Review of "Murder With Orange Pekoe Tea: A Daisy's Tea Garden Mystery" by Karen Rose Smith

In this 7th book in the 'Daisy's Tea Garden Mystery' series, tearoom owner/amateur sleuth Daisy Swanson investigates the murder of a lawyer. The book works fine as a standalone.



*****

When she was left a widow with two teenage daughters, Daisy Swanson moved from Florida to her hometown of Willow Creek in the Amish region of Pennsylvania. There Daisy and her Aunt Iris run 'Daisy's Tea Garden', a charming eatery that serves soup, salad, sandwiches, pastries, and tea.



Daisy's older daughter Vi is now married with a baby.....



.....and Daisy's younger daughter Jazzi is getting ready for college.



Daisy's romantic life had some ups and downs but she's now in a serious relationship with Jonas Groft, a former police detective who now makes custom wood furniture.



As the story opens, the Willow Creek Town Council is holding a fundraiser for a proposed homeless shelter. Daisy and Aunt Iris provide the refreshments, including orange pekoe tea, snickerdoodles, chocolate espresso cookies, various flavors of whoopie pies, and more.






Whoopie Pies

The fund-raising event is going well until a group of protestors in inhalation masks show up, shouting "No homeless shelter in Willow Creek, No homeless shelter in Willow Creek" again and again.



The police round up the protestors, most of whom go quietly. However the protest leader Eli Lapp - who grew up in the Amish community but left as a teenager - is uncooperative. Eli refuses to take off his mask.....



......and insists on being represented by his lawyer, Hiram Hershberger, who isn't thrilled about the protest.



As it happens Hershberger is also the attorney for the Hope Clinic, a fertility center that accidently destroyed its frozen eggs and embryos, dashing the hopes of many would-be parents. The devastated patients are talking about suing the clinic - which refuses to return their money - and are furious with Hershberger for being on the wrong side.

Hershberger is soon found dead, and the main suspects are Eli Lapp, who was known to clash with Hiram on occasion.....



..... and Piper and Emory - a couple whose embryos had been destroyed by the fertility clinic.



Emory had argued with Hershberger at the fundraiser, and the clash was caught on camera and shown on the news.

Daisy knows the prime suspects because Eli works at Jonas's woodworking shop and she'd spoken to Piper and Emory about adoption, since she'd adopted a daughter herself. Daisy fears one of these acquaintances might be wrongly arrested for Hiram's murder, and she involves herself in the investigation.

Daisy garners clues both by overhearing conversations at Daisy's Tea Garden and by speaking with community members, who trust Daisy more than they do the cops.



Daisy shares her investigative findings with Detective Morris Rappaport, but not always in a timely manner.....thus putting herself at risk from the killer.



Meanwhile, in Daisy's private life, she visits with her daughter Vi, son-in-law Foster, and grandson Sammy; helps Jazzi's friend Brielle deal with family issues; counsels members of the Mommy Group who suffered losses at the fertility clinic; plans a July 4th bash at Daisy's Tea Garden; helps her boyfriend Jonas adopt a dog; and more.

;

The plot doesn't make complete sense, since the clinic would surely have insurance and settle with the affected parents. Nevertheless, this is an entertaining cozy with likable recurring characters.

Recipes in the book include corn chowder, crunchy slaw, and chocolate espresso cookies.


Corn Chowder


Crunchy Slaw


Chocolate Espresso Cookies

Thanks to Netgalley, Karen Rose Smith, and Kensington Books for a copy of the book.

Rating: 3 stars