Sprinkles and a Situation by Emmie Lyn

Sprinkles and a Situation is the first book in Emmie Lyn‘s Dogs and Donuts Cozy Mystery series.

Ellie Hart has lost her job and her boyfriend of many years has broken up with her. Not knowing what’s next for her, Ellie drives back to her sister’s place in her almost junk Honda. Her two elder sisters Carrie and Abby are waiting for her at the doorstep. They have a plan for their younger sister. The owner of a local inn needs a dog walker. The job comes with a fully furnished apartment and 24-stay-on-the-estate. The owner’s grandson is Harry, Ellie’s school-time crush. When Ellie reaches the place with her dog Marley, she’s greeted by Sprinkles (the dog), Harry and Minnie(the owner). After an informal interview, Ellie is hired for the job and moves into the apartment. After freshening up, she decides to walk around the estate. But her plans come to a halt when she finds the gardener stabbed to death behind the rose bushes.

This year, I have been on a quest to find my next favorite cozy series. This also means giving a few new series a read. Sprinkles and a Situation was released in April this year and I decided to give it a try instead of pushing it onto my TBR list.

The story begins on a good note but falls flat a chapter or two later. Ellie’s sisters are bossy, dominating and a tad manipulative. There also seemed to be some confusion between names – Richard and Harry – as the story began. I had a hard time remembering if Richard is Ellie’s ex or Harry – there comes a scene (when Harry shows Ellie her apartment) where Harry is misnamed as Richard. Like – Richard opened the garage door (it was supposed to Harry) and Ellie followed him, blah blah. Richard, the ex, is a manager at the Inn but is currently on a break from work. I wish the author had corrected this mis-match-whatchamacallit.

Coming to the character portrayal, the ladies – Carrie, Abby and Minnie – are too bossy and dominating for my taste. Ellie too joins the group and together they boss over Harry’s crime-solving techniques. Not to forget, Harry and the victim had a history. Richard (the ex) is hesitant to come back to the Inn for reasons unknown. Overall, I found almost all the characters annoying and brimming with attitude. Some of their doings were childish and silly.

Red herrings are plenty and the ending is good. But the annoying characters and their attitudes ruined the read for me. Seeing all the good ratings on Goodreads, I thought I would enjoy reading Sprinkles and a Situation but looks like I am in the minority here.

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