As a tea drinker, the title of this mystery “Death by Tea” caught my attention. It turned out to be the second in a series of books but I was able to pick up the story line fairly easily and enjoy the book on its own. After finishing this book, I did go back to purchase the previous book in the series so I could catch up on the back story and be prepared for the next book in the series once it is published.
Krissy is a young woman who has opened a coffee shop/book store in the fairly small town of Pine Hills. After the events of the first murder mystery, apparently Krissy is finally being accepted by the townsfolk and they are beginning to come to her store for coffee, books, and company. There is an upcoming book club competition between rival towns and it is decided that the event will be held at Krissy’s shop. The rivalry between the two towns is fairly ferocious and when a murder occurs, it appears to have something to do with the even.
As a character, Krissy is pretty much a mix for me. I like her but then she does some fairly dumb things that make me want to shake her. Her cat reminds me of a cat that we had a number of years ago except that I was the only target and the rest of my family were her slaves. I enjoyed those portions of the book considerably.
As a mystery, I enjoyed the book and will certainly look for the future books in the series. I hope that the author tightens up Krissy’s character, gives her a little more of a backbone and a dash or two of common sense.
I received a digital ARC copy of this book from the publisher, Kensington , via Netgalley.
