Tide and Punishment
It’s Christmastime in Charm, North Carolina, and while Everly Swan would prefer to focus on decorating her iced tea shop for its first holiday season, Great-Aunt Fran has decided to run for mayor against her long-time nemesis. But when the other candidate turns up dead just before the first scheduled debate, all eyes turn to Fran as the suspect with the most obvious motive.
Everly knows her sweet, elderly Aunt Fran couldn’t have murdered anyone, but as she struggles to find the real killer, it begins to seem like this may be the last merry Christmas her family may ever have.
Series: Seaside Café Mysteries – Book #3
Author: Bree Baker
Genre: Cozy Mystery/Holiday/Tea Shop
Publisher: Poisoned Pen Press
Page Count: 384
Rating: 
From Poisoned Pen Press https://poisonedpenpress.com/ comes the 3rd cozy mystery book Tide and Punishment in the “Seaside Café Mysteries” series by Bree Baker. An exciting and enjoyable addition to this fun series. Everly loves her family. She begins to understand how fortunate she is to have the two greatest aunts around. And when one of them finds herself the number one suspect in a murder, she has no choice but to find the real killer before her aunt spends Christmas in prison.
Everly is a wonderful character who is surrounded by more wonderful characters. It isn’t hard to like any of them or to empathize with one or more. The characters in this cozy mystery book are well-rounded, with personalities readers can understand and happily spend time with. The name of the town says it all, Charm. This is a charming series, and Tide and Punishment only adds to the appeal of this series.
Ms. Baker knows how to delight readers, move a plot forward, and keep you guessing. Cozy mystery books can sometimes wander off-topic and take the long way around to get back to the main focus, but this is not a problem with this book or series.
The murderer is found and gets their comeuppance, although not in the way readers will expect. The red herrings splashed throughout the book add more intrigue to the story and keeps you turning the page to make certain everything will turn out alright. The tea descriptions make readers want to give them a taste, and if you are in the south, chances are you will try at least one of them this winter. I enjoyed this cozy mystery book and am thrilled to recommend it to readers of standalone mysteries as well as cozy mystery series.
I also recommend Jacqueline Frost’s http://juliechasebooks.com series “A Christmas Tree Farm Mystery” https://www.thecozyreview.com/twas-the-knife-before-christmas/ or Amanda Flower’s http://www.amandaflower.com/ cozy mystery series “An Amish Candy Shop Mystery” https://www.thecozyreview.com/premeditated-peppermint/
About the Author:
Bree Baker is a Midwestern writer, obsessed with small-town high jinks, sweet tea, and the sea. She’s been telling stories to her family, friends, and strangers for as long as she can remember, and more often than not, those stories feature a warm ocean breeze and a recipe she’s sure to ruin. Now, she’s working on those fancy cooking skills and dreaming up adventures for the Seaside Cafe mysteries. Her debut title, Live & Let Chai, released from Sourcebooks in July 2018. Bree is a member of Sisters in Crime, International Thriller Writers, and the Romance Writers of America.
Bree is represented by Jill Marsal of Marsal Lyon Literary Agency.
Contact Bree: https://breebaker.com
Find Bree on Social Media
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