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Book Review
Reviewed: 29 March 2025

Cheddar Luck Next Time

by: Beth Cato

A Novel

  • Rating: full starfull starfull starfull starstar outline (4/5)

Tempted by the title, stayed for the story

First, I loved that the leading lady is autistic. And that no one treated her poorly. Bird Nichols is still mourning the loss of her grandmother so soon after the death of her parents in car accident. She has reluctantly moved into her grandmother's home. Second, cheese boards. There are cheese based mysteries but this is my first one based around a cheese board cottage business. I like learning more about that. Third, diverse cast of characters. There are different nationalities and ethnic groups represented. 

Grandma's mystic floats throughout the story. She was seen in distress and presumed drowned. But her impact on her town persists. This both helps and hinders Bird as she tries to the solve the murder the local troublemaker she found dead on the side of the road.

Dale was charming and of course a good match, being the owner of a Grilled Cheese restaurant and all.

I was surprised about the killer but not the reason. There was a clue early on that I thought was strange so it stuck with me. While the murder was solved I was left wondering, who was Grandma Lucille? This story was a reminder that no one is all good nor all bad, we’re made up of layers. I hope there is another book in the works so Bird gets to learn more about the person her parents kept her away from.

Thank you to #NetGalley, #DaturaBooks and #BrillianceAudio for the opportunity to do an early read and share my thoughts on the story. 

Happy Reading!

Release Date: 8-April-2025
Cozy Mystery, Audiobook, Food Mystery, Female Sleuth, NetGalley

Plot Summary

A cozy cheese-scented mystery with delightful characters, a dash of murder and tons of intrigue, perfect for fans of The Thursday Murder Club and The Maid.

Cheese-obsessed Bird Nichols has just inherited her grandmother’s estate in a quiet, quirky Californian town. But when a body is found on her property, her life begins to get rather loud…

Bird Nichols is ready to make a fresh start in a familiar place. Last year, her parents died together in a car crash and her beloved grandmother is presumed dead from an ocean drowning. Bird is now moving onto her grandmother's California coastal property, and finally living out her dream. Bird loves cheese like nothing else. It's her autistic special interest, and she designs her boards along her sensory needs, and other people love them, too. 

But just when everything seems to be going right, the local troublemaker ends up dead on her rural road. Grizz, the closest thing Bird has to family, is the sheriff department's favourite suspect, but she is determined to prove Grizz’s innocence. So now, Bird needs to unpack her possessions, assemble her pretty cheese boards, and find the true murderer before they strike again.