Dead to the Last Drop: 05/13/20

Dead to the Last Drop by Cleo Coyle is a departure for the series being set in Washington DC and Baltimore. Clare Cosi is in Washington, living in a historic house so she can set up the Washington branch of the Village Blend. But things go awry when the FBI are after her for the kidnapping of the president's daughter.

The second way this volume differs is in its set up. The previous books open with a POV from the murderer. This one, though, opens with Mike Quinn grabbing Clare from her DC home so that they can flee the city ahead of the FBI. The majority of the narrative is told in flashback as a conversation between Clare and Mike as they make their way to the safe-house in Baltimore.

The major plot which takes a long time to unfold, even to the point of the mystery itself, is the disappearance of the First Family's adult daughter. She's been playing jazz at the open mic nights at the Village Blend DC. Her friendship with Clare leads to an invitation to the White House and the chance to provide the coffee service for the daughter's wedding.

The whole running from the FBI framing device seemed far fetched. Also the usual supporting characters are absent for most of book, and they are an integral part of series. I was worried at first that this book would signal a relocation for the remainder of the series. Thankfully, that's not the case.

The next book is Leave it to Cleaver (2017).

Four stars

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