September Online Book Club: A Deadly Inside Scoop by Abby Collette

Warning: Read this book = Crave Ice Cream!

Before we even talk murder and blizzards, know this:  if you’re a simple vanilla or chocolate ice cream lover, this book will make you reconsider your ice cream repertoire. Collette’s creative use of fruit, cakes, and mix-ins made me hungrier with each new flavor. Recipes in the back of the book include snow ice cream, pumpkin spice roll, cherry amaretto chocolate chunk, and caramel corn ice cream. 

When Bronwyn (Win) Crewse moves home to the village of Chagrin Falls, Ohio, and restores her family’s ice cream shop to its previous level of reputation within the community, she’s willing to devote plenty of hard work to make it succeed. Unfortunately after months of renovations, planning, and testing family heirloom recipes, an early first snow spoils opening day.

As if zero customers wasn’t bad enough, later that evening Win finds a body in the snow. Soon Win and her two best friends become amateur sleuths splitting their time between investigating the murder and their real jobs. In this village, everyone has a motive to kill the dead man, including members of Win’s own large family. The resulting mystery is complicated. Past crimes factor into present conflicts until it becomes tough to tell who’s telling the truth.

A Deadly Inside Scoop is a fun beginning to a new series. Win’s character is hard working, bright, and curious (although sometimes that causes trouble) and her friends are funny and quirky. I most enjoyed meeting her parents and coworkers, especially her close relationship with her PopPop. Since this is the first book, the author spends time letting us get to know how their family history intertwines with the village history. 

I’ve never been to Cleveland and learned a lot about how such a small village could be part of the big city. There really is a Chagrin Falls, Ohio and there’s even a shop on the falls in real life. Check out Abby’s blog to see photos of the real store she used for her fictional ice cream shop.

Abby Vandiver writes An Ice Cream Parlor Mystery series under the pen name Abby Collette. One fun thing about cozy mysteries is the punny titles and the next in this series has one I love. Game of Cones won’t be out until March, 2021, but Vandiver has written more than four other series you can read before then. 

I enjoyed listening to the audiobook version from Hoopla, but it’s available on Amazon and everywhere else as well.

As a special treat, Abby shared the recipe from A Deadly Inside Scoop for RIYA’S UPSCALE CHERRY CHOCOLATE CHUNK AMARETTO. I can’t wait to try it out and add a photo for you.

INGREDIENTS

• 1¼ cups milk
• 2 teaspoons pure vanilla extract
• 1 cup sugar
• Pinch of salt
• 2 cups heavy cream
• 3 cups fresh, ripe cherries, pitted and quartered
• ¼ cup Amaretto liqueur
• 1 cup dark chocolate chunks

DIRECTIONS

1. In a medium saucepan over medium heat, combine milk, vanilla and sugar. Stir occasionally until the sugar completely dissolves. Take off heat and add salt. Allow to steep and cool.
2. Whisk in the heavy whipping cream. Cover with plastic wrap and place in fridge about two hours, until completely chilled.
3. Using an ice cream maker, add the chilled ice cream base according to the manufacturer’s instructions. Once the mixture has thickened, add the cherries and the Amaretto. Continue churning until it is the consistency of soft serve, then mix in chocolate chunks and place in a freezer-­proof container for at least two hours.

Thanks to Abby!! If you try the recipe, let me know. Tag me in your Instagram photo @kellybrak