The Golden Spoon by Jessa Maxwell
My rating: 4 of 5 stars
I’ll admit to being a little bemused by The Golden Spoon in the beginning of the book. I went into this expecting a Cozy Mystery set against the backdrop of a baking competition, and while I got the baking competition and I got the cozy vibes, where was the mystery?
Where was the murder?
We get introduced to the contestants and the hosts. We learn a bit about the beautiful property hosting the competition. Over time, a bit of a historical mystery is revealed, a possible murder. I thought, is this it?
Nevertheless, even without me noticing it at first, Maxwell did something great here. She pulled me in with her character work and setting alone. It didn’t even take long. By 20% in, I was hooked with these characters. I was intrigued.
The cooking competition itself is quite reminiscent of The Great British Bake Off. If you’re a fan of that show, as I am, there is no way you are going to read this and not picture everything about that show in your head.
In fact, the two judges of the competition in this book are basically Mary Berry and Paul Hollywood.
The biggest difference is the setting is a stately property, Grafton Manor, in Vermont versus the UK. The competition itself does take place in a tent though, so hurrah!
I loved the competition aspect and getting all the perspectives of the contestants was so much fun. Learning their motivations and insecurities as they set about their bakes each day made it easy to get to know them.
I also really enjoyed some of the relationships that developed among the contestants. Being thrown into the competition, it would make sense for them to bond a bit over their shared circumstances.
Of course there will always be some drama too, it’s not all sunshine and rainbows. It’s a competition after all, but I did appreciate some of the special friendships that were formed.
Particularly lovely to me was the odd couple of Lottie and Pradyumna. Lottie, the oldest contestant, and Pradyumna, a younger tech millionaire, a real playboy, the two of them together, oh my word, they made me so happy.
As far as the show went, everything that could possibly go wrong pretty much did. The competition itself is only 5-days, but man, they packed a lot in. Early into the competition, it’s clear there may be a saboteur in their midst, but who and why?
Overall, I had a lot of fun with this. It doesn’t follow your standard Cozy Mystery format, but in spite of that, the vibes are there and the cast of characters is fantastic.
I loved that this slow burn paid off with building intensity and a satisfying conclusion in the end. I’m not sure if we will ever see these characters again, but I certainly hope so. Maybe we’ll even get a fresh season of competition.
Thank you so much to the publisher, Atria Books, for providing me with a copy to read and review.
I’m really looking forward to reading more from Jessa Maxwell in the future!