Book Review | Against the Currant by Olivia Matthews

Title: Against the Currant
Author: Olivia Matthews
Genre: Adult Contemporary / Cozy Mystery
Publication Date: February 9th, 2023
Publisher: Dreamscape Media
Rating: ⭐⭐⭐⭐

Thank you to the publisher and netgalley for a complimentary egalley to listen to and review! All opinions are my own.

“Little Caribbean, Brooklyn, New York: Lyndsay Murray is opening Spice Isle Bakery with her family, and it’s everything she’s ever wanted. The West Indian bakery is her way to give back to the community she loves, stay connected to her Grenadian roots, and work side-by-side with her family. The only thing getting a rise out of Lyndsay is Claudio Fabrizi, a disgruntled fellow bakery owner who does not want any competition.

On opening day, he comes into the bakery threatening to shut them down. Fed up, Lyndsay takes him to task in front of what seems to be the whole neighborhood. So when Claudio turns up dead a day later—murdered—Lyndsay is unfortunately the prime suspect. To get the scent of suspicion off her and her bakery, Lyndsay has to prove she’s innocent—under the watchful eyes of her overprotective brother, anxious parents, and meddlesome extended family—what could go wrong?” (Goodreads)

I had seen this one on the library to request while it waited for publication and when I saw it on Netgalley as an audiobook I jumped at the chance to get it sooner! Luckily, I was approved and started it the next day. You know how I love my cozy mysteries haha.

The book is told from one point-of-view and it comes from Lyndsay Murray. She is the owner of a new bakery in her community and her family has also helped make her dream come true. There is someone in her community who would like to see her business crash and burn. She stands up for herself for once and from that point on, she becomes a suspect. Even though it got her in a mess, it was nice to see her come out of her shell throughout the book. She can be a real firecracker when she needs to be! I also liked that family was important to her and she kept them safe the best she could under the circumstances.

Family is a big deal in this book and I think that is why I liked the other characters so much. A lot of them were a part of hers. It’s always a great edition to a book when you can get to know the main character through their family. I will say that some were a bit in the background, but I am hoping that since this will be a series there will be more to them.

Some of the characters I would have liked to punch, like the detectives. They were just so persistent in believing it was Lyndsay. I’m glad she ended up showing them up when it came to their own job.

The book is definitely more plot driven which isn’t a problem for me when it comes to cozy mysteries. I don’t mind not having overly developed characters, minus the MC. It was still a very entertaining read and I managed to get through it in a day. The narration was well done for the audiobook! I was also very surprised by the outcome of the murder and didn’t see it coming, although there were some things that I had guessed right.

Overall, this was a great cozy mystery. I can’t wait to see what mess Lyndsay finds herself in when it comes to the sequel.