Not a typical cozy. Oh, it has the cozy elements, such as woman in her twenties looses her high-achiever job, moves/returns to a place of her youth (in this case both) and start (to work at) a bakery. But also, it is more gritty than most cozies. “[I] placed my cleavage on the bar along with my purse.” I don’t think I have ever read a line like that in a cozy.

It took some getting into this story. Until I read a review that suggested Cherry Slice should be read as a satire. That worked.

Cherry, once an investigative reporter, but since she was exposed as a fraud on a reality TV-show, works at her parents’ cake shop. She is approached by the sister of a one-time boyfriend Kenny. The ex-boyfriend was killed when he participated in a TV-show. The sister believes the wrong man was sent to prison and asks Cherry to investigate.

Though she believes this is a though case - the man pleaded guilty and is now dead himself, plus, everyone saw him do it on the footage - Cherry takes on the case. Between selling cakes, being hassled about her current investigation and her previous public humiliation (and her mum treating her like everything is her fault), Cherry talks everyone that was involved in the TV-show with Kenny. She soon finds there is not much true in reality TV.

The grittiness worked because of the setting of the story in reality TV shows and the Y-listed celebrities that appear in them. The story was well executed and all the characters came off really well (over the top as they should be in a satire).

Perhaps this story is a better fit for someone more familiar with the reality TV show genre.

I received an ARC through NetGalley.