The eleventh book in Ellie Alexander’s Bakeshop Mystery series takes readers back in time to solve an open murder. Chef and bakeshop owner Juliet is getting settled into her childhood home, which her mother and stepfather turned over to her after their recent wedding. Juliet happens upon a dusty journal stuck behind some boxes in the basement. When she opens it, Juliet recognizes her father’s handwriting. Both eager and hesitant, Julie is soon flooded with memories of a beloved father who passed away when she was a teenager. She reads only one page before she realizes that her father was involved with a case of unsolved murder when she herself was a small child. Together with her stepfather–her father’s best friend and the town’s well-loved detective–Juliet walks in her father’s footsteps to finally solve the “Pastry Case.” But a murderer unmasked after thirty years won’t be taken in without a fight.

As a long-time fan of both the author and the series, I found Nothing Bundt Trouble to be another engaging installment. What sets this story apart in my mind, aside from being sheathed in my favorite color!, is the opportunity to meet Juliet’s father. He is often referenced and remembered by Juliet and her mother, but this step back in time to hear the details of a mystery in his voice was revealing and memorable. A confirmation of what many characters have often said: Juliet is truly her father’s daughter.