The Indigo Tea Shop Serves Mystery One Cup at a Time

...from the publisher...
Tea maven Theodosia Browning and her tea sommelier Drayton Conneley are guests at a bird hunt styled in the precise manner of an English shooting party. Which means elevenses (sloe gin fizzes), gun loaders, the drawing of pegs, fine looking bird dogs, and shooting costumes of tweed,
herringbone, and suede.

But as gunshots explode like a riff of Black Cat firecrackers, another shot sounds too close for comfort to Theodosia and Drayton. Intrigued but worried, Theodosia wanders into the neighbor's lavender field where she discovers their host, Reginald Doyle, bleeding to death.

His wife, Meredith, is beside herself with grief and begs Theodosia and Drayton to stay the night. But Theodosia awakens at 2:00A.M. to find smoke in her room and the house on fire. As the fire department screams in and the investigating sheriff returns, Meredith again pleads with Theodosia for help.

As Theodosia investigates, fingers are pointed, secrets are uncovered, Reginald's daughter-in-law goes missing presumed drowned, and Meredith is determined to find answers via a séance. All the while Theodosia worries if she's made a mistake in inviting a prime suspect to her upscale Lavender Lady Tea.


...my thoughts...
A good mystery is delicious, especially if it is served at the Indigo Tea Shop.  Set in historic Charleston, South Carolina, the Lavender Blue Murder is elegance right alongside of murder. Theodosia Browning and her faithful tea expert Drayton Conneley are two wonderful characters who run a not so quiet tea shop where one can count on good tea, delicious food and of course savory characters. When crime strikes, the tea shop is the place to be all who want to be in the know.

I enjoyed this book because the plot kept me thinking from the moment Theodosia heard a gunshot while attending a shooting party on an old country plantation.  The plot got thicker as things went from murder to arson to kidnapping.  Were they connected or random acts?  In the end, the solution seemed easy but took me on some winding roads to get there.  For a fun mystery and good recipes, look no further!

Broken Bone China by Laura Childs

...from the publisher...

It is Sunday afternoon, and Theodosia and Drayton are catering a formal tea at a hot-air balloon rally. The view aloft is not only stunning, they are also surrounded by a dozen other colorful hot-air balloons. But as the sky turns gray and the clouds start to boil up, a strange object zooms out of nowhere. It is a drone, and it appears to be buzzing around the balloons, checking them out.

As Theodosia and Drayton watch, the drone, hovering like some angry, mechanized insect, deliberately crashes into the balloon next to them. An enormous, fiery explosion erupts, and everyone watches in horror as the balloon plummets to the earth, killing all three of its passengers.

Sirens scream, first responders arrive, and Theodosia is interviewed by the police. During the interview she learns that one of the downed occupants was Don Kingsley, the CEO of a local software company, SyncSoft. Not only do the police suspect Kingsley as the primary target, they learn that he possessed a rare Revolutionary War Union Jack flag that several people were rabidly bidding on.

Intrigued, Theodosia begins her own investigation. Was it the CEO's soon-to-be ex-wife, who is restoring an enormous mansion at no expense? The CEO's personal assistant, who also functioned as curator of his prized collection of Americana? Two rival antiques' dealers known for dirty dealing? Or was the killer the fiancée of one of Theodosia's dear friends, who turns out to be an employee—and whistle-blower—at SyncSoft?

 ...my thoughts...

Theodosia and Drayton are at it again! I never know where I will find these two. What started out as a pleasant hot air balloon ride ends tragically as the balloon next to them is hit by a rogue drone.  Broken Bone China by Laura Childs is book twenty in the Tea Shop Mystery Series and it is a good one.  There are a lot of things going on this story and it seems like one thing just keeps going on after another to where there are more than one suspects being juggled in the air.  It is a complex plot that took some twists and turns with some bad weather in the mix.

Drayton never fails to disappoint with all his wit and wisdom.  He is a font of historical knowledge and there is good information for people who enjoy American history as I do.  Laura Childs' research is impeccable from her knowledge of tea, to southern culture, fabulous recipes, history, and of course, the sleuthing.  I always look forward to her next book because they are so enjoyable, especially with a cup of tea.

Reviewing: Plum Tea Crazy (A Tea Shop Mystery) by Laura Childs

Another Hit for Laura Childs and another delicious 

Tea Shop mystery for her fans!

About the Book...

While viewing the harbor's Gaslights and Galleons Parade from the widow's walk of Timothy Neville's Charleston mansion, local banker Carson Lanier seemingly tumbles over a narrow railing, then plunges three stories to his death. But a tragic accident becomes something much more sinister when it's discovered that the victim was first shot with a bolt from a crossbow. 

At the request of the mansion owner, Theodosia investigates the tragedy and is soon neck deep in suspects. An almost ex-wife, a coworker, a real estate partner--all had motives for killing the luckless banker, but one resorted to murder to settle accounts.

My Thoughts....
New York Times best selling author Laura Childs delivers, once again in this cozy tea shop mystery.  She has a lively cast of characters all laid out like the fine china in Theodosia's lovely tea shop.  

Time and again the real killer leads us on a chase through dark alleys and dilapidated old neighborhoods.  I was intrigued by the red herrings that stole the limelight for a while until each lead ran to nowhere.  The glamorous persona of the ladies of the story  sharply contrasts to their behavior when confronted with ugly truth and suspicions about the deceased.  The victim's soon-to-be ex-wife seemed a likely suspect but so did his purported paramour. Then there was the shady developer...the list just went on and on until finally the pieces fit together like the perennial puzzle. It took me a while to solve this one and for that, I applaud the author.  

I have read several of the Tea Shop Mystery books, each one a creative story that provokes one to put on the teakettle, grab a tasty morsel and settle in for an afternoon of fun.  The tea pairings offered by Drayton lends such an air of class to the charming menus, yet contrasts with the danger lurking just outside the confines of the door.  The variety of characters in this story takes away any doubt that a tea shop is just for garden club members or those tourists seeking a bit of distraction before the tour bus loads up for the next stop.  This book is for the reader who enjoys a cozy mystery with the added bonus of tasty recipes the author included.