This was actually a lot of fun. Instead of marrying off Dorothy and attempting a failed spin off, the creators of the real Golden Girls should have introduced them to murder. Author Ekstrom-Courage captures their banter well and anyone with even the slightest fondness for the OG's of Miami should enjoy this mystery. I liked how good old St. Olaf is represented by the storyline of a young Nettie (Rose's young cousin) marrying a man of means from Florida. The Minnesota contingent keeps Rose on her toes while making sure she doesn't leave out any of the sometimes-wacky wedding traditions from home. There's a dead guy, a twist or two and just an all-around fun read.

This book felt like it was pulled straight from an episode of Golden Girls. Rose is preparing to host a wedding for her cousin, Nettie, wherein an inheritance clause makes it necessary for the wedding to contain many St. Olaf traditions. Dorothy, feeling a bit lonely and sad at the prospect of no date to the wedding, she decides to try a video dating service. After an awkward date, her new boyfriend is found dead - at the wedding venue no less, Dorothy becomes the primary suspect in the murder and starts to derail all the wedding plans! It was cute, silly and full of so many great moments, Sometimes it felt like the comedy and our favorite 'girls' were taking the spotlight to the mystery, but I will absolutely read on in the series!

Murder by Cheesecake is the first cozy mystery by Rachel Ekstrom Courage featuring the Golden Girls (from the TV series). Released 15th April 2025 by Disney Int'l (they own the license) on their Hyperion Ave. publishing imprint, it's 336 pages and is available in paperback, audio, and ebook formats.

The book, the characters, the settings, the ancillary characters, in short everything is quite often almost caricature campy and overdone, nearly (but not quite) breaking the fourth wall. There are a number of super precious details which only seemed placed to tie the characters to their TV personas. The secondary characters are largely over-the-top stereotypes, but again, fair play for the genre (and with the full understanding that it's not meant to be anything other than an escape and homage).

The language is very clean and the violence level is "cozy" (no egregious on page descriptions).

Three and a half stars, with the understanding that it's primarily aimed at readers who are huge golden girls fans already and just want to read an escapist book "episode"

Disclosure: I received an ARC at no cost from the author/publisher for review purposes.

Too nonsensical even for a light read. Tried hard to actually get into this book and could not do it.

I absolutely loved this book! The up and downs from each character was thought out and expressed. There were a few typos on spelling and punctuation so I would double check that.

this was hilarious and I loved it. a VHS dating service? perfect. way too much wedding plot and not enough murder plot but I am so hoping for more of these. they are an easy fun read.

This was a lighthearted easy read that perfectly describes the Golden Girls characters. The book balanced humor and suspense very well making this a very entertaining read. I honestly felt the book was a tad bit too long, I was easily bored about halfway in, and I also felt there were a few too many characters to keep track of. But I really enjoyed how well the characters matched the show. I look forward to reading more by this author.

Thank you #NetGalley and the publisher for this ARC.

What a cute read this was! It was like watching an episode of The Golden Girls. The author did a wonderful job of catching the essence of all four of the golden girls. From the sarcasticness of Sophia, the naïveté of Rose, the sternness of Dorothy and the sex appeal of Blanche; the characters were well represented. The outfits they wore and the thigs they said, seemed on point.

I was so excited to read a story of them, solving a cozy mystery together and hear more about the St. Olafians. I did enjoy the story; it wasn’t a perfect story, but it was a really good first start to a series. I will definitely check out more books in the series. It made me giggle out loud at times. Definitely worth a read; a great summer book.

Thank you to NetGalley, the publishing house in the author for the opportunity to read a complimentary copy of this book in return for review based upon my honest opinion.

I am so incredibly grateful for the opportunity to have received an advanced copy of Murder by Cheesecake from the author, and Hyperion Avenue! 🫶

I absolutely love Golden Girls so when I saw that this book was on NetGalley I ran so fast to request. The show itself is a comfort series for me and this story felt like me watching an episode of The Golden Girls. It truly was so fun and so entertaining and I loved it immensely. All of the characters are amazing and I loved the mystery going on so I highly recommend it to anyone who loves Golden Girls and mystery!

I actually really enjoyed this one! I will say this much—it definitely felt like the author was trying to channel the Golden Girls themselves, and I appreciated that. Some parts were a little ridiculous, sure, but that’s part of the charm with cozy mysteries. As a freshman attempt at creating something that fans of the Golden Girls can enjoy, I give it four stars for that alone. I really hope there’s a second book in the works, because with a little positive feedback from Golden Girls fans, this could grow into a truly stellar series.

OMGosh!! If you are a fan of Golden Girls....run out and grab this book! This felt like an extended episodes of GG! A St. Olaf wedding, a murder, laughs, and so so many inside jokes of the show! This was fantastic!

Good concept, loved the nostalgia throwbacks, but the writing was just very basic. Seemed more like juvenile fan fiction than adult fan fiction. Didn't really grab me and keep me engaged.

A must read for any Golden Girls fans! The author did a great job of capturing the characters I know and love! The jokes were all spot on and perfect for each personality. This whole book felt like getting brand new episodes of the show. I hope to see more Golden Girls mysteries from this author in the future!

The girls are back to solve a mystery at Rose's niece's wedding. This was so fun and Courage did such a great job of writing all the girls' personalities.

"Golden Girls" holds a sweet spot in my memories, so when I saw "Murder by Cheesecake" was the first book in a new cozy mystery series featuring the Golden Girls, I had to check it out. I was a bit skeptical at first, and remained so throughout reading the story.

While the author had the girls all pegged and was able to have them act in the manner one would expect knowing the franchise, having them solve a mystery was a stretch too far. It all felt a bit forced.

If you read it as a fun homage to the TV series, it's a nice reminder of what made the show so special. But them as detectives didn't work well at all for me.

Thank you to Rachel Ekstrom Courage, Hyperion Avenue, and NetGalley for an advance review copy.

The girls are back and have stumbled upon a murder! While all the essential elements are there, it seems like the soul of the Golden Girls was missing, making the book feel a bit forced. It might have been that the plot centered around a murder mystery that wasn’t quite convincing. Since the foundation of the story was a little shaky, the parts meant to add depth ended up feeling superficial and a bit forced too. Sadly, the Golden Girls characters came across as a bit cliché, and the plot felt quite weak overall.

I really enjoyed this book. It was like watching a new extended episode of The Golden Girls. I hope the next book doesn't have as much St Olaf traditions. I feel some of this dragged on too long and distracted from the main plot of the book.

Murder by Cheesecake definitely reads as an extra long Golden Girls episode just with a little extra exposition. It was a fun treat for fans of the show. At times the story read as a script and the characters voices were so evident, which means if you are not a fan it will probably be confusing. I enjoyed it although it is less of a whodunit and more of a ladies running around pretending to investigate while being them.

I wanted to really like this story but it was a struggle for me. I picked it up because I know the characters and it sounded like a cute story, but to have the characters explicitly described in their attire and quirks was a little annoying at times. Overall, it was cute but not something I’d recommend.

Picture it: West Fargo 2025.

My grandmother loved the Golden Girls, so I grew up watching reruns before bed with her in the summer when I went to visit. I have such fond memories of it, that I still put the show on today on occasion before bed.

So when I saw a book with those 4 familiar faces on the cover, I HAD to read it! I’ve tried cozy mysteries in the past and always been disappointed and decided they just weren’t for me. Give it a Golden Girls theme and I am all about them! I so enjoyed this book. I could see the living room as it was described in the book. Hear Rose as she told yet another Saint Olaf story and don’t get me started on Sophia’s comments 😂. It was perfection of 4 ladies I feel like I know personally. And of course you can’t have the golden Girls without cheesecake! So I whipped up my favorite chocolate chip cheesecake for the occasion.