This one was a fun read and a super cozy mystery. A mystery in a Grilled Cheese Shop, I mean yum! This is the third book in the series, so you do have a mix of new and old characters. And you can't have a cozy mystery without it being set in a small town can you? It made me feel like I was picturing a Hallmark movie while reading this one! Not only is there a murder, but someone else goes missing. Check out this book to uncover all the clues and see if you can solve this mystery with the main character Carly!


I did give 3.5 stars (rounded up to 4) due to being able to figure out the mystery early on. However, it was still good!

⭐⭐⭐⭐ -- Cute cover!

Cheddar Late Than Dead by Linda Reilly is a mouth-watering culinary cozy mystery that will leave readers both satisfied and intrigued. The story revolves around Carly, the owner of a grilled cheese eatery in Balsam Dell, who finds herself helping to solve yet another murder in her small town.

In this installment, we find Carly helping her former classmate Klarissa Taddeo by catering her bridal shower. When tragedy strikes and Klarissa's fiance is found dead at the bottom of the stairs, Carly puts on her detective hat to help solve the case before an innocent party becomes suspect number one.

One of the best things about Cheddar Late Than Dead is its well-paced plot which keeps readers guessing until the end. The writing is strong and detailed, painting clear pictures of both the setting and characters. In addition to solving crimes, Carly's passion for food shines through as she creates new tasty treats for her customers.

After being disappointed by the previous book in this series, I was glad to find that this one was much better. While Grant still annoyed me, his appearance was kept to a minimum and Carly was back to being less irritating. The added recipes are always appreciated as they bring a touch of real-world flavor into the fiction.

Overall, Cheddar Late Than Dead by Linda Reilly offers readers an engaging mystery full of savory twists and turns that will have them reaching for their favorite grilled cheese sandwich. I am looking forward to seeing what happens next in this delicious culinary cozy series!

**ARC Via NetGalley**

I recently read an email from a publisher that said they rather have reviews which told if you liked or did not like a book rather than a recap. That is what I will do here. I LOVED this book. I think this my favorite of this series so far. It really grabbed my attention and held on. I also loved the idea of donut grill cheese sandwiches, I think. The yummy tomato soup dipper sounded amazing too. I told my mom she had to read this, she loves the series too, and I told her there was a great twist and shocking ending.

I loved this so much!

Thank you to the author, publisher, and Netgalley for the ARC in exchange for an honest review.

Although it took me a few days to get into this book, I kept reading. My main obstacle to wanting to finish this book was Klarissa and her attitued as she expected everyone to take care of everything exactly to her wishes. The mystery was well-written with twists and turns. Thankfully, Klarissa is not a main character so hopefully the next book will be a bit more interesting to me.

This book was fantastic! I really love the food series by Linda Reilly. I am always entertained and looking forward to what is next.

How much fun would it be to have grilled cheese sandwiches at a bridal shower? There are also tons of suspects after the groom to be dies and a total bridezilla to death with. Carly is a great main character. The recipes are fun to try as well. A grilled cheese sandwich is always a great winter treat and this book had me eating my favorite: Colby Jack cheese on sourdough bread.


Thanks to NetGalley and Poisoned Pen Press for the ARC of this book!

Cheddar Late Than Dead by Linda Reilly is the third book of Grilled Cheese Mysteries series, but it can be read as a standalone.

In this installment Carly is hired by an old school friend to serve her grilled cheese delicacies at her wedding shower. During the party the future husband dies. Carly's sleuth senses instantly tingle so she begins to investigate.

I once again enjoyed Carly's search of the culprit. It’s very entertaining to read how she always finds herself caught up in murders, and how her friends would prefer she rather leave the work to police.
The mystery is good with lots of suspects and some surprises.

Read it and try to uncover the truth before our heroine, I'm so happy I did it.

Linda Reilly continues the Grilled Cheese mysteries in Cheddar Late than Dead. Carly Hale agrees to cater a wedding shower from her grilled cheese shop. After the unexpected arrival of the groom, arguments break out and he is found dead from a poisoned drink. Whodunit? Lots of suspects. Enjoy.

Carly Hale may have her hands full with her grilled cheese diner, but that doesn't stop her from donning her amateur sleuths cap when the fiancee of the bride Carly just happens to be catering a wedding shower for dies at said shower. Who could want him dead? And why?

Another fun and interesting whodunit in Linda Reilly's Grilled Cheese Mysteries. It's book three, but stands perfectly fine on its on. I love the characters, the mystery, and the yummy recipes. I'm looking forward to reading the next book in the series.

Many thanks to Poisoned Pen Press and NetGalley for an advance copy of this book. My thoughts and opinions are my own and without bias or favor or expectation.

Another fun installment in a series I have come to really enjoy. The mystery in this one was excellent with an unexpected villain. This one for sure kept me guessing for a good part of the story. Very fun read/listen.

Cheddar Late than Dead reunites us with Carly Hale in Balsam Dell and her small grilled cheese restaurant. When Carly’s old classmates from high school are in a pickle with a double booking at a venue, Carly steps in to cater last minute. When the groom ends up dead at the shower, Carly can’t help but involve herself and try to solve the murder.

This was an enjoyable cozy mystery. I have read the first in the series, but this book can easily be read as a standalone. It was a short, fast-paced book – I read it in a weekend. The plot keeps you intrigued and the characters are loveable. It’s giving Gilmore Girl vibes, but add a mystery element. If you like cozy mysteries and books with lots of delicious food descriptions, this book is for you.

Thanks to NetGalley and Poisoned Pen Press for the ARC in exchange for an honest review.

This is the 3rd book in the Grilled Cheese Cozy Mysteries.

I love the conceit of these books, that a grilled cheese can solve any problem (which is in fact true). In this case, Grilled Cheese can solve a catering issue for an upcoming bridal shower. I know for a fact that all bridal showers would be improved with Grilled Cheese, so I was in right away.

Shockingly, there was a murder at the bridal shower! (Ok, it's not shocking, it's a cozy mystery, we know it's coming, but this is the trope we're buying into with these books - shocking murders!)

This was a satisfying (if hunger inducing) mystery - I was all in for the ride.

I enjoy the growth of Carly's character as she continues to build her relationships with the people around her.

This is your typical cozy mystery. It did not disappoint in following cozy book format to a tee.

The characters were likeable and the plot moved along at an even keel. The setting was enjoyable at the cheese sandwich store. The characters there were fabulous and I felt that I could see how their side storylines -while not taking over this book, might emerge to the fore in other books. The evidence was sprinkled throughout and I felt it tied the story well at the end.

And yet, there was just...something missing. It's weird. I want to read more of these characters. And read more from this author. But I don't feel compelled to say ...this is a great cozy mystery, dive right in! Despite all the good things. Maybe it was my mood when reading or maybe the story just never really pulled me in.... enough.

PS Recipes at the end for all you who like to cook with your books :)

Princess Fuzzypants here: Carly to the rescue as a former classmate begs her to cater a bridal shower for another classmate. Her donut grilled cheese sandwiches are a hit but Carly has reason to regret her decision when the groom to be ends up dead at the bottom of the stairs and both of her former classmates could be suspects. Since Carly is convinced neither of them is guilty, she tries to help them find the real villain. When she does, the killer has been hiding in plain sight.

That was one of the twists in the book. The reader might suspect the person but would likely dismiss the notion so when the culprit is revealed, you know your first instincts were correct. It adds a little extra fun. I like to figure the plots out but I also enjoy getting bamboozled as long as it is legit. This one was…

Four purrs and two paws up.

I so love this series, this book is a great addition to a wonderful a fun series!! I loved the Grilled Cheese theme, with just the right mix of cozy and mystery throughout the book! I would highly recommend this book to everyone!!

This is an excellent addition to the Grilled Cheese Mystery series. I love that we get a little more of Carly’s backstory and more characters in the series as possible regulars. Since this is a wedding themed edition, there are a few more characters than I could keep track with at times, but the plot twists and ending sealed it as a five star read, for me!

I want to thank Netgalley the author for gifting me the ebook. I was also given an audiobook version, and listened to it. If you like the simple who done it murder mysteries you will like this book. The story was interesting and kept my interest. This book is part of a series and I have only read one other book from it, but I don't feel like I missed out by not reading it in order.

I loved this one! I love the grilled cheese theme and the dog Havarti! The mystery was well paced, and the characters were fantastic. The small town setting was endearing, and I really loved the main character, Carly. I cannot wait for the next one!

This book is a solidly comfortable cozy mystery read. The descriptions of the sandwiches in the shop made me salivate as they did in the previous books. I found the mystery reasonably compelling and not too easy to figure out. It's nice to read a cozy mystery where the mystery takes the forefront of the story. Lately it seems like authors just throw a murder into a slice of life or a romance novel in order to market it as a cozy mystery, and this was not that.

In general, a quick and easy enjoyable read.

I will suggest that the author should consider using a sensitivity reader to weed out some of the questionable slang words. Describing the Black man's hairstyle as "dreds" isn't really appropriate in this day and age.

A very cute cozy mystery - this one is set in a Grilled Cheese eatery in Southern Vermont. Carly makes grilled cheese sandwiches, even grilled cheese donut for her customers if that's what they want and on the side she solves Balsam Dell's murders. In this third installment in this series she is catering a bridal shower when the groom unexpectedly shows up and gets poisoned within his first minutes there. Carly is close by and of course gets on the case right from the start. On top of this the town manager goes missing. The connection is not obvious but Carly's interest is piqued especially when an old friend becomes a person of interest.
This was a fun read. Just the right dose of small town cuteness, a fun cast of character, a sweet dog, and a plot that was intricate enough to keep the story intriguing and interesting. It was a relaxing escape to a world where most problems can be solved with a good cheesy treat. Just the right kind of reading to distract from an otherwise busy week - enjoyed my comfort read.

When two former classmates walk into Carly’s restaurant, she finds herself roped into catering a bridal shower by the time they leave. On the day of the party, Carly’s food is a major hit, but the mood turns sinister when the groom is discovered dead after tumbling down the stairs.

This cozy mystery features many traditional tropes and themes for which the cozy subgenre is known: a hobby or career that is heavily infused into the storyline, small-town setting, amateur sleuth as opposed to a professional detective, and very clean dialogue and conflicts (without strong language, sexual content, or topical society issues). This book is certainly aimed at those who like their mysteries to match the vibes of afterschool specials. It was cutesy, and I was vaguely interested in the world in which Carly navigates. A very easy to read cozy, for sure.

With that said, I felt that there was a missed opportunity for the author to provide a Sapphic coupling between characters Gretel and Megan. I was especially disappointed with Megan’s characterization as the sad, lonely older woman who must live vicariously through her sister, who did get married and have a child that Megan dotes upon. This “sad” lifestyle seems to lead Megan to mental instability which is a bit insulting for me to read as someone who is a part of the happily child-free and single community. This reminded me of the archaic depiction of the lonely, spinster woman.