Honey Drop Dead (A Tea Shop Mystery) by Laura Childs | Book Review

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Honey Drop Dead (A Tea Shop Mystery)

by Laura Childs

Honey Drop Dead (A Tea Shop Mystery)
Cozy Mystery
25th in Series
Setting – South Carolina
Berkley (August 8, 2023)
Hardcover ‏ : ‎ 320 pages

The murder of a political bigwig at a Honey Bee Tea sends Theodosia Browning buzzing for answers in this latest installment of the New York Times bestselling series.

Theodosia’s Honey Bee Tea was an elegant affair set in Charleston’s new Petigru Park amid newly planted native grasses and a community beekeeping project. But when a phony beekeeper shows up and sprays toxic smoke at the guests, the party erupts in chaos. Worse yet, a shot rings out and Osgood Claxton III, candidate for state legislature, falls to the ground—dead.

Holly Burns, the gallery owner who asked Theodosia to cater the tea, is understandably heartbroken. A man is dead, her guests are angry and injured, and the paintings that were on display are left in tatters. When the police don’t seem to have a clue, when old-line politicos don’t want questions asked, Holly begs Theodosia to run a shadow investigation and help restore her gallery’s good name.

Between hosting a Wind in the Willows Tea and a Glam Girl Tea, Theodosia questions everyone that had a bone to pick with Claxton. This includes Booker, an angry outsider artist; Lamar Lucket, Claxton’s political opponent; and Mignon Merriweather, the dead man’s soon-to-be ex-wife. But the investigation becomes a political hot potato following a second murder, the revelation of a messy affair, a chase through a swamp, and a vandalized shop.

INCLUDES DELICIOUS RECIPES AND TEA TIME TIPS!

My review of Honey Drop Dead

Honey Drop Dead is the 25th (!) book in the charming Tea Shop Mystery series by Laura Childs. Though I’ve not read them all, I’ve read several and have enjoyed each one. You can easily read each book as a standalone.

Honey Drop Dead begins with another themed tea party. Holly Burns, owner of a local art gallery, knows Theodosia’s tea parties are fabulous, so she asks her to cater the affair. The theme, Honey Bee Tea, embodies the park in which it is set. This new park holds community bee hives, so no one thinks it unusual when a beekeeper begins smoking the hives. However, instead of smoking the bees, the beekeeper sends toxic fumes into the tea party and shoots Osgood Claxton III, one of the candidates for South Carolina’s state legislature. When artists begin pulling their work from the gallery and buyers start backing out of purchases, Holly asks Theodosia for help.

Even though Theodosia knows the police don’t want her involved, Theo starts asking questions which start getting her into trouble once again! Drayton, Theodosia’s tea sommelier and good friend, gets roped into helping her with her investigation, if only to try and keep her safe. I’d have to say Drayton, with his dry wit and way with tea, is my favorite character. I love Theodosia and Holly, the 20 something chef/baker at the tea shop, too, but Drayton’s voice of reason (though he always caves in) makes for some fun scenes. Miss Wimple, who helps out with the larger teas, is delightful.

As I’ve said in the past, I love the Charleston setting. It makes me want to tour the city, especially the historical area. I’d love to see the beautiful old houses and find a tea shop to pretend I’m at Theodosia’s.

The plot is well-paced, and the mystery is very puzzling! So many people couldn’t stand the victim, so there are a lot of suspects who all had the opportunity to either kill him themselves or hire someone to do it. I did fall for a couple of red herrings but eventually landed on the right criminal. These past couple of books, I’ve felt that Theodosia’s relationship with Riley, a police detective, has become stagnant. I think she should feel she can share her investigation freely with him by this time. Though I’m sure she’d still put herself into dangerous situations, talking to Riley about her suspicions would be natural. I enjoy watching relationships develop in cozy mystery books and many involve a law officer and the main character.

I think that cozy mystery lovers will enjoy Honey Drop Dead as well as the other Tea Shop Mystery books! If you like puzzling mysteries with an eclectic cast of characters and lots of suspects, you’ll be highly entertained reading Honey Drop Dead! I definitely recommend it!

I voluntarily reviewed a complimentary copy of this book. All views expressed are only my honest opinion.

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.

Laura’s Links:   Website –  Facebook 

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

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Honey Drop Dead TOUR PARTICIPANTS

August 8 – Baroness Book Trove – REVIEW

August 8 – The Avid Reader – REVIEW

August 9 – Escape With Dollycas Into A Good Book – REVIEW

August 9 – Christy’s Cozy Corners – REVIEW

August 10 – The Mystery of Writing – SPOTLIGHT

August 10 – The Plain-Spoken Pen – REVIEW

August 11 – Hearts & Scribbles – SPOTLIGHT

August 11 – The Book Diva’s Reads – AUTHOR GUEST POST  

August 12 – Maureen’s Musings – SPOTLIGHT

August 12 – FUONLYKNEW – SPOTLIGHT

August 13 – #BRVL Book Review Virginia Lee – SPOTLIGHT

August 13 – Cassidy’s Bookshelves – SPOTLIGHT

August 14 – Brooke Blogs – SPOTLIGHT

August 14 – Guatemala Paula Loves to Read – SPOTLIGHT

August 15 – Ascroft, eh? – AUTHOR GUEST POST

August 15 – Diane Reviews Books – REVIEW

August 16 – Angel’s Guilty Pleasures – SPOTLIGHT

August 16 – Novels Alive – REVIEW

August 16 – Ruff Drafts – SPOTLIGHT

August 17 – Socrates Book Reviews – SPOTLIGHT

August 17 – Literary Gold – SPOTLIGHT

August 18 – Cozy Up With Kathy – REVIEW

August 18 – MJB Reviewers – SPOTLIGHT

August 19 – Sapphyria’s Book Reviews – SPOTLIGHT

August 20 – The Mystery Section – SPOTLIGHT

August 21 – My Reading Journeys – SPOTLIGHT  

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