Title: Concession Stand Crimes (Ballpark Mysteries #2)
Author: Nicole Asselin
Published on: 29 June 2022
Genre: Cozy Mystery
Concession Stand Crimes is the second book in Nicole Asselin’s Ballpark Mystery series.
Madeline Boucher is still reeling from her first few weeks of working for her family’s Independent League Baseball Team, the Abington Armadillos. Her
parents have given her more responsibility in running ballpark events in the hopes that they could retire and leave the team in her hands. Her brother is moving on to the big leagues, so this is her time to shine. Her first task? Deal with a concession stand kerfuffle. Redmond Brewery heiress, Alaska Redmond, storms her way into the ballpark making demands.
The next day, the son of the concession’s manager finds Redmond’s body in one of the beer stands along the ballpark concourse. Again, Madeline finds herself immersed in an investigation. While the suspects start piling up, including a promising young player on the team, Madeline knows she must get involved. With the help of Davis, her new love interest and head of the security department, she delves deeper into the death of the heiress.
What a fantastic cozy mystery! This is the first sports-themed cozy mystery series I came across and I absolutely loved it. I am not a sports lover so excuse me when I say I don’t follow any. But that didn’t stop me from reading this book… that’s what counts at the end, right? 🙂
The story begins with just another day in Madeline’s life. Well, the last murder case and Madeline’s kidnapping might have left her a bit scared and hyper attentive at times, but that’s to be expected after a traumatic experience, isn’t it?
Alaska, the heiress of a local brewery storms into the office and makes demands. When her demands go unanswered, she storms out of the office, knocking down Madeline in the process. (Madeline was not in the office when Alaska came in.) Alaska behaves rudely with Madeline (she doesn’t know Madeline is the owner of the ballpark) and walks away without apologizing. The next day, Alaska is found dead in a concession stand.
Madeline does not want to interfere in another murder case. This is the second dead body she’s stumbled across in the past couple of months. That’s not good! Nope!
Madeline finds herself investigating… this time out of sheer curiosity, ahem. 😉 The list of suspects is long, after all Alaska Redmond was a spoilt brat. One of the team players seems to have made it to the list…
One side story which piqued my curiosity was Madeline’s visit to a tarot reader in Salem. I really loved this inclusion – and at the end, I suppose it did help Madeline in solving the case. We also have a dash of romance to seal the deal.
Owning a ballpark is no easy job. Press releases – especially after an incident at the venue, fans, players, publicity and much more – keep Madeline busy. But she handles it well… and also manages to solve crimes. Isn’t this an indication of a good amateur sleuth?
I loved the storytelling and the characters. Friendly banter between Madeline and Eliza added a dash of quirk to the mystery. Speaking of mystery, the reason for murder was shocking and unexpected. The same goes for identity of the killer.
Concession Stand Crimes by Nicole Asselin is an engrossing and entertaining cozy mystery. Highly recommended!
The Book Decoder 
I haven’t read a sports-themed cozy. This does sound interesting. Madeline will have to do a lot of damage control to save her ballpark’s reputation after all the murders 😂
Haha, true dat! She has some more damage control to do in book #2. 😉