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    In Peppermint Peril: A Book Tea Shop Mystery
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    In Peppermint Peril: A Book Tea Shop Mystery
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    In Peppermint Peril: A Book Tea Shop Mystery
    Audiobook7 hours

    In Peppermint Peril: A Book Tea Shop Mystery

    Written by Joy Avon

    Narrated by Laurel Lefkow

    3.5/5

    ()

    Currently unavailable

    Currently unavailable

    About this audiobook

    This Christmas, Callie Aspen returns to her childhood hideout Heart's Harbor, Maine where her great aunt runs Book Tea, a vintage tearoom where every sweet treat contains a bookish clue. Upon arrival in the fairy-tale snowy town, Callie is drawn into the preparations for a special tea party at Haywood Hall, the rambling house of Heart's Harbor's oldest resident, rich but lonely widow Dorothea Finster, who invited her estranged relatives, old friends and the elite of the town to make a mysterious announcement about her will.

    Believing they can touch a part of her fortune, everybody is determined to come, despite not liking each other or even their hostess. And Callie's old friend Sheila complicates things by using the tea party to announce her daughter's engagement, even though her daughter isn't sure she's in love with the young lawyer her mother thinks so perfect for her. Catering to people who each have their own agenda isn't easy for the Book Tea crew, especially once the valuable engagement ring goes missing and a dead body turns up in the conservatory.

    Can Callie and her great aunt use their love of clues to dig into the crimes and show their unhappy hostess and squabbling guests the true Christmas spirit?

    LanguageEnglish
    PublisherDreamscape Media Audio
    Release dateAug 5, 2019
    ISBN9781974975099
    Unavailable
    In Peppermint Peril: A Book Tea Shop Mystery
    Author

    Joy Avon

    Joy Avon is a writer and a lover of books, tea, and sweet treats. She decided to combine her loves into a cozy mystery series and delved into the world of writing novels. When not reading or writing, she can be found buying bonbons, fluffy socks, or notebooks to jot down her next idea.

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    Reviews for In Peppermint Peril

    3.5/5

    43 ratings12 reviews

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    • 3/5
      In Peppermint Peril is the first in the A Tea and Read Mystery series by Joy Avon. Unfortunately, it felt more like a second or third book, where you are already supposed to know the characters and have an idea of their backstory. I actually had to check to make sure this was actually the first book because there wasn't much introduction to the main character before we jumped right into the story. Callie Aspen is home for the holidays for the first time in a very long time. She's helping her aunt with her tea shop, Book Tea, when they go to the big manor house, Haywood Hall, in the little town of Heart's Harbor, Maine, for a book themed tea party, which is interrupted by a murder. Callie hasn't been home in many years, but apparently she decides she's the best one to investigate this murder, even though there was absolutely no reason for her to do so. I had so many questions with this book. Unfortunately, I didn't really like any of the characters, so I didn't feel any connection to them. The writing wasn't the problem, I just didn't care for the story. For this reason, I won't be continuing with this series. I'm a huge fan of cozy mysteries, but this one just wasn't for me.2.5/5 stars.*** I would like to thank NetGalley, Crooked Lane Books, and Joy Avon for the opportunity to read and review this book.
    • 5/5
      Could not stop listening. Enjoyed every second of this lovely story.
    • 4/5
      Don't let the candy cane fool you, although it takes place around the holidays, it looks like this series will be easily read year round. Callie's aunt runs a book themed tea shop and is providing the goodies for a party at the opulent Haywood Hall in Heart's Harbor, Maine. Callie loved the place as a child, playing there with local friends until she stopped coming to visit her great aunt Iphy and school and life intervened. She runs right into those old friends as she arrives at the hall to set up for the party. The reading of a new will is interrupted by the discovery of a body and things twist and turn to a pretty exciting end. I look forward to reading more in this new series.
    • 4/5
      This Christmas, Callie Aspen returns to her childhood home in Heart's Harbor, Maine where her great-aunt runs Book Tea, a vintage tearoom where every sweet treat contains a bookish clue. Upon arrival in the fairy-tale snowy town, Callie is drawn into the preparations for a special tea party at Haywood Hall, the rambling house of Heart's Harbor's oldest resident, rich but lonely widow Dorothea Finster. Dorothea has invited her estranged relatives, old friends and the elite of the town to make a mysterious announcement about her will.

      Everybody is determined to attend, despite not liking each other or even their hostess. Callie's old friend Sheila complicates things by using the tea party to announce her daughter's engagement. But her daughter isn't sure she's in love with the young lawyer her mother thinks is perfect for her.

      Catering to people who each have their agenda isn't easy for the Book Tea crew, especially once a valuable engagement ring goes missing and a dead body turns up in the conservatory. Can Callie and her great aunt use their love of clues to dig into the crimes and show their unhappy hostess and squabbling guests the true Christmas spirit?

      --

      Series: A Tea and a Read Mystery - Book 1
      Author: Joy Avon
      Genre: Cozy/Tea/career Mystery
      Publisher: Crooked Lane

      In the debut novel for "A Tea and a Read Mystery" series, Joy Avon has managed to delight and entertain, with characters that are well written, fun and truly human. This first book, In Peppermint Peril, has quarks, red herrings, laugh out loud moments, and real emotion. The writing is fluid, with transitions as smooth as glass. There is little in this book that readers will have trouble understanding, and it will leave them wanting more.

      Callie is a busy traveler who is determined to go back to her regular life just as soon as the holidays are over, but life has a way of getting in the way. Seeing her hometown, and being with the people she loves has made her long to plant roots and stick around but, she is trying to convince herself that she is happy with her life and there is no need to change it. But circumstance, a new pet, and a possible love interest puts a wrench in her Christmas departure plans.

      Secondary characters are likable, even when they are trying not to be. Readers will fall in love with Callie’s Aunt, Iphy. The setting of Heart's Harbor, Maine, although fictitious, makes readers want to take a sightseeing trip. It is quaint with hints of a life that is simple and old-fashioned. The tea house setting is the perfect backdrop for this story, with the love of a good mystery book, the tea house plays on the reader's sense of times gone by and adds a yearning for holidays the way they used to be.

      The murder victim starts as a happy memory for Callie, someone she always looked up to in her youth. At first, she is very upset by the death but soon comes to realize that not everyone she knew when she was young is what they seemed to be at the time. The clues to the killer’s identity are all there but are not easily revealed, and other problems crop up along the way. Readers will love the fact that they have no idea who the killer is until the very last pages.

      This debut book, In Peppermint Peril has lots of twists and turns, plenty of drama, but it also has compassion and love. This author and the series will continue to evolve as new books are added, and it will be fun to see what becomes of these wonderful characters and what kind of trouble Callie can get into. I highly recommend this book.
    • 3/5
      Callie Aspen comes back to Heart’s Harbor, Maine for the holidays planning to help her Great Aunt Iphy with her tearoom, Book Tea. Aunt Iphy sends her to Haywood Hall for a special tea being hosted by the owner, Dorothea Finster where she will be reading her will to family members as well as town officials. Her Nephew's wife has other ideas in mind and before either can be realized, an old caretaker is found murdered in the conservatory. Feeling that she needs to help her old friends, Callie starts asking questions which sends trouble her way not just from the police but the killer too.I liked the story and the characters. I kept thinking I was playing CLUE - Mr. Brown in the Conservatory with the knife. And I couldn't figure out where the title came from.
    • 4/5
      This debut cozy shows some promise, starting with an interesting twist on "the reading of the will" Although it started slowly, for me, Callie Aspen, a tour guide home for a visit who is helping out at her great aunt's tea room, soon won me over and, the farther I read, the more I liked it. A nice, pleasant Christmas-themed cozy.While not the best debut I've read, it was actually pretty good and I think I'll be looking forward to further books in this series. I would recommend this one to those who like cozies.(I received a copy of this book from the publisher, via Net Galley, in exchange for a fair and honest review.)
    • 3/5
      In Peppermint Peril by Joy Avon is the first A Tea and Read Mystery. Calliope “Callie” Aspen has returned to Heart’s Harbor, Maine to help her Great Aunt Iphy with her tearoom, Book Tea. Iphy incorporates mystery books into her pastry decorations and hosts book themed events. Callie is carting the supplies to Haywood Hall for the tea party being hosted by Dorothea Finster, the town’s oldest resident, a week before Christmas. Callie has fond memories of playing at Haywood Hall as a child plus she vividly remembers the crush she had on Stephen, one of Dorothea’s relatives. Dorothea has invited various relatives and friends to hear an announcement regarding her will. Sheila Du Bouvrais, Stephen’s wife, has her own agenda for the event and insists that Callie hide an heirloom engagement ring in the cake. She is trying to force Ben Matthews, a lawyer, into proposing to her daughter Amber, despite Amber’s lack of interest. When the ring box is removed from the cake and opened, they find the empty. A scream then rings out from the conservatory where Amber has stumbled upon Mr. Leadenby, the gardener and storyteller, stabbed to death. Deputy Falk is in charge of the case since the sheriff is out of town for the holidays. Callie and Iphy join forces to solve this knotty conundrum before Santa slides into town on his sleigh.In Peppermint Peril we are taken to the small town of Heart’s Harbor, Maine where Callie grew up. After Stephen broke her heart by marrying her childhood friend, Sheila, Callie took a job as a tour guide. Callie has traveled around the world with Travel the Past, but it left her little time to visit home or have a personal life. Callie is quickly confronted by her past when Iphy’s latest catering gig takes her to Haywood Hall. Haywood Hall is a special place to Callie. When I started In Peppermint Peril, I felt like I was dumped down the rabbit hole like Alice. It felt like I started in the middle of the book instead of the beginning. Readers barely get a chance to know Callie and Iphy, when a hoard of other characters are introduced. Callie’s dog, Daisy is an adorable addition to the story. Iphy is lovely woman with a delightful tea shop with mystery book themed pastries. She hides clues on her cakes for the guests to solve. I enjoyed the references to the older mystery novels. Iphy’s creations sounded beautiful and delectable. The mystery was multi-faceted with pointed clues and multiple suspects. Unfortunately, I easily identified the killer early in the story. The why is revealed as the story progresses. The one thing I did not like is Callie jumping to conclusions which led to exasperating situations. She spends a significant amount of time thinking and speculating about the case. Her investigation technique is unique. In Peppermint Peril has steady pacing along with the author’s casual writing style which made the story easy to read. Unfortunately, the book lacked depth. There are details missing on the main characters and the town. The ending felt incomplete. I believe the author was trying to start the series with a BANG, but it fell flat. I am giving In Peppermint Peril 3 out of 5 stars. The series has potential, and I hope the author is more successful in her next A Tea and Read Mystery.
    • 5/5
      This was a great story. I loved the concept of the Tea and Pastry Shop. Who wouldn't? A nice story with the room for characters to grow. This will be a fun series to follow.
    • 4/5
      When I started this book, I didn't know what to expect, since this is a new author and the beginning to a new series. While I felt it began slightly slow, as the story went on I realized that this could indeed be a nice series to come home to. Why, you ask? Well, my review should tell you what I mean.Callie Aspen has come home to spend the holidays with her Aunt Iphy, who runs the Book Tea tearoom. Iphy has been asked to provide a tea for an old friend, wealthy widow Dorothea Finster. Dorothea's family and friends are attending because they've been told that she wants to make an announcement regarding her will.But unbeknownst to Dorothea, the wife of her only relative, Stephen Du Bouvrais, has a surprise of her own. Sheila has decided to turn the occasion into an impromptu engagement party for her daughter Amber - without even consulting the girl. When Callie arrives, she sees Sheila again and is surprised that she's manipulating everything the way she wants it, not Dorothea. She shows Callie the ring she wants hidden inside the cake - which will be cut by Amber's prospective husband Ben - and when everyone arrives and that indeed occurs, Callie is surprised to find the ring missing from the box. With Ben feeling humiliated and running away, Amber upset and leaving the room, and Sheila demanding to know where the ring has gone, Dorothea realizes that everything has gone wrong. It's not too long after that when Callie hears a scream and Amber comes out of the conservatory exclaiming that the old gardener Leadenby is dead. Callie is trying to keep the situation under control but it's nearly impossible, and wonders who would have wanted to kill him?But before she can find out the truth, she's going to have to deal with the people around her wanting to keep their secrets hidden, and a surly Deputy who never expected he'd have to deal with a murder in their quiet town. But which one of these people wanted Leadenby dead, and did he have secrets of his own that got him killed?I felt that this book was slightly different because the protagonist isn't the usual type we find in cozy mysteries. She's a 39-year-old tour guide who's come home to spend Christmas with her great aunt. She didn't lose her job or break away from a bad relationship. There's a hint that she left town because she was hurt that Stephen chose Sheila over her, but there's no angst over it. She actually wears makeup (not lip gloss which I really feel is better suited for teens, not grown women) and isn't Too Stupid To Live.Callie asks questions of people, but isn't really invasive and is truly interested in helping them. She seems to me to be a bit of a Fixer; because she's a tour guide she probably has to deal with 'people problems' and I get the feeling that she truly wants to help people, not just grill them about the murder.Callie eliminates suspects one by one, but she doesn't withhold information from Deputy Falk, going so far as to seek him out to share what she's learned so far. While he doesn't specifically tell her to stay out of the situation, he does tell her to be careful - giving us the impression that this is his first murder investigation and he's also learning as he goes; it gives him a human quality that's nice.There were a couple of disappointments, however; I did feel that it was irresponsible of Falk to offer her a beer knowing she had to drive - in winter, no less, and a long way into town from where he lived. He should have said something along the lines of: "I'm going to have a beer. I'd offer you one, but you're driving. Would you like a soda or coffee?" I can forgive a lot in books, but I do have a hard time with people drinking and driving, and worse when it comes to a police officer doing it like it's no big thing. I would also like to see it expanded on as to why Falk doesn't like Christmas. There's a mystery there about him that's worth exploring further.I didn't much care for the character of Sheila; she seemed pretentious and I hate pretentious people. Yes, she married well and has money, but that's no reason to act superior around people and order them to do things. I also didn't feel the connection between her and Stephen, but since it wasn't a major plot point, it didn't really matter. But I did wonder why Agatha Christie kept coming up when there was nothing about Dame Christie in the book at all. Yes, the cake had book clues, but none about this particular author, which left me a little disappointed, especially since I don't read the author they did concern. However, it was written fairly well and I liked how it all came together in the end. I enjoyed the fact that there was no 'evil nemesis' to throw a wrench in the works (let's hope the sheriff doesn't come back to town and decide off the bat he doesn't like Callie and try to make her life miserable). Callie proved herself to be a capable woman who doesn't fall apart in a crisis and can think on her feet. In other words, an admirable person. While the murder itself wasn't too involved, it was still a delightful endeavor, and there were some nice subplots along the way that kept the story moving along. All in all, a gratifying story with a decent ending that leaves us looking toward the possibilities of Haywood Hall in the next in the series. Recommended.
    • 5/5
      Callie Aspen, who spends most of her time as tour in Europe, is back home in Heart's Harbor, Maine, spending the Christmas season with her great aunt and the vintage tea room she runs. She is helping her aunt cater a tea at Haywood Hall which is owned by Dorothea Finster. Callie spent a lot of time there when she was a child. She even had a crush on Stephen Du Bouvrais who is presumed to be Dorothea's heir. But Stephen married another friend - Sheila- and they haven't seen each other for years.Dorothea has gathered quite a crew to hear the reading of her will. The mayor and his wife are there hoping from funding to improve the town. The leader of the town council is also there hoping for money for his pet projects. A new school teacher was also invited and she hopes for some funds to improve the school. Sheila and Stephen, along with their daughter Amber, are also staying with Dorothea. Ben, Dorothea's lawyer and Amber's boyfriend, is also at the party. Also in the house are the housekeeper - Mrs. Keats - and the gardener Mr. Leadenby who used to tell the kids wonderful stories. Sheila has her own agenda for the tea party. She wants to use the occasion to "encourage" Ben to propose to Amber by hiding a valuable family ring in the cake. Callie's aunt is in on the plan and creates a hollow in the cake that will be filled with the ring. But things don't go at all as Sheila hopes. The ring box is empty and Amber doesn't want to marry Ben. She is much more interested in a young man who is a handyman in town. Amber runs from the room and the next thing we hear is her scream. She's found Leadenby dead from a stab wound in his conservatory.The murder case falls into the hands of Deputy Falk but Callie isn't going to step aside. The investigation was nicely twisty since many of the people at the party had reasons to kill Leadenby and others are willing to lie to protect others at the party. Callie and Falk have a difficult time untangling all the stories.This was a nice small town mystery. The characters were interesting. I liked Callie and empathized with her difficult decision about continuing her life as it is or trying something new in a town that feels like home. I liked that she was worried about the dog she adopted after its owner's death. She wanted to find Daisy a good home but knew it would be hard to leave her behind. The one thing this cozy was missing was recipes. I would love to have recipes for some of the treats Aunt Iphigeneia makes in her Tea Room.
    • 3/5
      It'll soon be Christmas and Callie Aspen has returned to Heart's Harbor, Maine, where her great aunt runs a vintage tearoom aptly named Book Tea where every treat contains a bookish clue. Preparations are under way for a special tea party at Haywood Hall, the huge house of Heart's Harbor's oldest resident. Dorothea Finster is rich but widowed and has invited her estranged family to hear about her will. Callie's old friend Sheila complicates things by using the tea party to announce her daughter's engagement even though her daughter doesn't want to marry the young man her mother thinks is perfect for her. Everyone has their own agenda but Callie didn't think it would lead to murder.

      I felt as though I was reading a book. It felt like I was dropped in a few pages after the story began. I didn't get to fully know Callie herself or her story. There wasn't a lot of depth to the characters. I wasn't excited to pick the book back up when I set it aside; in fact I was going to DNF at 39%, why I picked it back up after three months I don't know. There should have been more focus on the book and tea shop and the potential murder suspects in order for this book to be a standout for me. The mystery itself was just okay. Although things got a little better as the story progressed (I did come to like the victim), it's not a memorable book for me.

      Thank you to Netgalley and Crooked Lane Books for an ARC.
    • 1/5
      Abandoned this cozy mystery after four chapters because the writing was pedestrian verging on not very good. I also couldn't buy that the upper class family who were the hosts of the event that opens the novel would openly bicker/fight in front of guests, which included most of the town council (all before the murder is even revealed). The author was trying to do a Christie homage but kept tripping over it and while I enjoy a good cozy mystery, a mediocre at best effort just annoys me. On to better reading pastures!