I am truly grateful to have been able to read this early. I loved watching the Golden Girls growing up, I still do; but to put them down on paper was wonderful. I loved the girls trying to find a killer to help clear names.

Thank you so much to NetGalley and Hyperion for my copy of Murder by Cheesecake A Golden Girls Cozy Mystery by Rachel Ekstrom Courage in exchange for an honest review. It publishes April 15, 2025.
This was such a throwback! I literally felt like I was in a studio audience, watching this story unfold. You can tell that Rachel Ekstrom is a huge Golden Girl fan and definitely stayed true to the characters, the 80’s and Miami!
The St. Olaf details were so fun and funny and I really enjoyed the overall story here. I was definitely surprised at the end and didn’t want to put it down!
I highly recommend if you enjoy cozies, and if you enjoy Golden Girls!

I loved watching the Golden Girls so this book was right up my alley. This author nailed the characters right down to the T. I swear I could hear their voices when I was reading this book. It starts out with Dorothy going on a date and he skips out on her in the deli. Rose is getting ready for her nieces big wedding St. Olaf style with the help of the other girls. Lo and behold they find Dorothy’s date dead in the freezer. Since Dorothy is a prime suspect they work together to solve the mystery. I loved this book and it made me laugh so much. I can’t wait for the next in this new series.

I received this ARC from Netgalley for free, and I am leaving this review voluntarily.

I didn't watch the Golden Girls so this was a fresh take on four mature female friends for me. Know that this is heavy on the worldbuilding (for lack of a better word) and light on the mystery but I appreciate the time Courage takes to introduce us to these women. It's almost but not quite a classic cozy but for sure it's light and it's entertaining. Thanks to netgalley for the Arc. I'm curious to see where this series goes next.

This book was a quick read. For me it brought a feeling of nostalgia. I could hear each of their voices in my head as I was reading. I would recommend this book to anyone but especially to those who can remember the TV series. This book captured the characters as they were on the show. I laughed out loud on a number of occasions.

Oof. As a devoted fan of The Golden Girls since the episodes first aired who gained a whole new appreciation for the show as an adult, I wanted to love this. Placing the four main characters within a cozy mystery seemed like a stroke of genius, and I was so excited to read the book early. While the ladies on these pages are certainly true to the vibrant personalities that were presented on the show, the rest of the tale unfortunately fell flat. Far too much of the story focuses on a wedding, with a large amount of that covering its many whimsical St. Olaf details, and not enough on the murder occurring during its events that the girls are trying to solve; I didn't end up caring much about the solution or the new characters who are introduced. The humor could have been turned up a notch, as there are amusing moments here and there, but nothing on par with the belly laughs that the show often provided. Although there are programs that have successfully spawned cozy mystery series in the past, this was a whiff for me.

Rose has signed up to help coordinate her cousin Nettie's wedding in Miami which will include all of the St. Olaf traditions. In an attempt to have a date to the wedding, Dorothy goes on a VHS dating service and meets a man. Though he is extremely charismatic and Dorothy feels a connection after they have talked on the phone, he turns out to be a complete jerk in person. However, this man is not completely out of Dorothy's life, as he is found dead at the venue of Nettie's wedding. And Dorothy becomes the prime suspect. Rose, Dorothy, Blanche, and Sophia must band together to bring Nettie's wedding together, solve the crime to remove Dorothy as a suspect, and NOT get killed in the process.

I was so excited when I got approved for this book. Golden Girls AND a Murder Mystery. That was an easy sign up for me! The book completely nailed the feel of the show and the characters. Many of the conversations I could visualize and hear the characters having just like on the show. I loved those parts!

The part of the book that fell flat for me was the mystery element. It really wasn't too exciting to follow the investigation, and it felt second fiddle to the wedding subplot of the book. That being said, it was a very quick read and still gave me all of the nostalgic feelings that I was hoping to get from it.

Thank you Hyperion Avenue, NetGalley, and Rachel Ekstrom Courage for this eARC in exchange for my honest review.

The banter and personalities felt true to the show, and the title and cover were spot-on.

That said, the mystery took a backseat to other plotlines (too much wedding content in my opinion), and the pacing dragged at times.

If you’re here for the girls, you’ll likely enjoy it - but if you’re craving a tightly woven mystery, this one may not fully satisfy.

I see that there’s a Golden Girls book and squeal with excitement! Then I got even more excited when NetGalley approved me for an ARC.

My favorite ladies. I start reading and picture them in their kitchen with cheesecake and even hear the audience laughter. I keep reading and sadly, I just can’t do it. The writing wasn’t my cup of tea. It was a bit too cheesy for me, even from a GG standpoint.

I’m sad that this wasn’t for me but hope others wanting something cozy might enjoy it.

Hold on to your hats fans of Golden Girls! This book was like an episode laid out in story form. The author did a great job making the characters come to life. Focusing primarily on Rose and Dorothy’s POV after a murder occurs.

Let’s just say the murder is not really the focus of the book - the usual shenanigans of Rose, Dorothy, Blanche and Sophia steal the show.

Sophia’s one-liners were expertly captured. Safe to say, if you loved the show you’ll love the book.

I was so excited for this book. I love The Golden Girls. I love Rose. I love her St. Olaf stories.

Maybe this book was too much of a good thing? Because it was HEAVY on the St. Olaf and very light on the murder. I really wanted to love it.

It’s cute. It captures the spirit of The Golden Girls. But it was over-the-top, and I just couldn’t wait for it to end.

2.5 stars, rounded up.

Thanks to #NetGalley and the publisher for access to this book in exchange for an honest review.

I’m not always a big fan of cozy mysteries. They often struggle with keeping the tone light enough to stay cozy without losing the stakes and tension in the mystery. However, this book struck that balance perfectly!

The author really captured the characters of the Golden Girls that it almost felt like reading a novelized version of an actual episode at times. The stakes were high enough to keep me invested, but still silly enough for the story to remain lighthearted and fun. I had a great time reading this one and hope there are more in the future!

Thank you to NetGalley and Hyperion Avenue for the ARC in exchange for an honest review!

Love that there’s a cozy mystery with THE Golden Girls! Why hasn’t this been a thing before? So happy Rachel Ekstrom Courage wrote this fun and entertaining story. I hope this turns into a series and we get many more! Rachel’s writing is perfect for The Golden Girls and has fans rejoicing! If you want to laugh, have fun and spend time solving a mystery with The Golden Girls, then run to the store and grab this book. I know I will be doing just that on April 15th. Thank you Rachel Ekstrom Courage, NetGalley and Hyperion Avenue for this digital arc.

When I saw this Golden Girls-themed cozy mystery on NetGalley, I just couldn’t resist it. It was exactly what I expected: fun, nostalgic, and a little bit campy. Any book that uses the word “dastardly” gets my vote! There’s a lot of description, especially at the beginning, to set the scene as we know it from the tv series, and first books in a series are often based around the setup of the characters and location, so there are some bumpy spots, but I thought it was really fun and hope there are more!

I love the Golden Girls, as well as cozy mysteries, so I was excited to check this out. While I enjoyed the book overall, as it was easy to envision and hear their voices, I had expected more with the cozy mystery angle. The banter is what anyone who's watched the show would expect from the leading ladies. The pace was a bit off, making the flow a somewhat choppy. There was a large focus on the St. Olaf traditions and the wedding, pushing the murder mystery to the side. Everything came together by the end, but I wish that had happened earlier in the story. Overall, it was an enjoyable read, and I'm likely to check out future books in the series.

Oh my gosh, I absolutely adore the Golden Girls!!! I can recite EVERY episode. It took me a moment to wrap my head around the girls solving a murder, but I totally believed they could do it! It was such a fun read, and it definitely wouldn't have been the same without those hilarious St. Olaf stories. So for all the fans who have wished and wished there could be new epsiodes this title will delight them.

Thanks to Netgalley and Publisher for allowing me to review the title.

Ah the 80's, when women could speak their mind...at least on The Golden Girls! When I saw this new book, I was intrigued to see how the author would handle the characters and setting. Those two are nailed completed- Rose is Rose, Sofia is Sofia, etc, and being set in the 80s, means remembering some things didn't exist, so the premise works. You will definitely picture the actresses in their roles, and that's a plus, as it sorta side lines you from realizing the mystery plot is...a tad weak. If you're ready as a fan, you'll love the book. But if you're reading it as a cozy, you'll be more meh. So expect it to take a bit to get through the book, this isn't a fast read like most cozies.

I just loved this cozy mystery so much. The characters are the same as The Golden Girls: Dorothy, Blanche, Sophia, and Rose.

Nettie is getting married and Rose wants to give her the best wedding ever, but she wants it to have "all" of the St. Oaf traditions, and there are many including riding a donkey down the aisle. Right before the wedding, Nettie and her fiancé Jason drop a bomb on Rose. They honestly would just as soon elope because Jason's parents want the wedding to be in THEIR control and theirs only. The wealthy family offers some really good incentives, one of which is free rooms at their hotel they own. So when the families come together at the destination wedding in Miami, Florida (instead of St. Olaf, Minnesota), it's interesting to watch how they manage all that happens. In the midst of it all there is a murder and it's definitely of the "cozy type."

I love all of the characters! It was like visiting The Golden Girls and laughing at the way they talk to each other and vie for certain attentions and yet love each other. It was just too fun reading it.

As a huge fan of the Golden Girls, this was a fun read. It started out slow but got better. This was just like the show. The girls were sassy, funny and plenty mentions of St. Olaf. Overall this was a good cozy mystery.

2.5

As a die-hard Golden Girls fan, this was right up my alley, so of course, I requested the ARC from NetGalley.

I had recently finished my millionth rewatch before starting this, so the show was fresh on my mind… which probably wasn’t the best idea. Reading through the book, the writer plagiarized some of the jokes from the show, which caused some of the “funny” scenes to be lackluster at best.

The book for the most part focused mainly on Dorothy and Rose, which is a shame because there was opportunity to add more for Blanche and Sophia. however, this is book one so we will see what book two will bring. The author also focused too much on the wedding and the St. Olaf traditions than the actual murder. Rose also came out looking very unlikable throughout the story, which is CRAZY to say the least.

Overall the story wasn’t bad, it’s definitely a cozy vibe but not exciting enough for a murder mystery novel.