Murder by Cheesecake: A Golden Girls Cozy Mystery (Golden Girls Cozy Mystery Series)

While the Golden Girls are helping Rose to set up the welcome tea for her young cousin's Miami destination wedding --complete with many, many St. Olaf wedding traditions -- they find a dead man faceplanted in one of Rose's lingonberry-drizzled cheesecakes in a hotel freezer. He is the same man Dorothy had a disastrous lunch date with a few days before. When the police continue to treat Dorothy as the prime suspect, the Girls decide to do a little investigating of their own. Shenanigans ensue.The author does a wonderful job of recreating the location, the era, and the things that make The Golden Girls an enduring classic - the wit, the wisecracks, each character's unique personality, and of course, the fact that they are women of a certain age who are up to almost anything except sitting at home knitting. I absolutely loved it.

I'm really torn in my review of this book. I thought it would be nearly impossible for an author to capture the show that I watched with my poppy every weekend when I was a kid, and now as an adult I watch reruns of if I need to be cheered up and fondly remember those carefree days watching it with my grandfather. I was wrong! This author captures the voices and actions of the characters and time period vividly and perfectly. I could hear the girls speaking in every page as if it was another show and not a book. Kudos to someone who clearly studied an iconic show and cast very well!The one tiny thing that bothered me while I was reading it was that I felt the author was trying so hard to prove they were an expert on The Golden Girls that they threw in little bits and pieces of things that happened on the show randomly. It wasn't necessary. The writing speaks for itself and it was clear they captured The Golden Girls and it felt like a case of "show us don't tell us" while they already were showing us.My last point may just be a personal thing. As much as I love The Golden Girls the classic TV show, and I did enjoy this book and would recommend it to anyone who is a fan of The Golden Girls I realized that I truly enjoy watching them much more than reading them. To me this was a fun novelty walk down memory lane, but I don't see myself investing much in the future of the series.

Fans of the Golden Girls will love this! I could hear each of the voices of the characters as if I was watching an episode of the show. While I’ve never been a huge fan of the show, I thought this was fun. The mystery was interesting and I loved the references to life in the 80s. I enjoyed investigating with Dorothy, who is competent as an amateur sleuth, but just as I was getting into the mystery each time, Rose and her St. Olaf traditions would be thrown at me and take me out of the mystery. This was fun but I am not sure if I will read another one.

This book is fantastic and far exceeded my expectations. I felt like I was reading the script from an extra long, lost episode.The author, Ms. Courage is obviously a huge fan of the show because she wrote the characters' mannerisms and speech patterns perfectly. She showed great love for the characters of Dorothy, Blanche, Rose and Sophia as she constructed the zany, entertaining story.Rachel Ekstrom Courage a is talented writer. The words seemed to "pour forth like liquid from a stream." She is descriptive without being overly so.Reading this novel was a comfort to me as I was a teenager when the Golden Girls originally aired and it made me think fondly of days gone by. The 1980's had an innocence that we will never see again. Ms. Courage understands that. She 'gets it.'

While there are some inconsistencies, like there was on the show, it was great! I could just see the girls and their house, as well as hear their voices, while reading. I hope there will be more books to follow! Highly recommend to all Golden Girl lovers.

Being a huge fan of The Golden Girls, I was really excited when I heard about this book. Would it live up to my expectations? How closely would it be to the actual show as far as the characters went and how the area was described? Well, I was pleasantly surprised. The way the author wrote about Rose, Blanche, Dorothy and Sophie, it was like going back to visit old friends. She did a great job with the whole story. I highly recommend Murder by Cheesecake whether you're a Gold Girls fan or not..

This book was such a blast! I’m not usually a cozy mystery reader, but as a huge Golden Girls fan, I couldn’t wait to read it once I heard about it. Rachel Ekstrom Courage perfectly captures the wit and charm of Dorothy, Blanche, Rose, and Sophia, bringing their distinct voices and humor to life. It feels like you’re right there with them as they work together to solve a mystery, clearing Dorothy’s name and ensuring Rose’s niece’s wedding goes off without a hitch. The plot is fast-paced, funny, and full of surprises—drag queens, outrageous disguises, a thrilling chase, and yes, a whole lot of herring and St. Olaf stories. But what really makes this book shine is how Ekstrom Courage nails the deep, unbreakable friendship between these women that has made them beloved for 40 years.

Murder by Cheesecake is the first book in the Golden Girls mystery series and it did not disappoint. What happens when Dorthoy's date ends up dead and a St. Olaf themed wedding is threatened that Rose is hosting? Make sure to pick up this page turning read to find out. All the characters in this were great and it kept me guessing until the end. The author wrote this well and I hope that this will be a series. Overall, this is one that I enjoyed reading and would recommend to any reader who loves mysteries.