Bulletproof Barista (Large type / large print)

Twists and Turns Galore

Dollycas's Thoughts

Clare Cosi was smiling ear to ear when she learned that a hit streaming show Only Murders in Gotham would be filming at, in front of, and around the Village Blend. She is a huge fan of one of the show's stars, comedian Jerry Sullivan and she has been absolutely gushing about him and his career. She didn't know he had quite a history at the Village Blend and with Madame, her ex-mother-in-law and owner of the coffeehouse though. He did do his best to help everyone feel at ease around himself, his crew, and other members of the cast. He couldn't wait to try Clare's bulletproof coffee and he liked it so much that he gave her the craft services contract.

Shortly after the production started rehearsing and filming strange "accidents" began to happen. One man was severely injured on a stage, another appeared to be poisoned right in front of the coffeehouse, and then a live bullet was fired from a prop gun. Thankfully the victim was wearing a bulletproof vest.Ã? Clare knows these are not harmless pranks or accidents, someone is trying to sabotage the show.

With the cast and crew spending so much time at Village Blend Clare has the opportunity to start her own investigation but if she's not careful she could be the killer's next victim and a cup of bulletproof coffee won't be able to save her.

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I love the theme of this story. A show shooting at Village Blend is so New York. It is clear that the author drew inspiration from Only Murders in the Building with Steve Martin, Martin Short, and Selena Gomez. A show I sadly have fallen behind watching but have seen enough of to see the parallels between the two shows.

The production does bring all kinds of new characters into the story. Each it seems has their own agenda and secrets. Clare comes in contact with all of them so it should be easy for her to figure out what is going on. Mike would like Clare to leave any investigating to the police but he is busy with his own cases, so much so he even asks her for some help. I like that Matt is around for Clare and that she even gets some one-on-one time with Madame where she learns some pertinent information. All the employees at Village Blend really got involved in this storyline too. There were a lot of characters to keep straight but Ms. Coyle does an excellent job at creating characters that are unique and memorable.

Ms. Coyle gives readers a look at all the drama that happens behind the scenes of a successful show. The fan club president, the grips, the gaffer, the costumes, the prop master, the director, the actors, and the craft services. It takes a lot of people to bring a show to our television screens. In this story, there is also "The Player" would has a mission all their own. Clare really had her eyes opened as she saw how cut-throat show business really is.

There is a lot going on within these pages. Injuries, death, drugs, stalking, secrets, lies, a snake, a bulletproof barista, and more are all twisted together to make a heck of a story. Twists and turns galore make this a very hard book to put down which is something I have come to expect from this author so I plan accordingly. I enjoyed the way all the way all the clues came together for Clare but what I loved was that she had a plan to expose the killer and she got all the right people on board. That showdown was fabulous.

I can't believe this is the 20th book in the series and how far the core characters have come. Honey Roasted is still my favorite but BulletProof Barista is impressive too. Readers had to wait a while for this book. I hope we don't have to wait as long for the next one because I am beyond excited to see what the author has in store for these characters next.