| Title | : | French Pressed (Coffeehouse Mystery, #6) |
| Author | : | |
| Rating | : | |
| ISBN | : | 0425220494 |
| ISBN-10 | : | 9780425220498 |
| Language | : | English |
| Format Type | : | Mass Market Paperback |
| Number of Pages | : | 270 |
| Publication | : | First published April 1, 2008 |
Clare Cosi's daughter, Joy, is interning-and falling- for a top New York chef when his kitchen turns cutthroat, and Joy becomes a murder suspect. Clare knows she must catch the real killer-even if it lands her in the hottest water of her life.
French Pressed (Coffeehouse Mystery, #6) Reviews
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That's it, I can't take any more of this series. The never-ending drama of Clare and her creepy, lying, condescending, sex-addict,douchetard ex-husband/housemate finally proved too much for me. The mysteries were often fun, but the squick-factor of their on/off relationship is just too...squicky. Somehow I made it through five books, but when it was still going on well into book number six, I, unlike Clare Cosi, decided I'd had enough.
(full disclosure: like any abused partner, I was still holding onto a little tidbit of hope that things would get better, that this would be the book where, say, the ex-husband dies in an espresso machine explosion. Not wanting to read on without some sort of assurance of improvement, I skimmed the descriptions of later books in the series, but when I continued to see Mat's name with no reference to funerals or shark attacks, I had to admit defeat) -
I really love this series. I'm going to get a cup of coffee now.
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Cleo Coyle's coffee-house mysteries are hard to read WITHOUT drinking coffee on the side, which is part of the reason this series is so enjoyable. I love how the author infuses knowledge of coffee in each of these books, educating readers while entertaining them with the story.
While the ride was certainly fun, I wasn't impressed by the mystery itself and the unveiling of the murderer. I didn't feel too surprised when finding out the killer's identity. As I don't think the author is trying to be deliberately humorous, I really like Clare's character and her demeanor. I was happy to see her relationships further developing with Mike the cop and her ex-husband Matt in interesting ways. With Joy being blamed for murder, I was slightly disappointed that her character had less speaking parts in the book, because she is really becoming quite fun!
I am really looking forward to the next book in the series! -
Digital audiobook performed by Rebecca Gibel.
From the book jacket: Clare’s daughter, Joy, is immersing herself in an internship at Solange, one of New York’s hottest French restaurants – and she’s getting pretty intimate with the older, married Chef Tommy Keitel as well. Resolved to keep an closer eye on Joy, Clarre makes a deal to provide exclusive coffee blends for Tommy, a man she wouldn’t mind seeing roasted and pressed. Then the competitive kitchen turns cutthroat, and Joy’s a suspect. To clear her daughter of the crime, Clare knows she must catch the real killer.
My reactions
This is book six in the Coffeehouse Mystery series, and I’m really enjoying them. I do think that Clare’s insistence on investigating on her own is a bit over-the-top, but it wouldn’t be a cozy mystery without an intrusive amateur sleuth. I do enjoy the information on coffees (even though I stick with grocery-store blends myself), and this book really delves into foodie culture which had me salivating in places.
I also like that the romance with detective Mike Quinn is heating up, despite Madame’s (Clare’s mother-in-law and co-owner of the shop) efforts to get Clare back with her son Matteo.
Not a fan of the cliff-hanger ending, but that’s a pet peeve of mine. Still, I found it deliciously entertaining – a perfect “escape” during these unsettled times.
Rebecca Gibel does a fine job performing the audiobook. I really love the voice she uses for Madame. -
More of an autocorrected rant than a review. I had so many frustrations with this book. It was depressing and boring and I just was incredibly annoyed with all the characters. I liked the last two books so much that I hoped the series was picking up but this book proved me wrong! First of all, I hated the 'friend/family member suspected of murder' last time they did it but it was even worse this time. It was sad and upsetting to see Joy (and Tucker in book ?3) suffer, and the solution was much messier as far as Joy's involvement went. The solution was so painfully obvious, which I don't necessarily mind but there was so much 'aha this will throw them off!' boring nonsense distracting from the main mystery. There were a bunch of threads in this that just went nowhere and didn't tie together, and the lack of craftsmanship was frustrating. The strength of these books imo is the detailed info about new York/coffee/whatever but this book had so many dull subplots there was no time for any of that. Also, Madame was barely in it!!
There was also sooooo much judgement wrt joy sleeping w her boss who is much older and married and like while i agree that is not good, the boss was waaaay worse and I spent the whole book wanting to punch him. Also, why is Clare so bad at talking to her own child?? Who she has been the primary caretaker for since always??? Like she seems to magically forget that Joy is stubborn before every convo and seems to have no idea how to get Joy to listen to what she says? Like obvi Joy is gonna make her own choices but it would have solved so many problems if Clare had just calmly said 'this is a bad idea and here is why I think that, but you are an adult and you have to make your own choices. ill be here for you no matter what' wow so hard to talk to your own kid. She is also soooooo condescending about her ex's relationship when a of all it's none of her dang business and b people can be fulfilled by different types of relationships!! Chill. To be fair, Mat needs to fuck off with the constantly hitting on her I don't like him rn either. And stop judging brianne?? Like her big flaw is what ?? being successful and Buying the guy she is banging a bunch of stuff. What a monster. So "emasculating"! Gender is fake, you're just an asshole, Clare.
A final complaint. I don't get why Clare is so often like 'oh I can trust mike bc he's a cop' when literally all the other police officers she encounters are both bad at their jobs and all around shitty people. (tbh including mike he's so controlling and fucking breaks the law bc he thinks he knows better all the time!!)
Some of these issues obviously are reservations I have w the series as a whole, but they stood out really starkly while reading this book because the plot was terrible and it was just all around uninteresting. -
Clare does some of the boroughs, a fancy-schmancy restaurant and ventures into Bumma territory of Brighton Beach and borscht. Plus some relationships get defined. And my favorite East Coast coffee roaster (outside of javaczuk), Counter Culture Coffee of Chapel Hill, NC, gets a mention in the thank you's and in the story itself.
Yes, I'll keep my eye out for book 7, Espresso Shot, though I don't think it'll make me drink more espresso. One of the books got me to take out my mocha pot, but this one didn't drag the French press off the shelf.
Oh, before I forget, javaczuk calls these books the Sookie Stackhouse of coffee. :) -
4 Stars!!!
I absolutely LOVE this cozy coffee house series! This is book 6 and I am enjoying them more and more with each one. Cleo Coyle has created such an amazing set of characters! I cannot recommend the audio version enough. The narrator is FANTASTIC! Don't pass this series up. -
3.5, but I rounded up. I'm still on the fence about this series. I like a few books and then I read one that isn't that great. I'll read the next one since this one ended in a cliff hanger!
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Clare Cosi, manager of a popular New York City coffee house, is not particularly happy with her daughter Joy. Although she is now an adult, Clare can't seem to see Joy as anything but her little girl. Seeing Joy with her new boyfriend, the head chef of a fancy restaurant and a man who is more than likely twice Joy's age, doesn't sit well with Mom. Her problems are just beginning because the chef is soon a corpse with a fancy French knife in his neck. Learning that the chef had just ended his affair with Joy, the police immediately arrest her for murder. Clare must now try to find the real killer, placing herself in dangerous situations that just may end her own life.
This is another good cozy mystery with a fairly good plot. I like the characters in these books and the audios are particularly well done. -
Wow! This was the Magic Mike episode in the series! -
I really liked this installment in the Coffeehouse Mystery series. In this one, the Clare Cosi's daughter is accused of murdering a famous chef. Clare must use her wits to try and figure out who really did the deed and why. And her relationship with the hunky police detective Mike heats up!
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I thought this one was a bit boring compared to some of the previous plotlines. Clare is usually really relatable, but when it comes to her daughter, she seems to regress to the mother of a younger kid which is kind of off-putting.
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Enjoyed this one.
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The sixth Village Coffeehouse mystery has Clare delving into the world of high class restaurants in Manhatten. She's been engrossed in running the Village Blend Coffeehouse but, Joy, her "20 something" daughter's relationship with an executive chef thirty years her senior, sends Clare out to check on this relationship. Clare's able to use her marketing skills of paring particular excellent coffees with exquisite deserts to talk with the chef. But soon there after one of his line cooks is found dead---then the executive chef himself is murdered. When Joy becomes the chief suspect, Clare goes on the search for the real killer.
Clare's relationship with her sexy detective friend is also warming up. He knows about Clare's skill in finding previous murderers, so he has her volunteer herself as bait for the killers. Perhaps this is the only way to save her daughter, so Clare is up for this trickery.
This series is always top notch excitement mixed with lots of thrilling information about coffee, and in this book, inside information about the restaurant business. Romantic relationships cause a bit of confusion between the characters, but some of these pairings are heating up nicely. This series never fails to be enjoyable! -
Every time I listen to this series, I wish there is this coffee house near my house so that I can taste a fresh cup of coffee made with freshly roasted beans!! I enjoyed the details Coyle put into the descriptions of the different flavors of coffee and in this book she also was very descriptive of the different cheeses Claire sampled in the cheese cave. I deeply appreciated the research Coyle did in what went on in the kitchen and behind the scenes of running a high end gourmet restaurant. I felt the energy and the motions in the kitchen in her narrative which made her story came alive.
On the character development side, I'm so happy to see that Claire is moving forward with her relationship with Quinn. I loved the scene where Matt expressed his desire to have a second chance with Claire. Even though Claire still had feelings for her ex-husband, she knew it wouldn't be healthy for her to be with Matt and she realized that she also had changed.
I look forward to the next book where Matt is taking his relationship with Breanne to the next level and seeing how all the characters developed. -
I really want to love this series but I'm ready to give up. Clare is alternately funny, independent, smart, then insecure, silly, weak, and condescending. The ex-husband character is inconsistent too - creepy, liar, then best father/ex of the year. Mike even got weird in this series - cold cop, then hot, slightly goofy lover. The series tends to explain the mystery via lengthy narratives towards the end of the book, rather than by action.
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Why do I continue reading these when I dislike the protagonist so much? Possibly because I enjoy the coffee snobbery. Possibly because the library's selection of audio cozies is small. Possibly because I'm an idiot. These aren't old books, but they seem like they were written in the early 90s and Claire is insufferably dense at odd points. I do love Madame though, so maybe she's why I keep coming back.
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Several times I had to put the book down because Clair was just too annoying! Up until this book I've thought she was a fun character. :( I am hoping the next in the series is better, if not guess I'll be done.
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This was a good read. Normally I would feel bad that someone is being framed. However, I've never cared much for Joy. I did know she wouldn't actually be guilty so I didn't feel too bad for her going through that. Luckily she had her mom Clare to help find out what really happened. This series is still enjoyable and I look forward to seeing how this will continue.
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I will not be continuing with this series.
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The ex husband stuff is really really annoying
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It’s a good thing Village Blend manager Clare Cosi and her ex-mother-in-law Madame visit Solange, a hot New York French restaurant. Clare’s daughter Joy is interning there. But on this particular night when Clare goes back to the kitchen to see Joy, she stops one of the chefs wielding a knife at her co-workers. Joy had been loving her job as well as loving executive chef Tommy Keitel, a married man whose restaurant just might be owned by the Russian mob. Clare and her ex, Joy’s father Matteo Allegro, disapprove of the romance but do their best to let Joy make her own choices.
Clare returns to the Village Blend where her current beau, New York City detective Mike Quinn is waiting. Things are heating up when Matt turns up on her doorstep. Initially angry, Clare is glad Matt is with her when Joy calls from a friend’s place where she has found his dead body killed by a chef’s knife. The NYPD considers Joy a prime suspect, so Clare is determined to clear her name. First she finds a way into Solange by convincing Chef Keitel to try her coffee services. As always, Clare impresses with her knowledge of fine coffees and the growing and brewing processes. While at Solange, Joy catches a glimpse of her mother and Tommy Keitel and misunderstands, fleeing from the restaurant mid-service. Joy must return later to clean up her station, but there is more of a mess than she imagined. Chef Tommy Keitel is dead with one of her knives in his neck!
The police arrive at Solange along with Clare, briefly questioning them both. Their decision is quick and decisive: Joy is their prime suspect, and she is arrested and charged with both murders. It is now up to Clare to investigate with some help from Detective Mike Quinn. Clare journeys around New York from the drug-ridden slum lived in by the knife-wielding chef to a Russian restaurant with her barista and her rapping Russian boyfriend. She plays decoy for Mike when she catches his perp’s eye at a fancy new club. She follows the blackmail trail. She attend’s Tommy’s wake and a dinner in his honor, gathering crucial clues.
This was a delightful sixth entry in the Coffeehouse mystery series. As usual with a book by Cleo Coyle (husband and wife team Alice Alfonsi and Marc Cerasini), we are given a trip around New York you’ll never find in a tourist guide. They challenged the notion of the person finding a dead body is the killer. The ubiquitous talk of coffee had me brewing my own, just to keep up.
Special mention must be given to the narrator, Rebecca Gibel. Her various voices were fabulous. The Russian rapper, rapping in both English and Russian, detectives from various boroughs of New York, and especially the elderly Madame were among the fantastic voices of the many characters she brought to life. -
I enjoyed this book. This is book six in this coffee based series and unlike most coffee shop owning cozy mysteries, this author knows her stuff, sum times to much detail. This book was a lot better balanced with coffee information and mystery. There is still a lot of coffee talk and cheese, as Clare tries to get a job close to her daughter. Actually I didn't mind it this time round because once that section was over, the murder happened pretty quickly and the focus shifted to investigating. The mystery was good and took a number of twists as the body count raises. The characters are like able but I missed Grands help this time round, although the undercover investigation made up for it and brought the humour to the investigation. A fun mystery that I will be visiting again with the next book, especially as the book didn't end on a cliff hanger as such but left you with a teaser of what is in store next.
When Clare plans a surprise visit, she has no idea that she would be walking in on an enraged boss threatening her daughter with a knife. It's not the first time the chief has flown off the handle and when a work colleague and friend of Joy's is found dead Clare has to make sure her daughter stays safe and pitches the idea of showing them how to make a decent coffee. The man she really has to impress, is also the married man dating her daughter but things don't go to plan and Joy catches her lover and mother in a compromising position. So when he is found dead in his closed restaurant with Joy standing over him it's no surprise Joy is the number one suspect. Can Clare find the real killer before her daughter is sent to prison? Or is the motive more complicated than jealously.
I liked the narrator, she did a good job of bringing the characters to life. -
Coyle really ups the ante in book 6 of the Coffeehouse Mystery series. This time, there are 5 bodies (as opposed to Decaffeinated Corpse's 3) and relationships are finally moving forward from their holding pattern for the last five installments. That's not to say that this one was so much better than the last one, but it was interesting enough that I wanted to keep reading to figure out whodunnit. I was absolutely sure I knew who the murderer was, and I was totally wrong. I really enjoy when an author can do that, because way too often in a mystery you figure out who the murderer is before the protagonist and you're just waiting for them to catch on. There was plenty of coffee talk, as usual, and the setting wasn't just the backdrop of the Village Blend. Clare was all over the place in this one- the restaurant Solange, a nightclub called Flux, a restaurant that's home to the russian mob, and even all the way out to Queens. The change of scenery was great and gave me more of a feeling of my surroundings, having been to NYC many times myself.
That being said, there were a few things here I didn't like- Matt trying to push himself onto Clare and cause angst, and Clare's daughter Joy who just rubs me the wrong way every time she's on the page.
Other than that, there's a lot of story threads here, and Coyle meshes them together rather seamlessly. The constant bouncing of setting kept the story fresh and interesting, and the high body count certainly doesn't hurt. I love where Mike and Clare's relationship is headed, too. All in all, a great little mystery that really benefits from the reader having read the first 5 in the series. -
I've been an avid fan of "Cleo Coyle's" Coffeehouse mystery series since I first read
On What Grounds, but I found the sixth installment in the series to be a bit flat, with too little mystery and too much romance.
The base plot and murders itself would probably be really great on its own, but I felt that the authors focused too much on Clare's relationship with Mike than on the actual mystery. The mystery didn't really start until a ways into the book and after Clare's daughter got arrested for murder, Clare seemed more interested in her relationship than on her daughter's doom. Though, she did worry about it, I didn't feel that the feelings were accurately portrayed on the pages. I felt that this book deviated from the "cozy mystery" feel by focusing more on the relationship than on the mystery.
This book wasn't all bad, though. I enjoyed seeing Matt feel doubt in Breanne and I thought Joy was a more friendly character in this book. I also felt that the setting was well described.
Overall this book was an okay book for me, it lacked the wow factor and I probably wouldn't read it again. However, I immensely enjoyed the prior installments in the series, so I will continue reading this series. -
Book 6 in the coffeehouse mysteries. Another great addition to this series. Funny things are happening at Solange, a restaurant where Clare's daughter Joy is doing her internship. The head chef if hardly ever around, several of the employees have very hot, threatening tempers and 2 murders take place back to back. The biggest problem is Joy is the prime suspect! Clare jumps right in to clear her daughter's name and help solve the case. It was nice to base this book in a different atmosphere and get out of the coffee shop for a moment. It was also great seeing Clare making a choice in her personal life. Will she end up with Matteo or Mike. The book has a great ending leaving you anxious for the next installment: Espresso Shot.
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When reading a cozy mystery, you have to let a few things go. Especially the fact that the layperson thinks they are smarter than the police/professionals. Claire jumped WAY over the line this time. She was very annoying in her sleuthing/deductions/etc. Then, for someone who thinks she's so smart, very easy phrases and connections had to be explained to her. Either she's smart or she's not - shouldn't be so many contradictions inside one book.
There were also too many coffee explanations in this book. There have been in the previous books as well, but this time it really got on my nerves - maybe because I was already annoyed with Claire? I will give this series one more try because I have enjoyed the prior stories.
