble “evidence”. He manages to miss all the clues along the way.

It turns out the question is not who would want to kill her but who would not want to. She is a vicious, ambitious, immoral woman to everyone from her own children to her fellow members of the School Board. She is a piece of work and whoever killed her did a big favour to the community. The story gets very interesting as Ivy asks the people who were connected to her on a professional and a personal basis. When the dust settles and the identity and motive of the killer is revealed, the sympathy goes to the killer and not the victim. In fact, it transpires there were far more victims in this woman’s life than the deceased.

Four purrs and two paws up.

Death Gone A-Rye by Winnie Archer

Emmaline Davis and Billy Culpepper are getting married! No one could be happier for them than Ivy Culpepper, Emmaline’s best friend and Billy’s sister, who has been cheering on this union for decades. The wedding is slightly marred however by reports coming in of the murder of a member of Santa Sofia’s school board. As Emmaline is town sheriff, the news and responsibility go straight to her, but her newly hired detective, Captain Craig York, is eager to prove himself. With the lure of her impending honeymoon combining with her professional goal of responsible delegation, Em leaves the case in Captain York’s hands, but pulls Ivy aside to ask her to keep her eyes and ears open just in case.

Ivy does not take her responsibilities as Em’s unofficial investigator lightly, but is happy to let Captain York take charge while she focuses on working with her beloved mentor, Olaya Solis of the famed Yeast Of Eden bakery, to bake bread and pastries both for the store and for several upcoming special events.This laidback attitude changes drastically, however, when Captain York zeroes in on Ivy’s boyfriend as prime suspect. Turns out that Miguel Baptista had dated the deceased woman, Nessa Renchrik, about a decade ago. This seems like an awfully thin reason to Ivy even if she weren’t emotionally involved with Miguel, so she goes all out to investigate Nessa’s life and find out who might have had a real motive to kill the school board president. Turns out that the list is surprisingly long even for a politician. Ivy soon has her hands full untangling the woman’s web of secrets and lies before discovering the devastating truth.

I always enjoy spending time in Winnie Archer’s Santa Sofia, with its diverse, inclusive cast of characters and awareness of modern problems. The death of a politician, even one so seemingly minor as a member of the school board, always opens up a can of worms, and Ms Archer tackles the issues of racism and immigration, among others, with thoughtfulness and grace. It was also nice to catch up with the personal lives of all the characters as they continue to evolve and grow.

There were four recipes included, three for breads and one for a tasty looking soup. Despite my general preference for buying bread over making it, I was intrigued enough to give the following a try, lightly edited for length:

QUOTE
Olaya’s Hot Cross Buns
Makes 16 buns

For the Preferment
½ cup milk
1 teaspoon sugar
1 tablespoon instant yeast
½ cup whole wheat flour
1 stick unsalted butter
1 cup low-fat milk
½ cup brown sugar
2 eggs, room temperature and lightly beaten
1 teaspoon cinnamon
¼ teaspoon ground nutmeg
3 ½ cups all-purpose flour
¼-½ cup raisins (optional)

For the Egg Wash
1 egg
2 teaspoons milk

For the glaze
1 ½ cups confectioners’ sugar
2 tablespoons milk

Microwave milk until just warm. Add sugar, yeast, and flour. Stir and let sit at least 15 minutes until bubbly.

In mixing bowl, cream butter using the paddle attachment. Alternatively, whisk by hand.

Add milk, brown sugar, eggs, cinnamon, and nutmeg and mix until smooth.

Add flour and mix until dough sticks together.

Turn dough out onto work surface and knead, turning and adding only enough flour to form a smooth ball. Dough should not be sticky.

Add raisins to dough and knead until raisins are evenly dispersed. (Skip this step if you are not putting raisins in.)

Form dough into a ball and let rise for 1 hour in covered greased bowl. Dough should be almost doubled.

Grease two 8-inch square or round baking pans. Divide dough into two sections. Punch one of the dough balls down, and turn out onto floured surface. Roll into a 12-inch log. Divide log into 8 equal portions. Shape into balls and place in prepared pan, evenly spaced apart. Repeat with second dough ball.

Cover each pan with plastic wrap and place in the refrigerator to rise overnight!

The next morning, preheat the oven to 350° F. With a sharp knife, make a cross on the top of each bun.

Create egg wash by mixing egg and the 2 teaspoons of milk, and brush buns. Bake for 25-30 minutes.

While buns are baking, make the glaze by whisking together powdered sugar with 2 tablespoons milk. Let buns cool for 5-10 minutes before drizzling glaze over top. Serve immediately.
END QUOTE

Unlike Ivy, I have no talent for bread baking, and don’t even find the kneading process therapeutic as many do. That said, this was a lovely recipe that infuses a surprisingly sweet nuttiness through the entire bun via the whole wheat preferment. I should definitely have added raisins to mine though, as the glaze made these hot cross buns quite cinnamon-roll-like.

One thing I should note: in the step after creaming the butter, I would add the dry ingredients, or at least the brown sugar, and eggs before adding the milk. Beating the milk into the butter first makes for weird, floating lumps of butter, though perhaps that is the intent? I am not experienced enough to know: feel free to tell me your opinions in the comments!

Next week, we travel to the Midwest to make a tasty soup while investigating misfortune and murder. Do join me!

Winnie Archer is one of my favourite mystery authors. The combination of baking and whodunnit is a sure winner.In these chaotic pandemic times,I know what to expect with her formula of writing and I find it quite soothing. I love the characters in her books and the the way she keeps you thinking about who did it. I love this series and can’t wait for the next book.🍞📚👍👏

When Ivy's best friend the sheriff is on her honeymoon and a murder happens in town, the sheriff asks Ivy to keep an eye on the new detective. Ivy is determined to find out who murdered the school board president, especially when the new detective seems to determine to pin the crime on Ivy's boyfriend.

I'm really enjoying this series. I like the bread shop and the characters. I'm loving getting to know everyone so much! I was completely surprised at the end of this one. I did not see the ending coming at all. I am so excited to see what comes next!

Death Gone A-Rye by Winnie Archer is book #6 in A Breadshop Mystery series. This was the first in this series I have read but, it will not be the last. I was abl;e to be current quickly.
The school board president has been murdered, the sheriff is on her honeymoon, and the next in command is not liking Ivy doing her own investigation. Ivy is bound and determined to find the guilty party since her boyfriend is the main suspect.
You have plenty of plot twists in this jaw dropping Cozy. The characters are relatable (I loved the senior citizen side kick Penelope and wish I had a neighbor like her!) and you are transported to California. There is humor and romance.
The only problem is, you will be craving breads. Recipes are included.
I was given an ARC by Kensington via NetGalley for an honest review.

Death Gone a Rye by Winnie Archer is about an amateur sleuth trying to make sure that the police catch the right person.

Will Ivy be able to keep the new Captain York in line with finding the real killer?

Ivy Culpepper
Ivy Culpepper is our sleuth. She is an amateur at both sleuthing and bread baking. Ivy is also trying to get back into taking photographs for a living. She gets wrapped up in this case by her best friend, Emmaline Davis-Culpepper, and that her boyfriend is being typecasted for the murder. That right there is what really gets Ivy into trying to solve this case and providing the evidence to this new guy. Ivy is such a great sleuth and a good storyteller. I loved everything about her and especially why she wants to help out. The love Ivy has for her small town is so real, and I can definitely get it. I like Ivy because she seems relatable while also trying to solve a murder because of a loved one being on the line, and they may potentially go to jail.

The Mystery
Ivy never saw the dead body or even went to the crime scene until way after the fact. In reality, Ivy heard about it at her brother's wedding, to you guessed it, the sheriff, Emmaline. Ivy didn't want to investigate this murder, but her best friend asked her to, and then her boyfriend Miguel is being harassed by the cops. So she has to investigate to clear him. Ivy and I felt like we were playing whack-a-mole while figuring out who actually did it. The reason for that is that the school board president wasn't well-liked by a lot of people. Made the suspect board majorly too big.

I didn't think it was who did it, and I am still processing who actually did it. Ivy had some help from two little old ladies who always kept me laughing. One of them was her old English teacher who taught many people, and the other is the lady who owns the bread shop that Ivy works at. These two old ladies kept Ivy on her toes while also keeping the investigation fun.

Four Stars
Death Gone a Rye by Winnie Archer is a hoot of a book and kept me guessing throughout the whole thing about who the actual culprit was. Let's just say that Ms. Archer has done a fabulous job of weaving together all those clever red herrings. I kept thinking that it was one guy until something else popped up that made me think it was that person. I truly felt like I was playing whack-a-mole with these herrings. Ivy is such a great character, and I can see a lot of potential in this series. Ms. Archer can definitely weave a story like a good piece of bread. My rating for Death Gone a Rye by Winnie Archer is four stars, plus I am recommending it to anyone that enjoys cozy mysteries.

Don't forget about those recipes in the back of the book. They sound pretty good.

I voluntarily reviewed an Advance Reader Copy from the Great Escapes Book Tours. This does not affect my opinion of the book or the content of my review.

Thank you for dropping by! I hope you enjoyed this review of Death Gone a Rye by Winnie Archer.

Until the next time,
Karen the Baroness

If you would like to see other reviews like this one, check out BaronessBookTrove.com.

Death Gone A-Rye by Winnie Archer has Ivy Culpepper enjoying the wedding of her best friend and her brother in Santa Sofia, California. She notices Capt. Craig York looking at his phone and then consult with the bride, Sheriff Emmaline Davis. It turns out that Santa Sofia school board president, Nessa Renchrik has been murdered. Unfortunately, Capt. York narrows his sights in on Miguel Baptiste, Ivy’s boyfriend. It turns out that Miguel dated Nessa over ten years ago and saw her the week before her death. Ivy knows that Miguel did not harm Nessa. Thankfully, there are plenty of suspects. Ivy with help from Penelope Branford, retired schoolteacher, and Olaya Solia, owner of Yeast of Eden, set out to sift through the clues and uncover the killers’ identity. Death Gone A-Rye is the 6th tale in A Bread Shop Mystery series. It can be read as a standalone if you are new to the series or if you have missed a book or two. The story is well-written with developed, likeable characters. There is a diverse cast of characters. I especially love Mrs. Penelope Branford. I hope I am like Mrs. Branford when I am in my 80s. It is always pleasant to visit Santa Sofia. The pacing is a slow for my taste. A little action would have helped. It was wonderful to see Billy and Emmaline get their happily ever after. I enjoyed the descriptions of the bread offered at the reception. The Vincent Van Dough focaccia sounded beautiful (you should look them up online). The mystery was multifaceted. There are several good suspects in the death of Nessa. I am surprised the list was not longer after learning more about the victim. Ivy questions a number of people in her quest for the truth. There are good clues (if you pay close attention to the details) to help you identify the killer. I like everything tied together and the complete resolution. The ending will leave a smile on your face. I do feel that the story needs more humor. That is the one thing lacking for me. There are recipes at the end for Van Dough Focaccia Bread Art along with helpful bread making tips. Death Gone A-Rye is an appetizing cozy mystery with fancy focaccia, a bothered bride, a surplus of suspects, a framed fella, curious clues, and a cantankerous captain.

Only my second Bread Shop Mystery but I feel as though I know the characters and have no trouble following along as Ivy Culpepper does her best to get her guy off the top of the suspect list. I enjoy the fact that the Ivy and the Chief of Police for Santa Sofia not only work well together but are also now sisters-in-law. Definitely makes it easier for Ivy to do her sleuthing, which she does quite well. It also helps that Mrs. Branford makes for a great sidekick, pretending to be a feeble, little, old lady. There is noting feeble about the former school teacher. Ivy certainly has her work cut out for her since it seems that the victim was short on friends and long on enemies, not even sure that her own husband was fond of her. So many red herrings, I am not sure how Ivy kept it all straight. I would have needed a book for each suspect, not just one for all of the clues. The whack-a-mole reference was a great visual as one suspect popped up and another went down. Another great visual is the imagery created from the Van Dough Focaccia bread art, that one will definitely be on my baking bucket list. Great recipes at the back of the book, enough for a complete meal and dessert as well.

Death Gone A-Rye: A Bread Shop Mystery
By Winnie Archer
Kensington
May 2021

Review by Cynthia Chow

Ivy Culpepper is thrilled to see her brother Billy walk down the aisle with her own best friend, Sheriff Emmaline Davis. It’s a perfect wedding too, right up until they hear the news that the Santa Sofia School Board president Nessa Renchrik has been murdered. Ivy wants nothing more than for Billy and Emmaline to follow through on their honeymoon to Costa Rica, but that also means leaving the investigation in the hands of recent transfer Captain Craig York. Ivy doesn’t trust Captain York, especially when he seems to be focusing his investigation directly on her boyfriend Miguel Baptista. The owner of Baptista’s Cantina and Grill, Miguel also has an unexpected connection to the victim that makes him the easy target for a quick solution to a case. While the rest of Santa Sofia knows Ivy’s history of success at solving murders, Captain York is less amenable to her interference and makes no bones about warning her away under threat of arrest.

There was never a question that Ivy would indeed investigate the murder, which is why Yeast of Eden’s participation in a school’s Spring Fling fundraiser so convenient. Not only will Olaya Solis and Ivy have the opportunity to share their Instagram-hit focaccia creations, their booth will give Ivy a chance to question the School Board president’s many enemies. It seems that Nessa Renchrik favored certain schools over others, especially if they were in a higher economic district and populated by fewer minority children. Indeed, Nessa may have had a little too much influence with recent ICE raids, breaking up families and causing no amount of distrust and trauma. With octogenarian and neighbor Mrs. Penelope Branford serving as a capable, fearless, and usually unasked for sidekick, Ivy is torn between proving Miguel’s innocence and capturing a culprit who may have been justified in their actions.

This 6th in the series delves into very timely topics, especially for the Northern California setting. Immigration, school district divisions, and the struggles for equitable financing all make for triggering subjects if not deftly handled. The author approaches these very thoughtfully and humanely, with the personal connections emphasizing the coldness of bureaucratic rules. Balancing out these weighty themes are the unique and always mouth-watering descriptions of Olaya’s elaborate creations. The origin of Hot Cross Buns may not be a mystery to all, but it’s impossible not to be tantalized by her colorful Vincent Van Dough works of art. Included recipes are aspirational as well as inspirational, designed for both novices and experts. Ivy’s path towards becoming a professional photographer has been natural and relatable, as it has been the time spent working Olaya’s bakery that has allowed her to think, meditate, and be present while finding her purpose in life.

Death Gone A-Rye by Winnie Archer is a winner!

The story starts off with Billy standing by the arch he built for his bride to be sheriff Emmaline. As part of the celebration, Olaya made popovers and traditional dinner rolls. However, the big hit was the basket of focaccia.

Of course no cozy is complete with a murder. Nessa Renchrik has been found dead and Ivy gets on the case to figure out who really killed her, especially because the police are looking at her boyfriend as a person of interest.

Olaya, Ivy and Penelope are my favorite characters. The storyline is easy to follow and provides a surprise ending.

Highly recommend!!