Welcome to my stop on the Great Escapes Virtual Book Tour for Antiques and Adversity in the Azores (A Treasured Journey Mystery) by Victoria Tait. Stop by each blog on the tour for interviews, guest posts, spotlights, reviews and more!
Antiques and Adversity in the Azores (A Treasured Journey Mystery) by Victoria Tait
Antiques and Adversity in the Azores (A Treasured Journey Mystery)
Cozy Mystery
1st in Series
Setting – Azores, Portugal
Publisher : Kanga Press (March 14, 2025)
Number of Pages c. 240
Beneath a tranquil island’s charm, a deadly mystery emerges from the lake. Can an amateur sleuth uncover the truths hidden within decades of tradition before the past claims another victim?
Troubled antiques expert, Georgina Carey, is reeling from the loss of her husband, her job, and her self-assurance. When she’s offered a commission to value the estate of a deceased Portuguese collector in the Azores—wherever that is—she reluctantly accepts.
A lakeside house nestled in the lush greenery of São Miguel Island seems like the perfect retreat to confront her past and prepare for her future. But her tranquillity is shattered when a body is found floating in the lake, echoing a mysterious death from over 30 years ago.
Despite her best intentions to focus solely on the commission, Georgina finds herself drawn into the secrets of the local town as residents unexpectedly confide in her. As she pieces together their stories, she starts to wonder if the deaths were as accidental as they seemed or if something more unsettling is at play.
Can Georgina stay on task, find an heir to the estate, and uncover the truth behind two mysterious deaths on this beguiling island in the Atlantic?
If you enjoy enchanting locations, small-town mysteries, and an intelligent sleuth grappling with self-doubt as she finds the strength to reshape her future, then you’ll love Victoria Tait’s Antiques and Adversity in the Azores, the captivating first book in The Treasured Journey Mystery series.”
Traditions, secrets, and a deadly mystery. Buy Antiques and Adversity in the Azores today!
My review of Antiques and Adversity in the Azores
Antiques and Adversity in the Azores is the first book in the new A Treasured Journey Mystery series by Victoria Tait. This series stars Georgina Carey who, if you’ve read any of the Dotty Sayers series, you already know. That is, you know the “old” version of her.
If you’re just starting out and don’t know her, this is the perfect place to start. Georgina recently lost her philandering, crook of a husband. He may have been awful, but she’s still grieving the life she once had. When a friend and fellow antiques expert tells her of a job evaluating a recently deceased man’s estate on Sao Miguel Island, she decides to go. After all, she needs a place to get away from the gossip surrounding her deceased husband, and a beautiful island escape is just what she needs.
As with every Victoria Tait book I’ve read, I loved Antiques and Adversity in the Azores! Tait describes the island with such detail that you’ll want to book a flight to Sao Miguel. I certainly do! I could almost smell the flowers, and I could picture how colorful the lakeside setting and town must be.
Tait not only describes detailed settings, she also brings her characters to life with her descriptive writing. A wide variety of characters populate Sao Miguel. They’re easy to keep track of because Tait gives them each such a unique personality. Of course, Georgina is the character in the spotlight. She undergoes such a transformation in this book. She arrives with so much grief and anger to process, and being on the island allows her to do this. I really loved watching this change take place in her.
I loved all of the different secrets that Georgina comes across while evaluating the estate and being around the town’s characters. There are a lot of clues, and you’ll enjoy seeing how Georgina puts them all together to solve the mysteries.
I highly recommend Antiques and Adversity in the Azores for its beautiful island setting, wide variety of characters, and multiple mysteries! 5 HUGE stars!
I voluntarily reviewed a complimentary copy of this book. All views expressed are only my honest opinion.
Author Guest Post: My Visit to São Miguel
I visited São Miguel, the largest of the Azorean islands, in October 2024. Like my main character, Georgina, I needed some time away to reset, think, and recover after leaving my husband and enduring some very difficult years in our marriage. But at least my husband hadn’t been murdered!
As I was also writing, I chose to stay at Quinta do Bom Despacho, a historic manor house located above Ponta Delgada, the Azorean capital. With its many rooms, extensive grounds, and natural pool, it is the perfect location for a coliving/coworking retreat during the quieter winter months.
And so, I and four other digital nomads—from Portugal, France, Italy, and Austria—took up residence, working during the day (and sometimes into the evening) and spending our free time exploring the island’s breathtaking landscapes.
One of my most memorable experiences was visiting the thermal baths in Furnas, where I soaked in the warm, iron-rich waters surrounded by lush greenery. The atmosphere is especially magical in the rain or at night when the pools are softly lit.
Another naturally heated pool is Ponta da Ferraria, on the western edge of the island. Here hot volcanic water mixes with the cool Atlantic as waves crash in through the ocean entrance. In the pool, there is a camaraderie amongst the bathers as they cling to a rope, hoping they don’t get washed onto the black rocks by a particularly strong wave. It was both a fun and exhilarating experience.
São Miguel is made up of six volcanic complexes, containing over 270 volcanic cones and lava domes, creating green hills, high volcanic rims, and deep crater lakes.
Our self-appointed Italian tour guide took us around the western edge of the island on a particularly clear day. From the roof of an abandoned hotel, we looked down over lakes and craters to the Atlantic Ocean. Beyond that, there was nothing but sea until North America.
The hotel itself was eerie, with carpet tiles and other building materials still inside. I could picture how it must have looked in its prime when it was one of the most luxurious in Europe. But the cloud base on the island is often low, and for much of the year, the breathtaking view was shrouded in mist, which eventually led to its closure.
From the hotel’s rooftop, we gazed at Sete Cidades, a massive volcanic crater that contains two stunning lakes. One is considered blue, while the other is green, and they merge beneath a narrow stone bridge.
Another character in my book, Beatriz, tells Georgina a local legend about the formation of the lakes. A tale of a princess and a shepherd boy whose love was forbidden:
“The two met one last time in secret and cried so much that their tears created the twin lakes. The princess’s tears made the green lake, as her eyes were green, and the shepherd boy’s tears made the blue lake, reflecting his blue eyes.”
Being an island, São Miguel has an abundance of coastline. While many small rocky coves dot the shore, there are also beautiful black volcanic sand beaches, like the stunning Santa Bárbara Beach. Situated on the northern side of the island, visitors swim, surf, or, like us, simply enjoy the pleasant evening sun, even in October. Looking out to sea, we could have sailed straight to Greenland, Iceland, or back to the UK.
Ten kilometres to the south, I sat on another beach, looking out at the open sea, with nothing but water stretching all the way to Antarctica. Apart from whales, although we only spotted dolphins on sea trip.
Fresh fish is abundant in the Azores, but the dish I found most intriguing was lapas. These are limpets, arranged upside down in heavy black metal pans, then grilled and drizzled with garlic butter. Slightly chewier than mussels, they were still delicious.
I am incredibly grateful for my time on São Miguel, and I’m delighted to share my experience through Georgina’s story. I hope you also enjoy tasting the food, smelling the flowers, and experiencing the traditions of this volcanic island in Antiques and Adversity in the Azores.
About Victoria Tait
Victoria Tait was born and raised in Yorkshire, England, where she developed a lifelong love of tea and British traditions. Inspired by the works of Agatha Christie, Dorothy L. Sayers, and Murder, She Wrote, she writes cozy mysteries infused with her signature British charm.
Her determined and hard-working female sleuths are joined by colourful but realistic teams of helpers, and her settings are vivid and evocative. With intrigue, surprises, and gentle humour, Victoria’s page-turning stories are the perfect blend of mystery and charm—best enjoyed with a cup of tea and a slice of cake.
Read the FREE prequel to her Dotty Sayers Antique Mystery series at her website.
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Author Links
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Purchase Link
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Antiques and Adversities in the Azores TOUR PARTICIPANTS
March 15 – Jody’s Bookish Haven – SPOTLIGHT
March 15 – Cassidy’s Bookshelves – REVIEW
March 16 – FUONLYKNEW – SPOTLIGHT
March 16 – Elizabeth McKenna – Author – SPOTLIGHT
March 17 – Books, Ramblings, and Tea – SPOTLIGHT
March 17 – Maureen’s Musings – SPOTLIGHT
March 18 – Christy’s Cozy Corners – REVIEW, AUTHOR GUEST POST
March 18 – Escape With Dollycas Into A Good Book – REVIEW
March 19 – Storybook Lady – REVIEW
March 19 – Ruff Drafts – RECIPE
March 20 – Socrates Book Reviews – SPOTLIGHT
March 20 – Frugal Freelancer – CHARACTER GUEST POST
March 21 – Wine Cellar Library – AUTHOR INTERVIEW
March 22 – Boys’ Mom Reads! – REVIEW
March 23 – Sapphyria’s Book Reviews – REVIEW
March 24 – Reading Is My SuperPower – REVIEW
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