Steeped in Malice

Tea by the Sea Mysteries, Book 4

By: Vicki Delany

Narrated by: Shaina Summerville

Afternoon tea isn't just about flavorful brews and delicious treats. It's also about presentation—fine china teacups (never mugs!), with carefully coordinated saucers and plates. With her fragile stock running low, Lily has an excuse to indulge in one of her favorite hobbies: visiting an antiques fair for replacements.

Lily snaps up a charming Peter Rabbit-themed tea set in a wicker basket, perfect for children's events. But a few days later, a woman named Kimberly marches into the tearoom, rudely demanding to buy it back—then later returns and removes an envelope hidden in the basket's lining.

An acquaintance of Lily's named Rachel is on the trail of the tea set too. Apparently, she and Kimberly are half-sisters, searching for their mother's final will. To her annoyance, Lily is dunked into the middle of this mess—especially when her ex-boyfriend turns out to be involved. But it's more than a storm in a teacup when one of the sisters is found dead on the grounds of the B&B owned by Lily's grandmother, Rose.

It'll take some savvy sleuthing from Lily, Rose, and their allies to find the answers before a killer shatters more lives . . .

©2023 Vicki Delany (P)2023 Tantor

Once Again, We Expect The Unexpected

Out of a family feud over a will, we least expect the housekeeper to commit the murder so she could get all the money and run. Cheers to Lily’s Grandma Rose for acting like an innocent old lady and solved the mystery of The Smithfield Murder!

Enjoyable story bad narrating

I always enjoy Vicki Delany’s books. The story is engaging and the character are thoughtful and full of life. The description of the scenery is vivid.
The narration is appalling. I become disengaged with the story due to the narrator’s cadence. Her accents are insulting. Two characters are supposed to have English accents and they sound more like someone who just had a stroke. She really should consider another line of work.

narrator should not attempt accents

the story is so so but could not listen to the entire book as the narrator was so distracting. not worth the $$.