Dollycas's Thoughts

In this series debut, we meet Este March who runs the Lucky Pie Diner, a family-owned restaurant in Split Pine Island in Northern Michigan. Este has inherited a special way to add some magic to some of her delicious pies. The person who receives a "special" pie could have their hopes and dreams fulfilled.

We arrive just before the remote island is closing down for the winter months. You have to be a permanent resident of the island to stay there after the 1st of November. Este had placed a large order for produce because deliveries will be few and far between until the island reopens. But the new produce vendor didn't bring everything she needed and the prices were much more than she usually pays. She was upset with the man and voiced her displeasure. Later the man is found dead on his boat and the local sheriff, Tom Cunningham, has decided Este is his prime suspect.

Este knows others who met with the man before his death who were just as angry as she was so she decides to start a little investigation of her own. The problem is her suspects are her friends and neighbors. Could one of them really be the killer? She tries to be careful knowing if someone killed once they could do it again. She needs some luck to catch the killer before the killer catches her.

____

I loved the setting for this story. A remote island that is a tourist stop from spring through fall, but only residents are allowed during the winter. The residents need to stock up on everything by Halloween for the freezing cold months ahead when deliveries are rare. Halloween is a big holiday there because it signifies more than ghosts and ghouls and trick or treating. As long as I had food including Este's pies, plenty of books, a cozy chair in front of the fireplace, my husband, and my dog I would be just fine until Spring.

Este is a novice amateur sleuth with a curious nature and she does make some bad decisions but she is a heck of a baker. Este looks in on her grandfather daily as he has retired from the diner. She works side by side with Seamus, who is an incredible chef.  Her friend Kitty is the manager and part owner of her brother Tom's pub. She also used to be married to Seamus and now has a crush on Bruno, the owner of the grocery store. Rosie Lewicki is Este's other full-time employee. She was born and raised on the island and has only left once to go to Chicago. Marcel is her part-time server and Patty is the part-time cook. They usually handle the evening shift. Kitty's brother Tom not only owns the pub, he is also the sheriff on the island.  We meet several other island residents too. With the large cast that was introduced in this book, we didn't get a lot of depth on any of them. They all have plenty of room to grow as the series continues.

The mystery was pretty straightforward. Este did find some things the sheriff had not known about but she took some major risks following clues.  She was fortunate to have a little luck of her own. I had figured out most of the mystery before Este, the showdown tied up all the loose ends. I appreciated the author's descriptive writing style as she clearly set each scene. It was easy to imagine traveling around with Este all over the island.

Este does describe in detail everything she is making or baking much like Ellie Alexander's Jules in her Bakeshop Mysteries which means you will surely be craving pies, both sweet and savory as you read this story. You may want to plan ahead.

With just a hint of magic, characters with room to grow, a unique setting, an interesting mystery, and pie, lots of pie, A Pie To Die For was a delicious debut for this series. I am looking forward to reading the next Lucky Pie Mystery.

I was excited when I learned that Gretchen Rue was debuting a new cozy mystery series. I absolutely enjoyed her Witches’ Brew Mystery. A Pie to Die For has a great setting, a likeable cast and an intriguing mystery making it a good culinary / paranormal cozy series to follow.

Here’s what I enjoyed:
- a Mackanac Island like setting
- plenty of food descriptions
- cats absolutely everywhere
- a hint of new romance with a best friend’s brother

The fact that the story takes place on a secluded island the day it shuts down to tourists gave it a bit of a locked room feel. I did have a hunch about the reasoning behind the crimes which proved to be correct.

The food descriptions might have been a touch too detailed at times, I would have preferred more character interaction during those moments. The various sweet and savory pies sounded delicious though and the book includes several recipes mentioned throughout the story.

The paranormal aspect was super light. Every now and then Este will bake a pie that brings luck to the consumer. However, this is never fully explained and we don’t really see anyone benefiting from this.

I would be interested in checking out a sequel because it has a great potential for growth.

This book is similar to Midnight at the Blackbird Cafe in term of magical pies. However, Rue takes her own spin on the magical genre with additional cozy mystery bits. I adore her tea shop mysteries and I was delighted to receive this ARC from Goodreads and Crooked Lane to be introduced to her newest series!

I very much enjoyed this book despite being the oddball I am and not liking pie (but I also don't drink tea so....). Gretchen Rue creates another charming setting and a courageous protagonist. I do hope more will follow in this series and her tea shop books.

Thank you again Crooked Lane for this ARC

The first book in a new series by Gretchen Rue, A Pie to Die For, is a solid cosy mystery.

I’ve read Rue’s Witch’s Brew Mystery series and while I think I like those books more, this was a good book and would happily read more in the series.

I always rated Gretchen Rue's mysteries 5* as I enjoyed them and had fun.
I was looking forward to read this arc and I had high expectation that maybe were too high.
There's a lot of potential in this series: the magic system, the island that is a restricted environment as there's very few connection with the rest of the world.
There's an interesting FMC that I liked even if she's got a serious death wish at times and a cast of fleshed out characters.
All these elements could be the basis for an excellent mystery but I struggled with this one.
I found it slow paced and the mystery wasn't very exciting. The other issue was the cooking part: I appreciated the idea of the pies but there was a lot of baking and the mystery took the backseat.
I'm sure these are first-book-issues and the second one will be gripping,
Many thanks to the publisher for this ARC, all opinions are mine

Good start to a new series. I found the setting of a remote island interesting; the prepper in me finds it both enticing and a little scary (I like access to Amazon deliveries). The mystery itself was intriguing but this moved pretty slowly and wasn’t overly exciting. There was a lot of baking (step-by-step), which took me out of the story a few times. And there were a few of the dreaded TSTL moments (way too many for my taste). I will read the next one and will reserve judgment on if I continue with the series then.

This was such a fun, intriguing cozy mystery read. I loved the characters; especially Este with her sassy personality! It added a bit of spice and humor to the story. I also liked the tight-knit sense of family and community of Split Pine. I liked that the story didn’t get boring during times when Este wasn’t out looking for evidence because other interesting events were going on. I would have liked more interaction and flirting between Este and Tom, but I’m sure there will be more of that in the next book of the series. The reveal at the end was a total surprise because the suspect was not even on my radar! This book also contains recipes for pies mentioned in the book. I always love a book that contains new recipes to try!

Thank you to NetGalley and Crooked Lane Books for the ARC in exchange for my honest review!

A Cozy Mystery featuring magical pies? 100% yes! 🥧

Welcome to the Lucky Pie Diner, where the coffee is hot, the company is great and the pies are magical! With tourist season winding down in the idyllic town of Split Pine, Este is busy baking pies and running her family diner. One morning everything changes after a heated exchange, missing produce and a 💀 body leaves the town reeling, her business in jeopardy and herself at the top of the suspect list! Putting on her sleuthing cap Este must sift through the clues, stir up some suspects and rise to the occasion to save her family’s legacy and clear her name!

🥧 Magical Pies
🔍 Amateur Sleuth
📚 Cozy Mystery
🏡 Small Town
🐾 Purrfect Feline
🫶 Friendship
📋 Recipes Included

I have loved every cozy mystery Gretchen Rue has released and A Pie to Die For is no exception! Deliciously funny, mysteriously magical and purrfectly cozy - 10/10 recommend!

Method Read: 📖

Thank you Crooked Lane Books for the ARC!

A Pie to Die For is a promising start to a new cozy mystery series. It has everything that makes a mystery cozy with a small community, clean and amateur sleuth.
A new fresh food deliverer is servicing the island and has many new enemies with his steep prices. When he turns up murdered, it's up to Lucky Pie restaurant owner Este March to clear her good name as not being the murderer. A nice add in to the story is that Lucky Pie sells a limited number of pies a day that change a person's life.
This cozy has me looking forward to sequel. I loved the location of a Michigan island similar to Mackinac Island and that the island is closed to tourists for the season, so we learn about only a few residents. Cozy mystery lovers will enjoy this new series.
I received a complimentary copy of A Pie to Die For thanks to publisher and NetGalley, but all opinions are my own.

I have some mixed feelings about this series debut. A dog as the mayor and the Michigan island setting is interesting and the island being a bit cut off from the mainland during winter has the potential to create some intriguing challenges for the community and our resident amateur sleuth. The storyline had good bones but was weighted down with too much prose and Este’s internal dialogue. (More interactive discussions with others would have generated more interest,) Some of the pies at the diner are supposed to bring good luck to those customers fortunate enough to get a ‘lucky’ pie, but we don’t really see proof of that and we don’t really know how the pies become lucky. It would have been nice to have this aspect of the story explored more. This is by no means a bad book! There is so much potential with this series and I plan on sticking with it to see how the series develops.

If there’s one thing I know how to bake it’s pie - homemade family recipe crust and all. ❤️🥧

So when one of my favorite cozy mystery writers announced a new series at a pie shop I hopped on it.

Not only does the series have amazing pie, but it’s got an interesting cast of characters including a surly former pro baseball player as the sheriff (my favorite!). It also takes place on an island in the Great Lakes that is closed off to tourists during the winter months so there’s a bit of those locked room vibes I love.

I’ll definitely be reading more of this series.

Special thanks to @crookedlanebooks for the ARC. This one is out today (2/6)!

This was a fun debut to a new cozy series. I loved the them of the cozy, and I had so much fun trying to solve the mystery with the protagonist. I am excited for the next installment!

In “A Pie to Die For,” Este March must clear her name and save her diner after a produce supplier is killed.

The premise of this series is that Este has inherited an ability to make lucky pies. She can’t do in on command, and only one pie per day, if any, can be lucky. Este doesn’t have a lot of information about how and why this is so, and it does beg the questions of why luck has to be conveyed via a pie, and how does the magic work to direct the person who needs it to the diner. But happily, this is a cozy, so we don’t have to dwell on pesky existential questions like that when there’s a nice, juicy murder to solve.

Este knows she’s not really a viable suspect, even if she weren’t in the early stages of a potential romance with the local sheriff. Still, when her business is threatened by the murder of the man who has replaced the town’s produce supplier, she decides to investigate. Along the way, she finds another threat, and has to work to save her beloved home.

This is a good start to the series, if a little uneven and repetitive in places. We spend a lot of time in Este’s head, and I think the story could have benefited from her interacting more with her friends. Este does take charge, getting her home set up, running a business, rescuing a cat, and tentatively starting a romance, on top of investigating, so in fairness, she’s busy.

Why you should read it: Nice series start, characters you’ll enjoy, great setting, and you’ll be interested in what’s next for Esme

Why you shouldn’t read it: No real reason. It’s a solid series entry, but like some debuts, it’s a little bumpy in places, since the scene has to be set, and we have to get to know the characters.

I received an advance copy from Crooked Lane Books via NetGalley in exchange for my honest review.

3.5 out of 5 stars

This book started what seems like it’ll be a fun series with a little touch of magic. I really love the setting and the similarity to another famous Upper Peninsula island with no cars, just horses and this island had golf carts. I liked Este and her best bud Kitty as well as Grampy, once we finally got to meet him that is lol. Tom was a good and fair sheriff, and I really hope he and Este can become an official couple.

I would’ve never guessed what was going on as the reason for an outsider’s murder, and while the showdown was tense, Este was also smart about it so it was pretty short once all the details were told by the killer. Once I was done with this book, I was really wishing for some caramel apple pie lol.

I voluntarily read and reviewed an ARC of this book, and my opinions are my own.

A Pie to Die For is book #1 in the Lucky Pie Mystery series by Gretchen Rue.

This was an entertaining start to a new series. The author’s descriptions of the locale made it easy to picture the setting. I like Este and her restaurant and I was certainly hungry for pie. There are recipes at the end. The mystery was good and I was surprised at the ending. I look forward to the next book.

Thank you to the author, Crooked Lane Books, and NetGalley for the Advanced Reader Copy (ARC) copy of this book and I am voluntarily leaving an honest review.

A Pie to Die For is the 1st installment in the Lucky Pie series by Gretchen Rue. Este March is great at making pies at The Lucky Pie Diner. If you're lucky, you just might get a slice of luck instead of a plain piece of pie.
I really had a great time visiting Este and the residents of Split Pine, Michigan. The murder was a fun and not too easy to solve mystery. I think I'm really going to enjoy this series and I'm eagerly awaiting the next book in the series.

This is the first in the series of a Lucky Pie Mystery series. I am undecided about the series but will give the next book a try.

I felt the repeated telling the reader how lucky the pies are without any real evidence or why (rumored magic) was done to ad nauseum. I also thought there was way to much description even though I realize the author is trying to set the series up. Let some of the description wait for the other books in the series.

The mystery was a bit weak but there were some tries at misdirection. This island sounds uninviting and stuck in its ways. I can only hope the town evolves and the people get a little less cranky.

This book is a good background for the series.

I received an advanced readers copy from Netgalley and am not required to leave a positive review.

A Pie to Die For

⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

“ Este March runs the family-owned Lucky Pie Diner on Split Pine Island in Northern Michigan. The pies at Lucky Pie aren’t just good, they’re magical, with a family recipe that grants certain customers their greatest hopes and dreams when they eat the pie. The remote island is closed to outsiders over the winter months, but on the last day of the season, the unpopular new produce vendor, Jeff, turns up dead on his boat, and Split Pine Island’s peace goes up in smoke.”

This was an awesome kick off to this series! The character descriptions and setting descriptions were awesome to the point I felt like I was there and knew the people personally. The mystery was a good one and I had an idea of the killer but didn’t know for sure until the end. I felt like this was one of those books I needed to keep reading and I will recommend this series to all cozy mystery readers and then some. Can’t wait for the next one.

I really enjoyed A Pie to Die For. Este March is a fun main character. I enjoy the setting on Split Pine Island. The setting came alive for me. I like the diner and the lucky pies. The mystery is well crafted. I found the details behind the murder really interesting.
I would enjoy another trip to Split Pine Island. The recipes at the end sound yummy and are made in the book. I love that connection to the story.
Thanks to Netgalley and Crooked Lane Books for the opportunity to review this book.

This was interesting but soooo slow. I really enjoyed the cozy atmosphere but cozy does not always have to mean sluggish. It dragged on and that made the reading experience not as good as it would have.