Terrific start to the series. After her husband died, Daisy and her two daughters moved home to Willow Creek, a community in Lancaster, Pennsylvania's Amish country. She and her Aunt Iris started Daisy's Tea Garden, a tea shop that serves soups, scones, and tea to locals and tourists. Things are going well for Daisy: the shop is thriving, and her daughters Violet and Jazzi are settled, with Violet recently off to college. She's a little worried about Iris, who is dating wealthy and not-quite-divorced men's shop owner Harvey Fitz. Then Harvey is found murdered in the tea shop's garden, and Iris is at the top of Detective Rappaport's suspect list.

I enjoyed seeing Daisy get involved in attempting to clear Iris's name. Her work is cut out for her, as the detective indicates that he believes Iris is the killer. She has plenty of suspects to choose from, whether it's Harvey's soon-to-be-ex, his possibly disinherited children, or one of several business rivals. The mystery was well done, as it kept me guessing who did it until the end. The final confrontation was intense, with Iris and Daisy surprised by the killer. The takedown was fantastic - I loved how Iris and Daisy kept their wits about them and saved themselves with a little bit of outside help.

I enjoyed the variety of characters. Daisy's family love each other but have their own personalities. Iris and Daisy's mother, Rose, are sisters who don't always get along. Rose can be a bit judgmental, which puts her at odds sometimes with others. Iris is sweet and well-liked by the guests at the tea shop but shows a feisty side when she gets riled up. I liked Daisy's daughters, Violet and Jazzi. Violet is away at college though we see some of her at the end. Jazzi is involved in a secondary storyline as she expresses her desire to find her birth mother. I liked how Daisy handled this issue.

Outside the family, we meet the tea garden employees, other business owners, and two intriguing men. I enjoyed the various employees who have unique personalities and stories of their own. I enjoyed Tessa, one of Daisy's friends and baking assistant. Tessa is also an artist, and I liked the scene of her gallery show and getting to know that side of her. Her new employee, Foster, is an interesting young man. I loved how easily he fit in and seeing his ideas for the tea shop.

There is a hint of romance running through the book. Cade, one of Daisy's high school classmates, appears to be interested in her. He's a nice guy, though he tends to be cautious. His warnings against investigating irritate Daisy though it doesn't stop her from going out with him. Jonas is new to Willow Creek. A former police detective, now a furniture maker and store owner, is often on the spot when Daisy runs into trouble. He is sweet and attentive, and I loved how he helped Daisy, Iris, and Jazzi. Daisy is a little surprised by the feelings he sparks in her. I look forward to future books and seeing what happens with both men.

The descriptions of the tea shop, the teas, and the food made me feel like I was there. As a tea drinker myself, I would love to pop in at Daisy's and enjoy a cuppa and a lemon tea cake or cinnamon scone. ( )

Daisy Swanson and her Aunt Iris opened Daisy’s Tea Garden as partners offering soup, baked goods, and various teas and catering special events. Daisy moved to Willow Creek, Pennsylvania, after the loss of her husband. She has one teenage daughter in high school and one daughter in her 1st semester at college. Aunt Iris has never married but enjoys an excellent relationship with another local entrepreneur. They’re both looking forward to the next step in their relationship after his divorce is final. No one envisioned the next step would be fatal instead of a new beginning.

It was so refreshing to enjoy a cozy where relatives are partners bringing the joy and diversity of generational relationships to the storyline rather than a new beginning in a woman’s life from life insurance or inheritance.

I love armchair travels with novels, but there is also something delightfully heartwarming reading about a small town an author has created within a state you know extensively. The inclusion of a well-known university, sports team, tourism, and surrounding town names to name a few, were seamlessly weaved into the setting and surrounding area and/or lives of the characters. I particularly enjoyed that the current town detective was formerly from Pittsburgh PD, and a fellow business owner that offers Daisy a listening ear and advice is a former Philly (Philadelphia) detective.

Menu items that sounded so tempting when offered in the tea garden will delight readers viewing the recipes at the end of the book. ( )

I like cozies, particularly in audio, but this one is just so so. Plot is hard to follow, and the narrator's peculiar accent drove me nuts. Won't be reading the rest of the series unless different narrator.
Edited 4/14/2021 Relistened to story...my ear got past the narrator and I found the plot easy to follow. The book is still very blah, but it was a pleasant enough read during a pandemic isolation. ( )

After her husband's untimely death, Daisy moved with her two daughters from Florida back to Pennsylvania to open a tea shop with her aunt Iris. With her oldest daughter Violet at college she knows something is bothering her youngest daughter Jazzi but isn't sure what it is. But that has to be on the back burner because she's more worried about Iris, who seems totally in love with a married - but separated - man who owns a mens' clothing store.

She's also hosting his twenty-fifth store anniversary at her shop while going through his divorce. It's not pleasant when his almost ex-wife shows up demanding more from the divorce than he's already given her. When she's escorted out, everything seems to go back to normal. But then Harvey is found dead, and Iris is the main suspect. Now Daisy's determined to prove her aunt innocent, but that means finding a killer - who doesn't want to be found...

Since I've read Ms. Smith's other series and it was fine as far as easy reads go (until the final book, which I felt was too full of unicorns and rainbows) I thought I would give this one a try. Now I wish I'd read something else. The book was all over the place.

First, we're given descriptions of everything people are eating, and honestly, we really don't care. We don't care about the menu the tea room is serving every day. I'm just surprised they don't serve a traditional tea room menu, which certainly doesn't consist of soup or salad. It's things like scones, finger sandwiches. tarts, cakes, etc. - but not soup or salad. In fact, I don't know anyone who has soup and salad with hot tea. It seems very odd to me. Oh, well, to each his own.

Then, the story line seems not to be centered on the murder, but on Daisy's relationship with her daughters. She misses her older daughter and now, for some odd reason, her fifteen-year-old has decided to look for her birth mother. The reasoning didn't make sense to me, and it really took away a lot of time from the murder investigation.

I basically skimmed through the book because the plot line wasn't that interesting. The conversations were rudimentary and it was almost as if the author didn't want the characters to feel any real emotion. It felt as if everyone were just walking through their scenes.

Just like the previous series, this one is more family-based than mystery. What I mean by that is they're written more about the family life of the characters and the mystery seems almost as an afterthought - just something to pass the time while we decide what the family unit is going to do next. This one is no different. If you want a story about a widow with two daughters and her coping with life without her husband, this is for you. If you're looking for a murder mystery you can sink your teeth into, you might want to pass. ( )

Daisy, a widowed mom of two teens, owns and runs a tea shop with her Aunt Iris. Iris is getting serious about a wealthy businessman who is not quite divorced. Daisy wonders if her aunt is rushing into something she shouldn’t, as Harvey comes with a lot of baggage: an angry almost ex-wife and two grown kids who feel entitled to everything they want. When Harvey turns up murdered in the tea garden, Iris and Daisy are prime suspects. This cozy has a lot going for it, including secondary storylines that are quite interesting in their own right. Author Karen Rose Smith has done a great job in creating a cast of interesting characters whose variety adds much enjoyment to this new series. ( )