"The best-laid plans may go awry, but the best-laid clues could frame a man for murder. Never one to let a day off work go to waste, café owner Gia Morelli and a friend head out for a blissful kayaking trip through the local national forest. But the peacefulness of the day is soon shattered when they come across Cole, her head cook, standing over a dead body. Worse still, the victim was a lifelong enemy of Cole’s, and clues found on the body point to the cook as the culprit. When the police take Cole in and subject him to an intense grilling, Gia vows to do everything she can to prove his innocence."
This is an awesome mystery. Would she figure out who did the deed?
I received a complimentary copy of this book from the publisher and NetGalley. This in no way affects my opinion of this book.

Battered and Buried is the 7th book in the All-Day Breakfast Cafe Mystery series and it is as enjoyable as the other six books! I would have rated it higher if I could. This was a new author for me so I decided to read the first book to get the background. I loved it so much I read all seven books in a row. I loved every one of them! This is one of the best series I have read in a while. The characters are fantastic! The relationships are realistic and heartwarming. The cozy mysteries kept me guessing and there is humor, family, friendship, and some (clean) romance. What's not to love? Gia Morelli owns All-Day Breakfast Cafe and her employees are also good friends, especially her best friend Savannah. The mischief and situations Gia and Savannah get into adds humor and a.little suspense. Gia's fiance is Police Captain Hunter (Hunt) Quinn who is also Savannah's favorite cousin. Savannah 's new husband Leo is Hunt's partner. It is fun when the four of them get together but usually there are other friends around too. Gia and her friend Trevor are out kayaking and they find their friend Cole standing over the dead body of a mean guy from Cole's past. Gia, Savannah and friends.all work together to clear Cole. The book has a good pace and the action starts quickly. There is enough going on to keep the book interesting and it was hard to put down. On top of the murder, Gia and Hunt are engaged and there are a few references but it plays a very small part. I guess we have to wait for the next book. There are some new characters as well as all of the regulars which makes this series so wonderful! The friendships with a little humor thrown in really makes this a 5-star series! #BatteredAndBuried #AllDayBreakfastCafeMystery #NetGalley. #BeyondThePage

Another diverting mystery from Lena Gregory in the Breakfast All Day Cafe series. After a disagreeable man disrupts the morning in Gis's cafe, he is found dead within 24 hours. Regrettably, her friend and chef, Cole, is implicated and won't talk about it. Gia's friends, and members of her unofficial investigating team, rally to the cause to keep Cole from being framed. Along the way we learn some of the perils of living next to the Ocala National Forest. Thoroughly enjoyed this fast paced mystery. When there were many plausible suspects, I keyed in on the villain a little too early although it didn't diminish my enjoyment of the story and the characters.

I am on a cozy mystery reading kick lately and this is Book #7 in the All Day Breakfast series - and the first I have read. It was a good cozy mystery. Though I did guess the suspect early on in the book, it was a solid storyline. I liked the characters and the red herrings sprinkled throughout. It kept me entertained until the killer was finally revealed. I am looking forward to reading the previous six books.

Thank you to NetGalley for the ARC.

I like this series, and I also like that Gia stands up so staunchly for her employee and friend, Cole. But in this book, I think the killer is pretty obvious from fairly early on, so that definitely lessens my enjoyment of this particular title.

Review copy provided by the publisher via Netgalley in exchange for an honest review.

“Battered and Buried” is the seventh book in Lena Gregory’s All Day Breakfast cozy mystery series. While I have not read the other books in the series (something I have to rectify) – I quickly came to like the characters (especially café owner Gia and her friend Savannah) and the setting – not only the café but the surroundings including the forest which plays an important role in this book. The mystery is a good one – Gia and a friend come across a dead body and a close friend/coworker is the chief suspect and Gia wants to clear his name and find the real killer. There are indeed plenty of suspects in this mystery and I loved reading as Gia and her friends sorted out the clues to try and figure out who the killer was. About halfway through the book I pretty much figured out who the killer was but not why so I wasn’t quite sure until the end of the book when the killer was revealed – this was nicely done with just the right amount of suspense. All in all I really enjoyed reading this book and will go back and read the other books in the series to see what I have missed.

I received a copy of this book from NetGalley.

A Cozy mystery that’s mouthwatering good! Gia Morelli, the protagonist, has trouble on her hands when a super rude man arrives in Florida to open a competing all-day cafe and says he’ll shut her down! Unfortunately, her Chef has a past with this person and when the man is murdered, Cole is Suspect #1.

Author Gregory sets a lively pace and starts dropping clues to the killer early on in the story. Readers will be entertained throughout the book. One of the best parts is re-visiting the cast of characters we know and love—Gia and her pets, Thor and Klondike; her fiancé, Sgt. Detective Hunter Quinn; best friend, Savannah and her hubby, Detective Leo Dumont; the loyal Cafe staff; and other good friends of Gia. Alfie, the hacker, provides some levity. This is a wonderful series which I highly recommend.

I honestly reviewed an unedited digital arc provided by NetGalley and Beyond The Page Publishing. All opinions are my own.

I have not read any other books by this author or others in this series before and I liked it. We followed diner owner Gia and her friends as they try to solve the murder of a one of her employee’s nemesis from back in the day. I did guess the murderer but not the why but it was enjoyable read. I have added this Érica to my back log. I also liked that there was a list of characters as an index. I really wish all books would do this! I didn’t have to search the book then when I forgot who a character was for their intro so I could remind myself who they were. I have been under the weather this weekend so this was a good book to listen to as I rested trying to feel better. Thank you NetGalley for this ARC in exchange for my honest opinion.

I am a Cole fan from way back, so I was excited to see the focus on him in Battered and Buried, the 7th book in the All-Day Breakfast Cafe Mystery series. Very Cole-like, he is reluctant to share much with his friends which makes it harder for them to look into the murder for which he is a person of interest, but he isn't as resistant as I would expect. Lena Gregory has created a wonderful group of friends who are more than willing to stand up for one another no matter how the situation looks. They are a fun bunch to spend time with, even Hunter who enjoys his role as a wet-blanket when he has time to spend with them since his position as a police officer doesn't allow him to share information. As always, the investigation is complex and while I did look at the killer, I looked at everyone. Clues were fairly laid out, but the red herrings abound, and I followed them like a hungry cat. I like the fact that, although the group considered many possibilities, they stayed aware that they were only theories and did not lock in on each one.
Thank you to NetGalley and Beyond the Page Publishing for allowing me to read and review the ARC of Battered and Buried, a wonderful new release in An All-Day Breakfast Cafe Mystery series by Lena Gregory. This book is one of my favorites so far of the series. I will enjoy sharing the fun with my friends and followers.

#NetGalley #BatteredandBurried #BeyondthePagePublishing #LenaGregory #AnAll-DayCafeMystery

It was delightful to once again spend time with these characters. A clever cozy mystery. Lots of potential wrong doers. Dogs and a cat add to the charm. Thanks to the publisher for providing a copy via NetGalley. My review is voluntary.

I liked the mix of characters and the various relationships and dynamics that exist and evolve throughout the story. There are though quite a few couples and I did find it useful to keep a note of who was who. The setting in an All-Day Breakfast Cafe provides a nice central location for the characters to meet.

The story developed at a good pace and kept my interest. On occasions I felt it was a little unrealistic and at one point it appeared that the local police department had unlimited resources to provide one to one protection of a large number of people. There were also a couple of unexplained inconsistencies, such as two characters appear on the other side of the river and then quickly arrive at the murder scene with no explanation of how they could have got there.

The story started off with lots of potential however, I felt disappointed with the ending and the very weak motive for the murder. Also the solution was presented by the culprit obliging confessing all in what I thought was an unconvincing scenario.

"The best-laid plans may go awry, but the best-laid clues could frame a man for murder . . . Never one to let a day off work go to waste, café owner Gia Morelli and a friend head out for a blissful kayaking trip through the local national forest. Till they find her head cook, standing over a dead body. The victim was a lifelong enemy of Cole’s, and clues found on the body point to the cook as the culprit. When the police take Cole in and subject him to an intense grilling, Gia vows to do everything she can to prove his innocence. Gia knows she’s up against someone brutal enough to kill and devious enough to frame Cole for the deed. With the police ready to make an official arrest and wrap up what they consider an open-and-shut case, Gia turns for help to an old friend who’s not above breaking the law himself. Because if she can’t find the killer, Cole may go from serving up hot dishes to serving a life sentence . . ."

Thought it would be "cozier" haha. Still it was kind of satisfying. Full of small town vibes, friendship and justice.

BATTERED AND BURIED is the seventh book in the All-Day Breakfast Café Mysteries by Lena Gregory. I was so happy to see this series continue and it was fun catching up with Gia, the owner of the breakfast café and her group of friends. I especially loved how close they are and when Cole, her head cook, is accused of murder, they all band together to prove his innocence. Ms. Gregory’s strong descriptive voice brings each scene and the Florida setting to life, with some humor thrown in about NYC transplant Gia’s aversion to creepy crawly Florida critters, which I can relate to. The victim was a mean-spirited man, and it wasn’t a surprised when he finally met his demise. With so many people hating him, there were enough suspects to keep the reader guessing. The plot was well-paced and kept my attention throughout as it led to an edge-of-your-seat reveal. If you haven’t read any in this series before, this can be read as a standalone, but you’ll want to go back and catch up with these delightful characters!

"Battered and Buried (An All-Day Breakfast Café Mystery #7)" by Lena Gregory is able to be read fairly standalone. I feel like the right parts that were needed from past books were filled in without being overdone and the mystery didn't require past book info.

That being said, there were a lot of characters and some with names a bit too close to each other or backgrounds a bit too close together. I kept confusing Caleb and Cole because of their names. Then I would confuse Brynleigh and Ariyah because they both were mistresses of the same man but one kept getting brought up while the other maybe should've been more. Maybe could've done with just one of them.

Mystery wise, there were several good suspects. I, personally, have one in mind the whole time just because. Call it a gut feeling after having read hundreds of cozy mysteries. I was right but was totally going, "well if not them, then...," the whole time too.

Gia loves her new life in a small town and her All-Day Breakfast Cafe. Everything is great until a loud, rude customer berates the food, the service, and her cook. Gia finds out the man is opening a diner in direct competition to her. He routinely ruins a business while opening his own, then runs his own business down and files bankruptcy. Before any of that can happen, Gia’s friend and cook discover a body in the swamp and soon her cook is the main suspect. Because the dead man was universally disliked, there is no shortage of suspects for Gia to investigate with her friends.
This is a good cozy mystery with warm friendships and lots of red herrings to keep you guessing.
Thanks to NetGalley and Beyond the Page Publishing for the ARC.

I'm not sure how I've missed this series until now, especially since the idea of an All-Day Breakfast Cafe sounds like a place I'd love in real life. In any case, I'm glad I finally found this series. I have to admit to being a bit taken aback by Gia's rather aggressive questioning but admired the way her whole network of friends stuck together and had each other's backs. As investigators, they obviously bring different strengths to the table, including some master online snooping skills, and it's great to see the togetherness. They're an interesting group with back stories I'm looking forward to catching up on as time permits. In this case, Cole, chef at Gia's cafe, is a prime suspect in a murder where several members of the group stumbled on the victim while hiking. I mean, we go from still relative newbie to Florida Gia agonizing over the proximity to gators and snakes to finding a body. Yikes.

I won't detail the plot other than to say there are many suspects since the victim was guilty of destroying so many lives. You'll dislike him from the very beginning, I'm sure. As for the other characters, well, aside from the eventual killer, you'll find the cast of characters (which the author provides a list of with a brief description at the beginning) quite likable and marvel at how organized they are as they work together to figure out whodunit. Gia and Savannah are definitely a force to be reckoned with, playing good/bad cop together well, maybe having taken a few hints from their romantic partners, Hunt and Leo. No one seriously believe Cole could have killed anyone, even if his stubborn reluctance to talk to investigators leaves all frustrated. We've even got some romance brewing, so lots going on and past occasionally meets present in this story.

And, hey, love Thor, Gia's huge Bermese mountain dog. Gia felt very human to me, even to the point of momentarily forgetting all she'd been taught about self-protection at one point, which seems a very real life reaction. Nope, not sharing any more details. You'll just have to read the book and, I'm betting that, just like me, you may find yourself hooked and on the look out for past episodes. Thanks #NetGalley and #BeyondThePagePublishing for introducing me to this series with this sneak peek. I'll definitely be playing catch-up and on the look out for the next installment. Fun read.

4.5 stars
This is a fun, entertaining, captivating story. Gia and all her friends are interesting, intriguing, relatable, quirky, fun, entertaining characters. I enjoyed both the human and animal characters and what they brought to the story. I loved how the mystery played out and the fact that all the characters helped solve the crime. The story is easy to read and get into.

I voluntarily read and reviewed an advanced copy of this book. All thoughts and opinions are my own.

#BatteredandBuried #NetGalley is a wonderful addition to this series by Lena Gregory.
Gia and Savannah make a great team, and I was not prepared for how much I was going to love this story.
Cole is the chef for Gia's all day breakfast cafe, and when he becomes the prime suspect in a murder investigation, Gia and Savannah do whatever is necessary to prove his innocence.
The victim is a childhood friend of Cole's, but there's no love lost between them. Rusty, the victim is a weasel, a cheat, and just downright mean, so even though not many people are upset by his death, the suspect list is long.
Gia knows Cole wouldn't hurt a fly, but his refusal to provide information throws suspicion on him.
I couldn't put this book down, it grabbed my attention from the beginning and kept me guessing until the big reveal, which was very unexpected.
This is a fun cozy mystery with strong characters who will make you laugh and cry.
I'm excited to recommend this book to other readers.
Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for selecting me to read an advanced copy of the book.