I love tge beach, chocolate and sea turtles. This book was written for me alone, but I am sure you will love it too. I may read it again in my beach vacation.The characters are quirky yet interesting. This is the third book in the series and if you have not read the previous books, I promise you will want to read them ASAP. tge opinions in this review are mine the arc ebook was provided free from Netgalley.

This is a book from the Southern Chocolate Shop series set in Camellia Beach down in the Lowcountry of South Carolina. Penn was left The Chocolate Box, a candy store that is almost 100 years old, by her grandmother. With the help of her grandmother’s friend, Bertie, Penn has been chipping away at the necessary renovations and repairs for the shop.
The biggest fly in the ointment is that her grandmother’s children are contesting the will. They want to sell it to a local development company, which is not Penn’s grandmother, Mabel Maybank, wanted. There is quite a convoluted story about how Penn found out she was a member of this family that I will leave for readers to discover.
And Penn is having a hard time keeping the subcontractors on the job because of Jody Dalton. Jody wants the other family members to inherit since she would reap the rewards of the sale, and she also thinks Penn wants a relationship with her former husband, Harley.
It’s a nice, cozy mystery for a quick afternoon’s read.

Chocolate- check. Sea turtles- check.  Murder- check. In Cold Chocolate is a cozy with bite.  Charity Penn loves her chocolate shop and the town of Camellia Beach, despite the relatives of the woman who left her the shop causing problems, and her boyfriend’s crazy ex making wild threats and accusations.  When Charity accompanies Althea to observe the hatching of a nest of sea turtles, Jody arrives waving a gun. After shots are fired and Cassidy Jones, the local Lothario is found dead, everyone assumes Jody killed him.  But Penn, Jody’s son begs Charity to find proof that his mom is innocent.


The mystery is almost too easy for the reader to solve, but there is still plenty of tension arising from Jody’s venom and the challenge to Charity’s ownership of the shop.  In Cold Chocolate is a bit melodramatic for my taste, but it still makes for a pleasant afternoon read.


3 / 5


I received a copy of In Cold Chocolate from the publisher and Netgalley.com in exchange for an honest review.


— Crittermom

This is the first book in this series that I have read and I loved it. Penn is under attack by her snooty relatives who are trying to take her chocolate shop away as well as the land that it is on. She is also helping solve a murder that happened down the beach as well as finding the person who is stealing the turtle eggs. It's fast paced and I was unable to put it down! I have already purchased the other books in this series

In Cold Chocolate is a very good cozy mystery. I loved the plot and the quirky cast of characters. I really enjoy this author’s books and look forward to reading the next book.

In Cold Chocolate is the third installment in the A Southern Chocolate Shop Mystery series set in the small seaside town of Camellia Beach, SC and featuring Charity Penn, owner of the Chocolate Box. Penn is settling into her new life - thankfully her business partner, roommate and grandmother Mabel's best friend, Bertie Bays, is still helping her to perfect the delicious recipes left by her grandmother. Still having to contend with her aunts and uncle fighting for the building and trying to deny Penn's legitimacy and inheritance she is looking forward to the yearly hatch of the sea turtles.

Going with best friend Althea out at night to check on the protected nest and potentially witness a hatch, she is dismayed that Jody Dalton, ex wife of her tenant and sometime boyfriend, Harley joins the group. Jody has been kicked off the turtle team due to her volatile nature, and when she takes out a handgun and threatens to start shooting out the porch lights of a nearby beach house, Penn suspects trouble. Shots ring out and local playboy, Cassidy Jones is lying face down in the sand with Jody standing over him.

Making a promise to Harley and Jody's young son, Gavin to clear his mom's name before his first day of school, Penn sets out to find the killer. Quickly she finds herself in the midst of danger, someone is stealing her coveted salted sea turtles from her display case, someone is stealing the precious turtle eggs from the nests and Penn is sure that the two are connected.

Great plot with plenty of action from page one. The return of series main characters will transport the reader beach side, smelling the salty air and drooling over the luscious chocolates. The author does drop a bomb in the last chapter that will have the series faithful racing for the next addition.

I received an advanced copy of In Cold Chocolate from NetGalley via Crooked Lane Books. While not required to write a review I am more than happy to offer my honest opinion.

Charity Penn is adapting to life in Lowcountry, but no matter how small the island, it seems trouble just lives on her doorstep. Penn is excited to experience her first Sea Turtle season and when she joins BFF Althea to watch the babies hatch and march to the sea, things get sticky when a local os shot and killed right there on the beach. But Penn doesn’t believe that Jody is guilty, even if she is holding the smoking gun, and promises the woman’s young son that she will find the real killer.

If that isn’t stressful enough, the long lost family that Penn recently found out about claims she really isn’t one of them and vow to take back the family chocolate shop that her Grandma Mabel left her.

Will Penn lost everything, or will she not only succeed but thrive?

Add this Southern Lowcountry cozy to your Summer reading list…it’s the perfect Summer time read!

Thanks NetGalley for my ARC. What a cozy mystery! And a cute dog with the mix of chocolate. What more does a book need.

‪This cozy has a strong mystery and some really good twists that will add to the series’ backstory.‬

Trouble seems to find Charity Penn every other while, and now she stands being an eyewitness to a crime...but she doesn't believe what she think she saw was quite right...so here we are taken on ride to Charity trying to kick every hornets nest to find the cause of murder...but things are not easy since everyone in the island seems to have a motive.
On top of that her family problems began to tilt her world...




This installment starts of quiet slow and chppy, I wasn't pulled into the story until 3 chapters through when things started getting interesting. I found the descriptions quite tedious to read through but atleast the character interactions were lively enough to compensate that.



Although this third book is my first book of the authors I've read, I quickly grew fond of the characters my MC was fond of. I could relate to her insecurities and also her trying to get out of shell to live a life ....all the while the culprit could be standing right in front of her.



The pacing was a troubling factor for me, while it picked up pace from ch3 it seemed to trudge on in the middle having unnecessary conversations or even avoiding which is obviously important ones.

Excellent southern cozy mystery. The plot held a few surprises for me, plus I also found it educational. I’ve always wanted to be present when some baby sea turtles hatch, and it’s that time of the summer in the small island town of Camellia Beach, South Carolina where Charity Penn has inherited her grandmother’s chocolate shop, the Chocolate Box.

Penn’s best friend, Althea, has an emotional crisis over some missing sea turtle eggs, and Penn later discovers she’s interfered in Penn’s personal life in a way that’s very upsetting. Family, hearth, and home is on display and in the danger zone when Harley’s ex-wife, Jody; who’s somewhat of a loose cannon, is arrested for shooting and killing a local ladies’ man, Cassidy Jones. Unsure of Jody’s guilt, however, Penn promises Jody and Harley’s young son, Gavin, that his mom will be out of jail in time to take him to his first day of school.

The author adds several unusual red herrings using both characters and crime scene evidence which make for an absorbing and compelling storyline that Cozy readers are sure to enjoy. I was happy to see that Stella, the small Papillion that Penn’s ex dumped on her has finally won Penn’s heart. ❤️ Recipes included for your enjoyment.

I reviewed an ARC provided by NetGalley and Crooked Lane. Thank you.

Charity Penn, known as just Penn, owns a building that also house her custom chocolate shop, both deeded to her by her grandmother, Mabel. While she never knew of her family growing up, Mabel's children aren't happy with the decision - they don't want the shop but want to sell the building - Penn is sticking to her guns and refusing to cave, keeping the shop open.

One night she's with her friend Althea on the beach ready to watch sea turtles hatch. While she's not on the team, she's being allowed as an observer. When Althea leaves for an errand, Jody Dalton, her attorney Harley's ex-wife and the bane of her existence, shows up. Jody isn't supposed to be there, having been kicked off the team, and is raring for a fight. When she sees lights on at a house down the beach, (all lights need to be off for the hatching) she pulls out a gun and tells everyone she'll take care of it. While Penn is horrified, she later hears shots and a woman scream.

When she and others arrive at the scene, Jody is holding two guns and standing over the body of Cassidy Jones, a realtor who wants to buy Penn's building and Jody's paramour. Then Jody shoots Penn in the shoulder (a graze, and, she claims, accidentally). Soon Jody is in police custody for murder.

But the next day Jody and Harley's son Gavin begs Penn to find a killer, telling her he knows his mom couldn't kill anyone. Harley doesn't really agree, and neither does anyone else. Jody is a nasty piece of work and makes everyone around her miserable, but Penn can't resist Gavin and agrees to help.

There's also the fact that not only is someone stealing her new chocolate turtles - all of them - and the eggs of the sea turtles. While these two things can't possibly be connected, Penn isn't sure. At least until she starts getting threatening messages - enough to make her stop asking questions.

When she starts looking, however, she finds nearly everyone had a reason to hate Cassidy and want him dead. But did Jody do the deed, or is she just a convenient scapegoat? And will asking questions put Penn in harm's way? But when she's still being threatened, Penn starts up her investigation again because she decides that there must be a reason why, and she's determined to find out what it is...

I really enjoyed this book. I felt the plot was done well, and there was enough going on around Penn that her focus wasn't completely on the murder, so we had a few nice subplots as well. Enough to form the opinion that her biological family is a nightmare, and the people she's surrounded herself with in Camellia are true friends (except for the aforementioned Jody, who isn't anyone's friend I would imagine).

Anyway, while I figured out the killer early on (I read a lot of these, so my Spidey senses are honed) it didn't detract one whit from the pleasure. While I haven't as yet read the first two in this series, I certainly plan on doing so. Ms. St. James has given us likable characters (mostly) and I find it interesting that two very different people as Althea and Penn have grown to become great friends. While I lean more toward the tendencies of Althea in real life (believe in ghosts and magic, but not too 'woo-woo'), I can see how she is drawn toward Penn, who appears to be a damaged soul deeply in need of love surrounding her, and the residents (well, not all) seem to be doing their best to fill that void. They are an eclectic bunch, and I like them.

The setting of Camellia Beach seems like a perfect place for a vacation during hatching season. I would love to watch sea turtles hatch, but I imagine it's not something that's widely advertised; and I most likely would find my way to Penn's chocolate shop before I even checked into a hotel.

When all is said and done, this was a very good read indeed, and I look forward to the next in the series. Highly recommended.

This is a good one! The plot is ok but the victim isn’t someone you care about—the turtles are. Learned a lot about protecting the turtle babies

I am loving this series. Each book is even better than the last. I like that the main character is finally getting more confidence. The romance is just enough. Her family situation is keeping me in suspense.

This book is a chore to get through. I'm over half way into it, but I don't care if I finish it. The story line seems to go in circles. There are so many characters that I can't remember them from one reading to the next. The typos are also off putting. I usually finish a book no matter how difficult it is for me to read. But I have good books that are calling me.

This book was just what I was looking for in a mystery. It had great, quirky characters and they did all manner of things in an unexpected way. Penn and her chocolate shop were the perfect setting for a bunch of craziness surrounding the killer. I loved that every chapter brought a new twist so that just when you thought you had everything figured out - everything changed again. This is the 3rd in a series and a really fabulous read.

Great beach read! Small beach town awash in murder and gossip, has the added attractions of chocolate and baby sea turtles.

OMG, the ending had my mind going a mile a minute wondering what it really meant! I can't say more, no spoilers.

This series is getting better as it goes on. Partly because we do see personal growth in Penn (and in some of the other characters) though she still does foolish things occasionally. The mystery was fine though I think the real draw for me was Penn's interactions with the locals, her friends and her continuing issues with both sides of her family which I think has changed on my part since the first book. The author does a good job of adding touches that bring the small town, sea side setting to life such as the turtle rescue, the run down motel/senior home, the problems with the influx of so many visitors, etc.

I received my copy from Netgalley in exchange for my honest review.

I found this book to be enjoyable. The characters that are introduced are well rounded. I did find it slow in some spots but overall it was well-paced. It's nice to see the romance blooming between Penn and Harley. I found the bits about the sea turtles to be interesting. #InColdChocolate #NetGalley

I just love the way she draws us in about the little vintage seaside town and the chocolate store. I loved the talk about the little turtle but the best part is she didn’t make it to easy to figure out the killer. I also loved how she made it so hard to put it down. I had it read in 2 Days. I just didn’t wanna put it down. So go pick it up you won’t regret it