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I am happy to share my thoughts today about A Cyclist’s Guide to Poppies & Predicaments!
A Cyclist’s Guide to Poppies & Predicaments (A Cyclist's Guide Mystery)
International Cozy Mystery
3rd in Series
Setting - France
Publisher : Kensington Cozies
Publication date : June 30, 2026
Print length : 352 pages
Hardcover
ISBN-10 : 1496745744
ISBN-13 : 978-1496745743
Kindle
ISBN-13 : 978-1496745767
ASIN : B0FV5DXBXZ
Audiobook
ASIN B0GV5CZGYY
Springtime in Provence brings flower-filled meadow, sun-drenched coastlines—and a bachelorette cycling tour that guide Sadie Green hopes to pull off without a hitch. However, the ride takes a deadly detour when a killer crashes the party in USA Today bestselling author Ann Clair’s latest mystery for armchair travelers and Francophiles!
Sadie Greene has broken her streak—her crime streak, that is. For months, her bicycle tours through France have been blissfully uneventful, marred only by the occasional punctured tire or crushed croissant. Thus, when Sadie takes on a last-minute booking for a bridal party, she expects love, laughter, and champagne toasts. But more than pre-wedding jitters come along for the ride.
A bossy bride, rowdy party games, and a tagalong stranger threaten to turn Sadie’s carefully planned itinerary into a tour de farce. She can shift gears to keep the bride happy, but she can’t please everyone. A road-rager targets the group. So does a killer. To add to Sadie’s horror, the murder victim is found wearing the bride’s tiara.
While the police dig into the victim’s past, Sadie suspects a deadly case of mistaken identity. Fearing the real target may still be on her tour, Sadie once again says “I do” to a murder investigation. As her suspect list spins out of control, Sadie uncovers secrets and motives that could shatter the bridal party. Love, life, and liberty are on the line as Sadie races to unmask a killer before the wedding turns into a wake.
Dollycas's Thoughts
We are back in France with Sadie Greene, hosting a bachelorette cycling tour while her beau, Laurent, is leading the bachelors on their own cycling adventure. The last few months of her bike tours have gone smoothly, with just the usual bike tour issues: No dead bodies. So she was looking forward to a fun tour with a bridal party filled with laughter, love, and endless selfies to remember all the beautiful places they visited.
What she gets is a bridezilla, Clemintine, her domineering best friend, Suzanne, her younger sister, Ivy, who wants to be anywhere other than France, her friend from college, Asha, who has very little biking experience, and Zellie, who won't be joining the daily excursions. Her job is to sew thousands of seed beads to Clem's wedding veil. They are joined by Jade, whom they meet during a rainstorm stop along the road. Sadie had a wonderfully planned itinerary, but Clem, Suzanne, and soon Jade, think it is only an idea. They have no problem changing Sadie's plans on a whim. Added to the chaos, a guy in a van, filled with road rage, following them everywhere.
Then, Sadie's dead body problem returns. One of her group is found dead, wearing the bride’s tiara. When a clear identification is made, the police delve into the victim's past and connections. Sadie realizes the deceased may not have been the true target and that she may be traveling with a killer, putting her right in the middle of another murder investigation.
Can she survive another investigation? Will she catch the killer? Or will the wedding be called off to make room for a funeral?
____
I couldn't wait to get my hands on this book. Ms. Claire's detailed descriptions take her readers on delightful virtual French vacations. We are in the South of France, with the Provencal sun warming our cheeks, on our bikes "rolling through an impressionist painting come to life, a moving landscape of colors, textures, and ethereal light." That is just the first few minutes. She even makes us feel the rain falling, jump when a creature is found, bike steep hills, crave the food and the wine, and more.
This time, Sadie's bridal party group was almost too much. You can only recite "the customer is always right" so many times. Laurent wasn't having a good time with the guys either. With Nadiya's boyfriend, Jordi, away for the week, Sadie's mentors and the former owners of Oui Cycles are driving the Support and Gear (SAG) van. Usually, it's just Nadiya there to help her muddle through any issues. It was nice to have Bea and Bernard along to offer their advice on some of the craziness.
Ms Claire does an excellent job at keeping each new character unique and likable or unlikable as the predicament requires. The bridal party runs the gamut of status, and some interactions become pretty volatile. Clem was more interested in shopping and clubbing, with biking taking a backseat. Suzanne had a bag of crazy game ideas. Sadie didn't want to be a "downer," and the girlfriends, for the most part, seemed on board. Asha is married with children at home, so she would have liked to avoid the foolishness. It took a lot for Clem's sister Ivy to make the trip. She had to pay her own way, buy an "ugly" dress, and burn her vacation days at work. We didn't get to meet many of the groomsmen, but the groom, Luc Bastide, didn't show his best side.
The author penned a mystery with many twists and turns. I enjoyed the way Laurent passed on what information her could to Sadie, and that when he was able, he was by her side. By the end of the tours, all the guests were ready for the trip to end, as was the neighbor next to the villa where the girls were staying. Sadie followed clues and pieced together the puzzling mystery. Then, with the help of others, brought everyone together for the big reveal. I loved it!
A Cyclist’s Guide to Poppies & Predicaments is an extraordinary addition to this series. The cycling tour theme, the idyllic destinations with cultural details, the well-crafted characters, snippets of humor, and a top-notch mystery all come together for a very captivating story. I can't forget the poppies. I would love to look out at the poppy fields every day for a week!
I will be anxiously awaiting my next virtual vacay with Sadie and Oui Cycles!
I voluntarily reviewed an Advance Reader Copy. This does not affect my opinion of the book or the content of my review. Thank you to Kensington Cozies and NetGalley for providing me with an ARC.
Your Escape Into A Good Book Travel Agent
About the Author
Ann Claire is the USA Today bestselling author of the Cyclist’s Guide Mysteries and the Christie Bookshop Mysteries, as well as the Bookmobile Mystery Series and the Santa Fe Café Mystery Series written under the pseudonyms Nora Page and Ann Myers. She lives with her French husband in Colorado, but regularly travels to visit family in Southern France. A member of Sisters in Crime and the Pikes Peak Writers, she can be found on Instagram @AnnClaireAuthor or @AnnClaireMysteries on Facebook.
Find all of Ann's Books HERE.
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