A Dark and Stormy Tea by Laura Childs

Item: A Dark and Stormy Tea
Rating: 5
Author: karenbaron

Posted August 13, 2022 by karenbaron in #BookishRecipe, #SpringReadsWithTheBaroness, Blog Tour, Contest - Giveaway, Mystery, Review, Series / 1 Comment

I voluntarily reviewed an Advance Reader Copy from Great Escapes Book Tours. This does not affect my opinion of the book or the content of my review.

A Dark and Stormy Tea

by Laura Childs

Series: Tea Shop Mystery #24
Series Rating:

Published by Berkley on August 9, 2022
Genres: Cozy Culinary Paranormal Mystery
Pages: 320
Format: Kindle
Source: Great Escapes Book Tours
Goodreads
Get Your Copy at: Barnes & Noble, Kobo, IndieBound
Also in this series: Haunted Hibiscus, Lemon Curd Killer, Honey Drop Dead, Murder in the Tea Leaves

A possible serial killer on the loose sends tea maven Theodosia Browning into a whirlwind of investigation in this latest installment of the New York Times bestselling series.

It was a dark and stormy night, but that was the least of Theodosia Browning's troubles. As she approaches St. Philips Graveyard, Theodosia sees two figures locked in a strange embrace. Wiping rain from her eyes, Theodosia realizes she has just witnessed a brutal murder and sees a dark-hooded figure slip away into the fog.
In the throes of alerting police, Theodosia recognizes the victim--it is the daughter of her friend, Lois, who owns the Antiquarian Bookshop next door to her own Indigo Tea Shop.

Even though this appears to be the work of a serial killer who is stalking the back alleys of Charleston, Lois begs Theodosia for help. Against the advice of her boyfriend, Detective Pete Riley, and the sage words of Drayton, her tea sommelier, amateur-sleuth Theodosia launches her own shadow investigation. And quickly discovers that suspects abound with the dead girl's boyfriend, nefarious real estate developer, private-security man, bumbling reporter, and her own neighbor who is writing a true-crime book and searching for a big ending.

INCLUDES DELICIOUS RECIPES AND TEA TIME TIPS!

A Dark and Stormy Tea by Laura Childs will make you want to snuggle under a nice blanket with a pot of tea and a mug so you can keep it filled up.

Can Theodosia figure out who this Fogheel Jack really is?

Theodosia Browning

Theodosia Browning, aka Theo, is the owner of The Indigo Tea Shop and the girlfriend of Detective Pete Riley. It’s been raining in Charleston, South Carolina, and poor Theo found the second victim of a new string of killings. She decided to look at the cold cases from the first two killings from seven years ago, but it wasn’t leading anywhere. I love Theo as she is an awesome character that is really trying for her friends and herself to figure out the killer. Theo is someone I wouldn’t mind being friends with in real life.

The Indigo Tea Shop

Theodosia’s friends and employees are Drayton Conneley, and Haley. Drayton Conneley is their resident tea maker extraordinaire. Some of the combinations he comes up with make me want to drink them. While some of them I’m not sure about as I am not a big fan of green tea, but I could warm up to the idea if Drayton would make one for me. Haley is the chef of the trio, and her food sounds so great. Look out, I might have to convince my mom to let me make some of these recipes one day.

The Mystery

Theodosia Browning was taking a shortcut back to her tea shop, to fill in Drayton Conneley on what they needed to do for a tea event that they were asked to cater, and she accidentally stumbled upon a murder happening. The victim happens to be a friend of Theo’s so she was enlisted to solve the mystery. Theo doesn’t take this lightly, as she’s not only doing it for her friend but for her own piece of mind. Especially since she wants to be comfortable in her town of Charleston again. I so totally fell for a red herring I thought it was another guy as my mind didn’t think to look anywhere else as he seemed perfect.

Five Stars

A Dark and Stormy Tea by Laura Childs is a great read on any day. The whole time I was reading this book, I was trying to figure out who killed the victim, but I also wanted to eat the food Haley was preparing. It all sounded so yummy.

Speaking of that, don’t forget to look at the back of the book for those recipes and how to host your own tea party with tips from the author herself! The recipes include English Tea Biscuits, Crab Rolls with Aioli, Haley’s Cioppino, Super Simple Banana Cake, Smoked Salmon Tea Sandwiches, Killer Cranberry Scones, Cinnamon Coffee Cake, Drayton’s Drunken Chicken, Carrot Bread, Blueberry Scones, Mango-Tomato Salsa on Crostini, Baked Salmon with Lemon Sauce, Favorite English Pea Salad, and Crunchy English Toffee.

I am giving A Dark and Stormy Tea by Laura Childs five stars and recommending it to everyone. Trust me, with this book series, you don’t have to have read the first few books to get what is happening.

A Tea Shop Mystery Series

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Thank you for dropping by! What do you think of A Dark and Stormy Tea by Laura Childs?

Until the next time,

Happy Reading!

About Laura Childs

Laura Childs is the New York Times bestselling author of the Tea Shop Mysteries, Scrapbook Mysteries, and Cackleberry Club Mysteries. In her previous life she was CEO/Creative Director of her own marketing firm and authored several screenplays. She is married to a professor of Chinese art history, loves to travel, rides horses, enjoys fundraising for various non-profits, and has two Chinese Shar-Pei dogs.

Laura specializes in cozy mysteries that have the pace of a thriller (a thrillzy!) Her three series are:

The Tea Shop Mysteries – set in the historic district of Charleston and featuring Theodosia Browning, owner of the Indigo Tea Shop. Theodosia is a savvy entrepreneur, and pet mom to service dog Earl Grey. She’s also an intelligent, focused amateur sleuth who doesn’t rely on coincidences or inept police work to solve crimes. This charming series is highly atmospheric and rife with the history and mystery that is Charleston.

The Scrapbooking Mysteries – a slightly edgier series that take place in New Orleans. The main character, Carmela, owns Memory Mine scrapbooking shop in the French Quarter and is forever getting into trouble with her friend, Ava, who owns the Juju Voodoo shop. New Orleans’ spooky above-ground cemeteries, jazz clubs, bayous, and Mardi Gras madness make their presence known here!

The Cackleberry Club Mysteries – set in Kindred, a fictional town in the Midwest. In a rehabbed Spur station, Suzanne, Toni, and Petra, three semi-desperate, forty-plus women have launched the Cackleberry Club. Eggs are the morning specialty here and this cozy cafe even offers a book nook and yarn shop. Business is good but murder could lead to the cafe’s undoing! This series offers recipes, knitting, cake decorating, and a dash of spirituality.

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