Cozy Wednesday with Laura Childs – Author of Pekoe Most Poison – #Giveaway

Welcome to Cozy Wednesday.
I am thrilled to welcome back Laura Childs today!
Fetch yourself a cup of tea and enjoy her post.

Lori, I am thrilled to be visiting you and all your mystery-minded friends. Pekoe Most Poison, the eighteenth book in the Tea Shop Mystery series was finally released yesterday and I can’t wait for everyone to read it.

Theodosia Browning, owner of the Indigo Tea Shop along with her tea sommelier and dear friend, Drayton, have been invited to what promises to be one of the highlights of the social season.

Socially prominent Doreen “Dolly” Briggs is a generous supporter of the Heritage Society, a combination of museum and historical society that is very close to Drayton’s heart. So he is delighted when he and Theodosia are invited to Dolly’s “rat tea” a re-enactment of the teas society matrons held decades ago to enhance the awareness of the overwhelming need to rid Charleston of pesky vermin.

When Theodosia and Drayton arrive, the door is opened by someone dressed quite formally in blue velvet waistcoat and shiny black boots, a delightful look except that the outfit is topped with a white velvet rat head. In spite of the lovely table décor of flowers and candlelight, the fact that all the servers are wearing rat heads above their fancy dress outfits takes a bit of getting used to for the guests, but soon the party is in full swing.

Before Dolly introduces her husband Beau to say a few words she requests a fresh pot of Beaus’s favorite Orange Pekoe tea and directs the server, a white headed rat wearing pink livery, to place the teapot on a warmer. As the server reaches in, his arm brushes against a tapered candle which sways and falls, setting a centerpiece ablaze. Fortunately the always quick-witted Theodosia grabs the nearest pot of tea and tosses it, dousing the flames.

The crowd settles down and Beau begins to speak when suddenly he stammers and collapses to the floor. Within a few moments he dies right before everyone’s eyes. And speaking of eyes, even in the midst of calamity, Theodosia notices that the new detective on the case, Pete Riley, has charming blue eyes and a personality to match.

Dolly Briggs is determined to find out exactly what happened to her husband and she has decided that Theodosia, with her fabled reputation for amateur sleuthing, can get the job done. And with Dolly’s donations to Drayton’s beloved Heritage Society at stake, Theodosia agrees to investigate, although Detective Riley may decide she is more of a distraction than a help.

Pekoe Most Poison is a captivating guilty pleasure with a plot that moves at a thriller pace and crescendos to a swift and satisfying finale.

 Much love,

Laura Childs

Thank you Laura for stopping by for a visit today! 

Pekoe Most Poison (A Tea Shop Mystery)
Cozy Mystery
18th in Series
A Berkley Prime Crime Mystery (March 7, 2017)
An Imprint of Penguin Random House LLC
Hardcover: 320 pages
ISBN-13: 978-0425281680
Kindle – ASIN: B01KGZVXTK

Synopsis

In the latest Tea Shop Mystery from New York Times bestselling author Laura Childs, Theodosia Browning attends a “Rat Tea,” where the mice will play…at murder.

When Indigo Tea Shop owner Theodosia Browning is invited by Doreen Briggs, one of Charleston’s most prominent hostesses, to a “Rat Tea,” she is understandably intrigued. As servers dressed in rodent costumes and wearing white gloves offer elegant finger sandwiches and fine teas, Theo learns these parties date back to early twentieth-century Charleston, where the cream of society would sponsor so-called rat teas to promote city rodent control and better public health.

But this party goes from odd to chaotic when a fire starts at one of the tables and Doreen’s entrepreneur husband suddenly goes into convulsions and drops dead. Has his favorite orange pekoe tea been poisoned? Theo smells a rat.

The distraught Doreen soon engages Theo to pursue a discreet inquiry into who might have murdered her husband. As Theo and her tea sommelier review the guest list for suspects, they soon find themselves drawn into a dangerous game of cat and mouse…

INCLUDES RECIPES AND TEA TIME TIPS

About The Author

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 fund raising 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:  Webpage – Facebook 

Thanks to the people at Penguin I have 2 copies to give away!
Contest is open to anyone over 18 years old
with a US or Canadian mailing address.

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Contest Will End March 22, 2017 at 11:59 PM CST
Winner Will Be Chosen By Random.org
Winner Will Be Notified By Email
and Will Be Posted Here In The Sidebar.

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