A Cyclist’s Guide to Crime & Croissants (A Cyclist’s Guide Mystery #1) by Ann Claire #bookreview #mystery

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Title: A Cyclist’s Guide to Crime & Croissants

Author:  Ann Claire

Publisher: Kensington Cozies 

Publication Date: May 21, 2024

Page Count:  320

My rating: 3 1/2 stars

About the book:

Vicariously tour the sundrenched Mediterranean Coast in this perfectly escapist new cozy mystery series starring American expat-turned-bike tour company owner in Southern France. 

Perfect for fans of Donna Leon’s The Commissario Guido Brunetti Mysteries, M.L. Longworth’s Provençal Mystery series, and armchair travel!

Nine months ago, Sadie Greene shocked friends and family by ditching her sensible office job in the Chicago suburbs and buying a sight-unseen French bicycling tour company, Oui Cycle. Now she’s living the unconventional life of her dreams in the gorgeous village of Sans-Souci-sur-Mer. Sans souci means carefree, but Sadie feels enough pressure to burst a tire when hometown friends arrive for a tour, including her former boss, Dom Appleton. Sadie is determined to show them the wonders of France and cycling—and to prove she made the right move. 

She hopes her meticulously planned nine-day itinerary will win them over, with its stunning seascapes, delicious wine tastings, hilltop villages, and, of course, frequent stops for croissants. When Dom drags his heels on fun, Sadie vows he’ll enjoy if it kills her. That is, until Dom ends up dead. The tragedy was no accident. Someone went out of their way to bring a permanent end to Dom’s vacation.

As more crimes—and murder—roll in, suspicions hover over Oui Cycle. To save her dream business, help her friends, and bring justice, Sadie launches her own investigation. However, mysteries mount with every turn. On an uphill battle for clues, can Sadie come to terms with her painful past while spinning closer to the truth—or will a twisted killer put the brakes on her for good?

A Cyclist’s Guide to Crime & Croissants by Ann Claire is the first book in the new cozy A Cyclist’s Guide Mystery series. As with most cozy mystery series each book of the series will contain it’s own fully solved mystery so one could read this as a standalone if choosing to do so. Of course there will be some character development that carries over onto the rest of the series for those that want to continue.

Sadie Greene had always considered herself the safe and sensible type having settled into a nine to five office job in her home city of Chicago. That is until one day Sadie’s world is turned upside down losing someone close to her. Sadie’s sense of adventure kicks in knowing that any day could be one’s last so she tosses her safe life aside and invests in a bicycle touring company in southern France and doesn’t look back.

Now nine months later Sadie has her cycling business up and running somewhat well when she gets word from back home in Chicago that some friends want to come tour with her. Sadie knows that no matter how meticulously she plans her tours plans can and will often change while out with a tour but what Sadie never expected to happen was a murder occur along their route. With suspicions flying Sadie vows to do what she can to figure out just went wrong and who in their small group could be a murderer.

I often enjoy a good humorous and fun cozy mystery so of course A Cyclist’s Guide to Crime & Croissants by Ann Claire caught my eye on that fact alone. However, this new series also came with the added bonus of some fun virtual traveling which is also top of my list of likes in my reading. Who wouldn’t want to tour around France with a quirky group of suspects and solve a murder? This opener was a solid read that fell in at three and a half stars for me with a lot of time spent with the touring and getting to know the series that I just wanted a bit more time with the mystery too but hopefully that all comes together in the next in the series.

I received an advance copy from the publisher via NetGalley.

Find this book online:

Goodreads  /  Amazon

About the author:

Ann Claire earned degrees in geography, which took her across the world. Now Claire lives with her geographer husband in Colorado, where the mountains beckon from their kitchen windows. When she’s not writing, you can find her hiking, gardening, herding housecats, and enjoying a good mystery, especially one by Agatha Christie.