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HOLLYBERRY HOMICIDE, the fifth book in A Berry Basket Mystery series by Sharon Farrow, has all the trappings that make a holiday cozy mystery enjoyable! From the delightful Christmas cover, to the protagonist, Marlee Jacob, (named after famed Jacob Marley of A Christmas Carol), to Marlee’s obsession with decorating both her shop and home, and to the town’s Hollyberry Festival, the reader is immersed in a flurry of holiday activities. The author’s descriptive voice shines through and brings the characters and setting to life on the pages without slowing down the plot. Ms. Farrow’s use of a local stage production, A Christmas Carol, to highlight the death of the 95-year-old man playing Jacob Marley, adds to the entertainment. Everyone is sure he died of natural causes but Marlee is convinced foul play was involved. With a colorful and humorous cast of characters surrounding Marlee (including Minnie, her African Gray parrot) I couldn’t help but be enthralled with the story and enjoyed several laugh out loud moments.
The murder mystery itself was well-plotted and had a good pace. I enjoyed that Marlee’s friends are supportive of her snooping and help out as they can. As I turned the pages, layers of suspicion and secrets were revealed but I still couldn’t hone in on the killer. The author expertly weaves in twists that left me shocked and the clues she includes had me fixating on one character then another. But in the thrilling conclusion, they all piece together into one cohesive ending that made me yearn for more!
As owner of The Berry Basket, Marlee serves an assortment of mouthwatering berry-themed goodies. While holly berries are poisonous, Ms. Farrow includes several holiday-themed recipes at the back of the book that not only are safe to eat, but sound scrumptious as well. I couldn’t wait to try her recipe for No-Bake Hollyberry Cluster Cookies since they epitomize hollyberries and Christmas! Similar to rice krispie treats, except using cornflakes, these cookies are sure to please the kids. Plus the brightly-colored green dyed cornflake cookies with red hot candies will make any holiday cookie platter stand out as you share Christmas cheer!
Amazon Synopsis
A cold wind is blowing off Lake Michigan, and murder is scaring the dickens out of everyone . . .
Considering her name, Marlee Jacob is an obvious choice for the role of Jacob Marley in Oriole Point’s production of A Christmas Carol. It’s just sad that the role has opened up because of the death of the elderly actor who’d originally been cast.
But Marlee, the proprietor of The Berry Basket, will do her best to keep spirits high—that is, until clues start mounting that there’s danger behind the scenes. There are accidents on set, the tree in the village square topples over, and worst of all, a body is found with a sprig of holly draped over it. If Marlee can’t wrap up the case, she may not have a berry merry Christmas . . .
A special thanks to Sharon Farrow for providing one lucky winner with a print copy of HOLLYBERRY HOMICIDE! Giveaway is limited to U.S. residents. Contest ends Sunday, October 18, 2020 at 11:59 pm PST. Please use the Rafflecopter box located below to enter. The winner will be announced on this page and on Cinnamon & Sugar’s Facebook page, as well as notified by email (so check your spam folder!)
After Theo points out the lack of holly pastries in the shop, Marlee searches on Pinterest for a recipe that incorporates a holly theme. This easy, no-bake recipe seemed perfect. Variations of this recipe call for shaping the batter into wreaths. Since the leaves and berries of holly are poisonous, real holly is not included. What you will find included is a lot of flavor.
- 1/2 cup butter or margarine
- 30 large marshmallows
- 1/4 teaspoon green food coloring
- 4-1/2 cups cornflakes cereal
- 1/3 cup mini red cinnamon candies, such as Red Hots
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Heat butter in a large saucepan or pot until melted. Add marshmallows.
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Stir until all the marshmallows are melted. Mix in the green food coloring.
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Stir in the cornflakes cereal, until all the pieces are coated.
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Drop by spoonfuls onto wax paper. Press 3 cinnamon candies into each cornflake cluster.
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Let cool until set.
Makes approximately 24 cookies.
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I was provided with an advance copy. All thoughts and opinions are my own.
So cute! I sometimes to crazy with meringue cookies and add some green goid coloring and a bit of peppermint extract.
No I do not bake at all. My daughter does any baking with her kids
Good morning!!
I make Christmas sugar cookies. I try to decorate this. Not every good at it. Lol! But, it stills gets me in the mood.🥰
I love to bake during the holiday season. I do candied pecans, reindeer cookies and a few other favorites then I like to try something new too.
I have a recipe for a yummy Amish Sugar Cookie that I make. I have cookie stamps I use on them. Thanks for the chance!
I make these a lot for Christmas – nobody else likes them except me, LOL! But they’re easy and fun to make. Plus I’ve already read Hollyberry Homicide and it’s FABULOUS!! Such a great cozy series, and the Christmas details are wonderful. They will definitely get you in the mood for the holiday season, and for watching a Christmas Carol!
I used to make a lot of Christmas cookies,but not too much anymore. Usually make chocolate chip.
Love the cover on the book. Thanks for the chance.
Such a clever and easy holiday cookie idea! I like to make baklava and candy cane cookies for the holidays ~
Yes. Candy Cane Cookies. The old recipe from the Betty Crocker Cookbook. My mother first made them when I was a little kid. They use almond extract and have the best flavor and look so pretty on a plate! They were my favorite Christmas cookie growing up and it still is. I think of my mother every Christmas I make them. She passed 12-21-17. Thanks for this no-bake recipe!! I love simple recipes! And thanks for the chance to win! The book sounds GREAT! And such a cute cover!
I do bake special cookies for the holidays! One that is always made is the cut out sugar cookies like I made with my Mom and decorated with my brother. So many happy memories come back every time I bake them.
Love this easy and yummy recipe and what an adorable result. I will be making these this year too!
I always do sugar cookies. Last year I tried a hot chocolate cookie recipe that everyone loved so I’ll probably do those again. I usually do some candy too- fudge, caramels, or divinity.
I bake sugar cookies to decorate with my granddaughters. I thnk I am going to add these cookies this year. So festive!
I love making these during the holidays! Easy and fun, especially for kids 🙂
Also, I didn’t realize this series was set in Michigan! I can’t wait to read them!
I bake Lone Ranger Cookies. It is an old recipe of grandma’s.
I make Christmas bread for the holidays. I think that this year I will start a new tradition of making chocolate crinkles. Thanks for the guveaway!
My mom and I make sand tart cookies during the holidays.
I always .are monster cookies for Christmas. They had chocolate chips oats,m&m’s no flour.
I bake cookies every week but nothing specific to a holiday other than Honey Chocolate Chip Cookies for the Jewish New Year.
Yes, I do Peanut Blossoms and Surprise Cookies (chocolate star wrapped in Mexican Wedding Cookie dough, then rolled in balls, baked and rolled in powdered sugar). Last year did cut out Christmas Sugar cookies for the first time.
madamhawk at gmail dot com
I don’t. but I help my mom. She has made me homemade sugar cookies since childhood. All the different Christmas shapes and decorated. I love it.
I love baking, especially for fall holidays! I found a great maple fudge sandwich cookie recipe from a cozy series that is a favorite now at my home! It was from the Joanne Flukes series starring Hannah Swensen!
I love baking sugar cookies for Christmas, and I have festive cookie cutters 🙂
I used to but not anymore.
I roll & cut out sugar cookies. Then decorate them
jwhaley4(at)aol(dot)com
I’d love to bake a bunch of cookies for the holidays, but I’d probably end up eating most of them!
I love baking cookies especially with my grandsons. I will need to try this recipe. Thanks for your great generosity.
Hubby and i like to bake Christmas cookies when he is in the mood he isn’t a sweet person and I really love sweets sometimes overly and i think it is do to the time spent in foster homes where sweets were not given raisins were and now i won’t eat raisins. Plus many other vegis that we were forced to eat. I think the cookies are so cute and we are going to make and mail to my kids in Ca after i eat a dozen or so.
ginger snaps
My friend and I pick one day before the holidays and spend that day baking. This may be the only one in 15 years that we won’t be baking together but we will do a cookie exchange after we are done. These are so cute I will definitely be making them. I love the cover of this book! Thanks for the chance!
At Christmas, I like making chocolate crinkle cookies and decorated sugar cookies.
I used to make cookies for all the holidays. But since it’s been just me and hubby, I don’t anymore. Thank you for a chance to win a print copy of Hollyberry Homicide.
Wow, these wreath cookies are so cute!! and they look delicious. Thank you for the chance.
Generally we do sugar cookie, gingerbread cookies, molasses spice cookies
These look great. Thank you for sharing the recipe. We do a cookie exchange in our office for Christmas, but I haven’t figured out what I want to make this year. Thank you for this chance.
No my sister is the baker!
These are cute! I will have to try them! Thank you for the recipe!
I have not made these yet.
I love baking Christmas cookies especially decorated sugar cookies and Gingerbread people
I like making my Mom’s walnut cookies for the holidays.
I used to bake sugar cookies and decorate them. I no longer bake Christmas cookies.
Actually, these are my favorites. I make them every year from the back of a cornflakes box.
Great reciept I have actually made theses turned out okay.
I used to make breads but never really got into making Christmas cookies.
Thank you for the giveaway! My mom and I always bake around the holidays. We only make Whoopie Pies at Thanksgiving and Christmas so they are incredibly special. My mom always bakes her cream puffs and apple pies at the holidays, too. We have gotten into making cut-outs to send to the grandkids (my nieces and nephew) for them to decorate themselves. They love that!
I always make raspberry and white chocolate thumbprint cookies.
I bake sugar cookies decorated with frostings and candy bits, chocolate chip, oatmeal raisin. The grands like to help.
I love to bake Santa Whiskers.
I try to bake special cookies for the holidays, but I don’t get it around to it every year, unfortunately. Thanks for the giveaway!
My daughter and I enjoy baking together. My mother always made nut rolls and balash. This year I hope my daughter and I can attempt to make them. Fingers are crossed.
Yes, we like baking cookies for the holiday season.
We have a number of cookies & treats that we bake during the holidays.
We make cut out sugar cookies, snickerdoodles and thumbprint cookies
My favorite to bake is Candy Cane cookies!
We do frosted sugar cookies.
I love to bake all the time but especially during the holidays. Fudge, cookies, cakes, breads! All of it!
Yes! Thumbprint cookies, Kissing cookies and Cranberry Christmas Cake.
I have a soft gingerbread cookie that does not require rolling and cutting. It is our favorite!
This is so great! Thank you for sharing!
Yes, gingerbread men.
I have 2 different cookies that HAVE to be made during the holidays, soft ginger snaps, and Mexican Spicy hot chocolate cookies! 🙂
Yes, I love to bake special cookies. I make shortbread and sugar cookies and decorate them.
Sounds like a cute book. Those cookies look so good.
My wife makes these wreath cookies too. My favorite is her double chocolate chips with M&M’s. She also makes Ginger mounds and sugar cookies.
I make cut out sugar cookies and the kids decorate them. So much fun.
I make different varieties of cookies-never the same from year to year!
When I was a stay at home mom and my kids were little, I made 10 different kinds of cookies to give away at Christmas time. Now I hardly bake at all😐 I do enjoy making Oatmeal Carmelitas. They are a favorite and I never have any to bring back home if they are brought for any get-togethers! Thank you for this great opportunity! Merry Christmas early!
My husband and I just bake sugar cookies and decorate them. It’s just the 2 of us so it’s a small batch. Thank you for this chance!
I make sour cream cookies every Christmas.
Got the recipe from my MIL many years ago.
My daughter, granddaughter and I are the
only ones who eat them. guess they’re not
manly enough for the guys. Your cookies
look too good to eat (almost). thanks
txmlhl(at)yahoo(dot)com
I love baking cookies more now since I have a three yr old grandson and he likes to help..
I bake sugar cookies and snickerdoodles.
Yes, I make coconut macaroons at Christmas because my mom loved them. Rum cake is my most requested holiday bake item.
We bake snowballs and keiflies..which are my fave.
I used to bake, not so much these days! If I did, it would probably be one of my Mom’s recipes.
I don’t bake cookies for the holidays
While I frequency make Italian Wedding Cookies and chocolate chip cookies for Christmas, I always make Rum Balls!
Since my children grew up and moved away I don’t bake a lot. I used to make candy cane cookies and sugar cookies but more candy than cookies. Lots of divinity and fudge.
I always roll out, cut, bake and decorate Christmas Sugar Cookies. Sugar Cookies are my favorite cookies period! Thank you!!
I don’t bake any special cookies for the holiday.