Death by Cheesecake by Rachel Ekstrom Courage Narrator: Yvonne Newman
Series: Golden Girls Cozy Mystery #1
Published by Audible Studios on April 15, 2025
Source: Purchased
Genres: Cozy Mystery
Length: 7 hrs 52 mins
Pages: 332
Format: Audiobook
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When Dorothy’s obnoxious date is found dead in a hotel freezer, it not only ruins a gorgeous cheesecake but threatens the elaborate St. Olaf–themed wedding Rose is hosting.
Things are heating up, and not just because of Blanche’s hot flashes. Rose’s cousin is eloping to Miami, and Rose is playing host. If she can't balance the groom’s family’s snobbery against the traditional St. Olaf wedding week guidelines, her hometown may never accept her cousin again!
Dorothy quickly realizes she needs a date with whom she can exchange wedding-related wisecracks. Turning to a newfangled VHS dating service, she believes she’s found the ideal conversationalist. Unfortunately, what looks good on TV can actually be a total jerk in real life. It seems she’ll just have to enjoy the company of Sophia, Blanche, and whomever Blanche has targeted for a hookup.
As the Girls all pitch in, Rose is thrilled that the tea-and-fish-themed kickoff event is perfect, not a herring out of place. That is until Dorothy’s date is found dead—face-planted in an otherwise scrumptious-looking cheesecake. With every guest a suspect (especially Dorothy) and a marriage on the line, the four besties must ID the real killer, get the should-be-happy couple down the aisle, and make sure nobody from St. Olaf gets lost in the wilds of Miami. It’s up to the Golden Girls to sleuth out a way for friendship and love to win the day!
I remember watching the Golden Girls back in the ’80s and ’90s when I was in high school and have caught reruns occasionally since then. It’s not one of my favorite tv shows necessarily, but it’s fun and the actresses are fabulous. So, of course I had to pick up Murder by Cheesecake for the nostalgia alone. In this first of the series, Dorothy goes on a very awkward first date with a guy. She doesn’t plan on seeing him again. At the same time, Rose’s niece is getting married in Miami instead of St. Olaf, and in the midst of the pre-wedding festivities, a dead man is found in the freezer – Dorothy’s date, which makes her a prime suspect. The four women have to solve the murder to clear Dorothy’s name while also helping Rose with the wedding.
The book is set in the 1980s and I felt like the author was true to both the tv and the time period. I’m not sure how well it would work if you’ve never seen the tv show, but the author nailed the clothes and personalities. There were some genuinely funny moments too. And that’s why I’ll pick up the second when it comes out. Or maybe a copy of this one. I’m going to the Pittsburgh Book Fest this weekend and the author’s going to be there.
I wish we had less wedding and more mystery solving, though. Rose’s St. Olaf stories were always funny, but here the schtick just ran too long. I got tired of the ridiculous traditions. A little is fun, a lot is just overkill. We’re so focused on the wedding that the clues and suspects don’t get the attention they need for it to be satisfying, and in turn it feels like the mystery is wrapped up too quickly right at the end. Hopefully the next is a little more balanced.
About Rachel Ekstrom Courage
Rachel Ekstrom Courage is a New York Times, USA Today, and American Booksellers Association bestselling author and literary agent. She lives in Pittsburgh, PA with her husband (the children’s book author Nick Courage) and their family.
Reading this book contributed to these challenges:
At first I thought it was an odd gimmick to try recapturing the Golden Girls but then I thought about the Thursday Murder Club and Tess Gerritsen’s Martini Club and others, and I understood, even though I wish the industry was more original.
I never watched the series but I did like Betty White from the Mary Tyler Moore show. For a while she and her husband lived near my grandparents in Chappaqua, NY.
I haven’t read the Martini Club books, but I do think it’s nice to have older main characters. So many cozy mysteries feature women in the 20s and 30s.