Death and Croissants by Ian Moore is a fun novel with quirky characters. B and B owner, Richard, is a middle-aged curmudgeon content with his boring life until one day, a bloody handprint appears on a guest room wall. Richard’s life is turned upside-down when guest Valerie convinces him to investigate.

DNF at 10%. If I have to read another word by this pompous male I will rip my hair out and break my kindle.

I unfortunately couldn’t get into this book. It felt like a bad knock off of an Agatha Christie book set in more modern times.

I received this as an ARC from NetGalley and tried to start it a few times, but only successfully making it through the book on a plane ride.

It’s a quick read, but unfortunately just left me bored and craving a better detective murder.

Death and Croissants by Ian Moore is the first in a series featuring Bed and Breakfast owner Richard Ainsworth and is set in the fictional Val de Follet in the Loire Valley.

Richard is enjoying retirement, running his B&B and watching old films, until his cleaner Madame Tablier spots a bloody handprint in one of the bedrooms though there is no sign of the guest. Convinced by another guest, Valérie Dorçay, another guest with a dog called Passepartout, to investigate he soon finds himself embroiled in all manner of shenanigans...

I found Death and Croissants a fun, lighthearted read with a fabulous mystery at its core. Told entirely from Richard’s point of view, I loved the humour it contained. Richard is a put upon 53-year-old Englishman and I would certainly pick up the next instalment in the series. This novel is well-plotted and has a definite sparkle with some clever dialogue. The double-crossing, secrets and various motives all result in a delightful, engrossing, highly comedic caper. Death and Croissants is a super-duper, worthwhile read that I recommend very highly.

A delightful addition to the fans of Thursday Murder Club. The cover page gives it away. Funny and engaging.

It started out cute, a very homey mystery, but didn’t keep my interest so I stopped reading it. Since there are so many to read.

Sadly I DNFd this one 76% in.

I rarely DNF this close to the ending, but I’m sorry I just can’t go on.

Nothing is holding my attention and when I can finally get focus back Richard goes into a tirade about film. Don’t worry, I won’t forget the pointless like two chapters with his soon to be very jealous ex wife.

Even in cozies like this, there needs to be something to keeps a readers attention and doesn’t pull it away.

I tried really hard to like this one but it just wasn't for me. I kept putting it down and picking it back up and it was just harder for me to get through..

Ian Moore is a stand-up comedian who performs in London and lives in France. He is also a bestselling writer, and author of The Follett Valley Mysteries featuring Richard Ainsworth who is proprietor of a bed and breakfast in the Loire Valley. The first installment of the series, Death and Croissants, which introduces the characters and the setting. An old man who has been staying at the “Chambre d’hôte” as Richard refers to his B&B, has disappeared and has left a bloody handprint on the wall as well as a broken pair of spectacles. Valérie de Orçay, a classic and bossy French woman who is a guest, tells Richard that the old man asked for her help and she is determined, with Richard’s help, to find him. The evidence in the man’s room disappears. This starts a series of silly scenarios where they travel to the neighboring village where the victim, Vincent Grandchamps, lives across the way from his twin brother, Judge Victor Grandchamps, who hates him. During their investigation the pair comes in contact with a strange bobby, a barmaid and cleaning lady, a naturist couple who owns another B&B nearby and who hosted Vincent Grandchamps as well (he left bloody spectacles there also and a bloody handprint there too), and an Italian newlywed couple who Richard believes has ties to the Sicilian mafia.

The story is difficult to follow, but Moore does a good job of developing his characters. The way things are going in Richard’s B&B, it seems he will get enough bad reviews that he won’t be able to make a decent living, much due to his cantankerous cleaning woman, Madame Tablier, and the poor service from Richard who is distracted by all that is going on.

Readers who like slapstick British comedy will find this a humorous cozy mystery, albeit difficulty in following it. Others, who prefer understated types of comedy, not so much.

While there is a fairly good storyline, it is presented in an amateurish way, which won’t appeal to mainstream cozy readers. Hopefully the subsequent additions to the series will be easier to follow.

Special thanks to NetGalley for supplying a review copy of this book.

Shelf Awareness for Readers, STARRED Review:

In Death and Croissants, comedian Ian Moore introduces Richard Ainsworth, a British film buff who has retired to the Loire Valley to run a bed-and-breakfast. With a failing marriage and a somewhat desperate desire to live a quiet life in the country watching old films, Richard is anything but a detective. Then a guest goes missing, leaving behind nothing but a bloody handprint on the wall, and Richard is sucked into a wild goose chase of a mystery, complete with a gorgeous guest dashing about in a bright yellow sports car; possible ties to a mafia moneymaking scheme; an enormous Texan; twin brothers who are sworn mortal enemies; and an aspiring actor hiding in a giant chicken costume.

Moore brings to Death and Croissants the same kind of chaotic energy and dry sense of humor Richard (and readers) may have seen in classic films like Clue and Young Frankenstein: characters run amok and clues send them off in various directions, all while actual danger lurks in the shadows. "We've got an old man who detests his brother so much he needs to find him so he can keep annoying him, a policeman who doesn't seem to think Missing Persons is his job, a mysterious Italian couple now in the grip of two British perverts, you bossing me around like we're married, and a dead hen!" Richard shouts to his co-conspirator somewhere between breaking and entering into a rival B&B and donning the giant chicken costume himself. It's an absurd, laugh-out-loud caper, featuring quirky characters and strange adventures from start to finish, that is sure to delight fans of cozy mysteries and whodunits.

What a fun and crazy read!! There are quite a few twists and turns along the way, and one in particular that I didn’t see coming, so I enjoyed it very much!

English film historian Richard runs a B&B in the Loire Valley. He enjoys a quiet life until one of his guests goes missing leaving a bloody handprint behind. Suddenly Richard is caught up in events he would rather be watching in a film.

This mystery was well-paced and well-written. The reader is carried along (much like Richard) as the story unfolds. Unfortunately, this wasn't the story for me. I didn't really like the characters and the humour didn't really work for me. The story certainly had surprises along the way and I didn't guess who did it.

I received an advance review copy for free, and I am leaving this review voluntarily.

I love a cozy mystery with a reluctant hero and Richard was perfect! I loved the juxtaposition of the idilic french countryside with the jarring bounty hunters, criminal underworld and swingers. Highly recommend!

An English-French Investigative Duo! 🥐🐓

Thank you so much to Poisoned Pen Press and #Netgalley for gifting me an ARC of Death and Croissants by Ian Moore in exchange for this honest review!

↓ Similar Reads ↓
1. Robert Thorogood’s A Meditation on Murder
2. Colleen Cambridge’s Mastering the Art of French Murder (on my TBR!)
3. M.C. Beaton’s The Quiche of Death

Richard Ainsworth enjoys the predictable life of running a B&B in Val de Follet, a fictional village in the Loire Valley. At least, he thinks he does. This habitual comfort is soon obliterated when a guest disappears, leaving behind a bloody handprint on the wall. One of his other guests–the self-assured, poised Valérie Dorçay–pulls him into a terrifying but also exciting investigation. The two search for answers in the most eccentric, entertaining ways. Such a treat!

While reading this mystery, I pictured Richard as Hugh Grant bumbling his way through French etiquette and always, very cutely, a step behind everyone else. I really enjoyed how chaotic this read was! An easy rec for lovers of The Thursday Murder Club. ☺️

Richard is the classic Englishmen who gets swept up in the glamorous, unpredictable life of the mysterious Valérie. They complemented each other nicely and reminded me of Richard and Camille’s dynamic in the earliest seasons of Death in Paradise. I would say this read is perfect for those who enjoy humorous dialogue, chaotic plotting, and writing that doesn’t take itself seriously, showing that the author clearly had fun while writing this.

I actually participated in some immersive reading for this one, listening to the audiobook (borrowing it from Hoopla) while reading along with my e-ARC. If you have the opportunity, I would recommend following suit and do a reading-listening combo because Ian Moore narrates. It is a rare delight when the author reads his own book!

The first in a new mystery series. This one started out slowly, as most new series do. Now that we know the characters, Richard and Englishman running a B&B in France, and Valerie, a bounty hunter, the rest of the series should be exciting.

DNF at 30%

Thank you to Poisoned Pen Press and NetGalley for the gifted ebook of Death and Croissants! All opinions in this review are my own.

I made it 30% into this cozy mystery but unfortunately it wasn't for me and I'm trying to be better about DNFing books I'm not invested in. I wasn't a huge fan of the main character and the story was difficult to follow at times.

This story took a bit for me to get into, but I did enjoy it. The characters and story were both interesting and kept my attention once I could get into it.

Thank you NetGalley for the opportunity to review this book.

This one was a cute, cozy mystery with a sense of humor. Loved the feuding twins - lent itself to both high brow and low brow humor. Based on the cover alone I assumed it would be like Richard Osman’s work, and it was definitely similar. I think if you liked Osman’s work, you will enjoy Moore’s!

First in a new series, the French countryside is a great setting. An introverted Englishman who retired to run a bed and breakfast leads a satisfyingly dull life until one of his guests disappears, leaving blood in his wake, much to the ire of his housekeeper. An attractive guest insists on investigating and dragging him along, resulting in an entertaining story in which characters are not always who they seem to be.

Dollycas's Thoughts 

This is the first book in the Follett Valley Mystery Series. It features Richard Ainsworth, a middle-aged Englishman living in France and running a small B&B as he goes about living his boring life and he is very happy doing just that. He has a vast knowledge of old Hollywood movies and watching them keeps him entertained. His wife has left him to find a more exciting life which shouldn't be too hard. He stays in touch with his 27-year-old daughter, Alicia, via FaceTime but the conversations are usually pretty short. He also has 3 chickens, Ava Gardner, Lana Turner, and Joan Crawford.  Nothing much exciting happens in his life.

Then an elderly guest disappears, leaving behind a pair of glasses and a bloody handprint and a beautiful Italian woman checks in with her dog named Passepartout for an open-ended stay. The woman, Valerie, takes one look at the handprint and easily persuades Richard to join her in investigating the elderly guest's disappearance. From that point on Richard's life is new longer his own and it is far from boring. Mostly dazed and confused he follows Valerie hither and yon to solve the case of the missing guest.

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Oh, my stars! Ian Moore puts his comedic talents to very good use in a tale that will have you laughing out loud and shaking your head as you read this twisted-up mystery.

Laid-back Richard is a feckless individual that gets drawn into a web of mystery complete with the Italian Mafia and nudist swinger B&B owners as femme fatale Valérie d'Orçay drags him deeper and deeper into the world of crime. It is not long before Brigadier-Chef Principal Philippe Bonneval enters their lives along with Chez Bruno and Judge Grandchamps and they find they end up with more questions than answers. I also have to mention Richard's cleaning woman Madame Tablier. She is a hoot! All these characters are cleverly created and intriguing in their own right.

Mr. Moore wraps his characters in a madcap mystery with so many secrets, twists, and turns I totally lost count and just hung on tight and enjoyed the ride.

I really enjoyed the descriptions of the French countryside and the village of Vauchelles and every other place Richard and Valerie traveled. The people and the food and drink were well described as well.

When I started the book I wasn't sure if it was going to be my "cup of tea", and truth be told I had seen some reviews that almost kept me from reading it, but I couldn't stop reading,  Death and Croissants had it all. A lighthearted mystery, quirky characters, laugh-out-loud funny, and unbelievably crazy situations, along with a few chickens.  I escaped right into this story and I was delightfully entertained. Now I hope we don't have to wait too long for the series to continue but I don't know how the author would top this story.