Charlotte Bessette is the owner of Fromagerie Bessette, a cheese shop in Providence, Ohio. The town is having a Winter Wonderland faire, and most of the local shops are preparing their tents for the festivities, which also includes an ice sculpting contest and other small activities to draw tourists into the area during what is normally a slow time for tourism. While preparing for the festivities, Charlotte discovers that her late mother's friend, Kaitlyn Clydesdale, has returned to town to start a honeybee farm.

Just a few short days later, however, Kaitlyn's body is discovered in Rebecca's cottage. Rebecca is not only Charlotte's assistant, but she's dating the other local honeybee farmer, Ipo Ho. Charlotte knows that Ipo wouldn't murder someone, so she wants to do what she can to prove him innocent. The local police chief warns Charlotte to stay out of this (knowing her proclivity for sticking her nose into his investigations), but she's reluctant to stand by and watch an innocent man be framed. As she discovers more information about Kaitlyn and her business dealings, she turns up several suspects, all with strong motives. But Chief Urso isn't interested in Charlotte's theories.

Not only is Charlotte trying to prove that a young man is innocent of murder, but she also spends much of her free time figuring out what secret her boyfriend, Jordan, is hiding. Something about the story he tells her about his past doesn't add up, and she isn't sure she can trust him. Adding to the muddy waters is the return of her ex-fiance, who seems hell-bent on winning her back. Somehow, though, in the midst of dealing with all of this, Charlotte is able to make headway on Ipo's case. But will she be able to solve it before the culprit takes her life, too?

CLOBBERED BY CAMEMBERT was fun to read, and while I had my eye on the right culprit all along, I was never really sure. I like that I was kept guessing the entire time, and that nothing was too obvious. All of the usual characters from the Cheese Shop Mystery series were here, even the one I love to hate (Charlotte's cousin's ex-wife, Sylvie, who doesn't understand appropriate boundaries or parenting skills). Rebecca herself is one of my favourites - she's a former Amish woman who has left the Amish lifestyle and is still acclimating to the English lifestyle. Discovering Jordan's secret was interesting, as was the cliff-hanger CLOBBERED IN CAMEMBERT ended on. I'm really looking forward to the next book in the next series.

Book Summary

Charlotte Bessette—proprietor of Fromagerie Bessette, affectionately known in Providence, Ohio, as the Cheese Shop—is setting up her tent for the town's Winter Wonderland faire, where she'll offer fine wines and scrumptious cheeses. In the midst of the preparations, Charlotte meets an old friend of her mother, Kaitlyn Clydesdale, who has come back to Providence with plans to start a new honeybee farm.

When Kaitlyn is found dead in the cottage of Charlotte's assistant Rebecca, suspicion falls on Rebecca's boyfriend, a honeybee farmer himself. Charlotte knows this beekeeper wouldn't hurt a fly, so she decides to find the real killer. While the town buzzes with gossip, can Charlotte catch the culprit without getting stung herself?

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