Book Review and Giveaway - A Scoop of Deceit (Coffee & Cream Café Mysteries) by Lena Gregory

My Review

On a pretty Spring day, Danika Delaney spends time with her mother at the local garden center.  They are enjoying their time - until a loud, unpleasant visitor to town named Sebastian Krane backs into their car.  He later files a lawsuit ... and then he turns up dead.  Dani works to solve the mystery and clear her mother's name, helped by her friends Gwen and Eli.

I wanted to read A Scoop of Deceit because I love cozy mysteries and enjoy this series.  I've read it since the first book and always look forward to the next installment.

This is one of my favorite books in the series.  It's fast paced, in terms of both action and dialogue.  We get to see Dani interact with her friends, Gwen and Eli, her mother, her extended family, her boyfriend Jake, and her ex-boyfriend who is a local firefighter.

As always the Coffee & Cream Cafe, a little ice cream and coffee place on Long Island, is lots of fun.  (Even though descriptions of the desserts always make me hungry!)

The mystery aspect of this book is well done, with several plausible suspects.  I enjoy following along with Dani's detecting.

I recommend A Scoop of Deceit, and this enjoyable series, for other cozy mystery fans.

Book Synopsis

From author Lena Gregory comes another decadently delightful cozy mystery …

Spring has finally sprung on the south shore of eastern Long Island, New York, and Danika Delaney is ready to take a break from running her old-fashioned malt shop, the Coffee & Cream Café, to help her mom start planting for the season. With visions of colorful tulips and delicate daffodils in mind, Danika and her mother browse through the local garden center, where they can’t help but notice a confrontation between out-of-towner Sebastian Krane and the local cashier. Unfortunately, as Krane storms off, aggravated and not paying attention, he hops into his BMW, and crashes right into Mrs. Delaney as she’s backing up in her borrowed pickup truck. As if that weren’t enough to put a damper on her sunny mood, Krane then has the nerve to file a lawsuit against her. But when Dani shows up at his mansion to try to straighten things out, she finds him dead, with a knife in his back. Apparently, someone had it out for Sebastian. Someone other than her mother. A fact Dani sets out to prove with the help of her sidekicks, Gwen and Eli, wading through a slew of shady suspects from the victim’s stormy past. Can Dani clear her mother’s name and find the truth behind Krane’s murder? Or will Dani be in danger of pushing up daisies herself this spring?

Author Bio

Lena Gregory is the author of the Bay Island Psychic Mysteries, which take place on a small island between the north and south forks of Long Island, New York, the All-Day Breakfast Café Mysteries, which are set on the outskirts of Florida’s Ocala National Forest, the Mini-Meadows Mysteries, set in a community of tiny homes in Central Florida, and the Coffee & Cream Café Mysteries, which take place in a small town on the south shore of eastern Long Island, New York.

Lena grew up in a small town on the south shore of eastern Long Island, but she recently traded in cold, damp, gray winters for the warmth and sunshine of central Florida, where she now lives with her husband, three kids, son-in-law, and four dogs. Her hobbies include spending time with family, reading, and walking. Her love for writing developed when her youngest son was born and didn’t sleep through the night. She works full time as a writer and a freelance editor and is a member of Sisters in Crime.

Author Links

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Purchase Links

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Giveaway

Book Review and Giveaway - Death at a Firefly Tea (A Tea Shop Mystery) by Laura Childs

My Review

Theodosia Browning is hosting an evening tea when one of the guests, Mrs. Van Cortland, dies suddenly.  Later it is revealed that she ingested drugs.  Theodosia begins quietly investigating what happened, and finds herself overwhelmed with potential suspects - and at jeopardy herself after someone throws a flash bang at Theo and her dog, Earl Grey, when they are out for an evening run.  Things escalate and her friend and tea sommelier Drayton is also in danger.

I wanted to read Death at a Firefly Tea because I love this series of books.  I was late to the series but jumped in mid-way and now I try to read them all as they are published.  I love the Charleston setting, the details about tea (and tea sets, china, etc.), and the character of Theo.

This was an especially fast paced entry in the series.  There are a number of suspects and the unexpected danger level also seems unusually high.  These elements made the mystery even more fun to read!

As always, I loved the details about the teas that Theo hosts, like the Queen Victoria Tea and a Moulin Rouge Tea.  I love the tea shop setting too, of course!

I recommend this book - and the series - for other cozy mystery readers, and especially for anyone who loves Charleston, Southern settings, and tea!

Book Synopsis

A brazen killer sparks Theodosia Browning’s sense of justice in this latest installment of the New York Times bestselling series.

As fireflies dazzle like tiny glowing lanterns, tea maven Theodosia hosts an elegant evening tea on the patio of the Tangled Rose B and B. But in this gentle darkness an intruder has made their way in and slipped deadly drugs into the baked Alaska of Mrs. Van Courtland, one of Charleston’s local grande dames. Shocked by this brazen act, urged on by Mrs. V’s grieving son, Theodosia begins her own shadow investigation. Soon, she finds herself at odds with a greedy developer, the questionable residents of Honey Badger House, a vengeful ex-daughter-in-law, ne’er do well relatives, and a housekeeper who knows all the secrets.

As Theodosia hosts a Moulin Rouge Tea and a Queen Victoria Tea, her tea sommelier Drayton is assaulted by a masked stranger and the fiancé of Mrs. V’s son is kidnapped. It’s only at the Starry Starry Night black tie ball that Theodosia stumbles upon the killer and gets pulled into a dramatic life and death chase.

Author Bio

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 takes 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.

Laura’s Links:   Website –  Facebook 

Purchase Links – Amazon – B&N – Kobo – Bookshop.org – PenquinRandomHouse 

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