It’s still winter, still time to keep the fireplace going and cozy up with — a cozy mystery. Here are two from popular Minnesota writers.
“LAVENDER BLUE MURDER” by Laura Childs (Berkley Prime Crime, $26)
If we’re headed toward spring, we know we can expect a visit from South Carolina tea shop owner Theodosia Browning and her posse. Gerry Schmitt, writing as Childs, doesn’t disappoint in “Lavender Blue Murder,” 21st in this engaging series that always includes at least one corpse, elegant teas, and a brave — sometimes too brave — protagonist with secondary characters such as Theo’s endearing, proper tea master Drayton Connelley and Haley, her young chef/baker.
This story begins with Theo and Drayton in a shooting party on the grounds of a plantation. Suddenly the host, Reginald Doyle, is shot very close to where Theo and Drayton are standing. Nobody can believe this could happen in a quiet field, least of all the dead man’s mouthy son, Alex, and the deceased’s distraught wife, Meredith, who begs Theo to help her find the killer. But before Theo even has a clue, the big house is set on fire. Then Alex’s wife, Fawn, who may be abused by her husband, disappears and money is demanded. Theo has to sift through a variety of suspects, including Alex, a neighbor who has been feuding with the dead man over a piece of property, and a woman who owns a lavender farm.
Will everything come clear during Theo’s Lavender Lady Tea party?
What Childs does so well is integrate Theo’s attention to her tea shop with her investigations. She gives us just enough information about the business side of Theo’s life to make it clear she knows what she’s doing, from setting her tea tables with china that is perfect for the theme, and just-right floral centerpieces and candles.
The magic in this series is that the reader longs to be in that cozy tea room eating scones, clotted cream, and Haley’s other delicious dishes, including Hawaiian tea sandwiches, ginger-cardamon tea cookies, and Chai-spiced fruit compote, with recipes in the back of the book.
Schmitt/Childs will sign copies of “Lavender Blue Murder” from noon to 2 p.m. Saturday, March 7, at Once Upon a Crime, 604 W. 26th St., Mpls.
“CROW CALLING” by Sherry Roberts (Osmyrrah Publishing, $12.95)
Sherry Roberts brings back yoga master and reiki healer Maya Skye for her third adventure in “Crow Calling.” The series, set in Gabriel’s Garden, Minn., began in 2014 with “Down Dog Diary,” followed by “Warrior’s Revenge.”
In those books we learned that Maya inherited a mysterious book from her mentor, a former Hell’s Angel-turned-shaman who died protecting it. The precious book, in which many people have written, seems to have powers, carrying a different scent every time Maya opens it. It also communicates with her, sometimes cryptically, through wise previous owners.
In “Crow Calling” the town is suddenly filled with crows, an ominous sign that Maya knows means trouble. And trouble comes when a skinny old guy who calls himself Jacques Pine is found dead. Maya learns the man is living under an alias and spends his time planting trees. To her surprise, Jacques is known to her parents, Evie and Larry, who lived with Maya and her older sister Heart on a commune years earlier. What do her parents know about this man with no history? And why are citizens blaming the Skye family for bringing crows and “hippies” to the town?
Maya puts the puzzle pieces together with her friend Peter Jorn, a newspaper reporter, while she also spends time with her rich, tart-tongued paternal grandmother, who’s thinking of moving to Gabriel’s Garden.
The environment is the focus of this fast-paced story, with Maya’s little niece planting a butterfly garden that will attract endangered monarchs. But someone in the town isn’t interested in butterflies and tears up the garden. What message is being sent?
Maya and her family are interesting characters and Roberts writes in a breezy style that’s lots of fun. The clever crows, who seem to be sending Maya a message, offer mysticism to enhance the plot.
“Crow Calling” has been accepted into the Indie Author Project, curated by Library Journal, which helps libraries choose books that have literary merit.
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