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3.63 AVERAGE
3.63 AVERAGE
This was a delightful and quick read. I was looking for a fun and quirky murder mystery and I was not disappointed. The characters were well written, the murder mystery kept me guessing, and the background story was well fleshed out too. It also wasn't short on that wonderful British charm. I a definitely interested in reading the other books in the series (I'll have to try my hand at the scone recipe too).
When an American tourist is murdered in her café in a small village near Oxford University, Gemma sets out to find the murderer before the scandal ruins her business.
This was a well-written and fun little mystery. An obnoxious American is found murdered in Gemma's tearoom – choked on one of Gemma's own scones – and her ex-boyfriend happens to be in charge of the investigation. Certain that he and his colleague are missing things and frustrated that he won't take her concerns seriously, Gemma starts investigating on her own. She's also dealing with the Old Biddies, a gossiping group of seniors; her snooty mother, who is up to some matchmaking; and her friends Cassie, Seth and Fletcher, who's adorable cat Muesli has gone missing.
I really enjoyed this one. It was a light read with some fun characters. I really enjoyed the Old Biddies!
This was a well-written and fun little mystery. An obnoxious American is found murdered in Gemma's tearoom – choked on one of Gemma's own scones – and her ex-boyfriend happens to be in charge of the investigation. Certain that he and his colleague are missing things and frustrated that he won't take her concerns seriously, Gemma starts investigating on her own. She's also dealing with the Old Biddies, a gossiping group of seniors; her snooty mother, who is up to some matchmaking; and her friends Cassie, Seth and Fletcher, who's adorable cat Muesli has gone missing.
I really enjoyed this one. It was a light read with some fun characters. I really enjoyed the Old Biddies!
This is a cosy mystery, the first in The Oxford Tearoom Mysteries series by HY Hannah. 29-yr-old, Gemma, has given up a lucrative but boring corporate job Down Under to return to her native Oxford and run The Oxford Tearoom with her best friend Cassie and local chef Fletcher Wilson and his imaginatively named cat Muesli.
When a nasty American tourist is found dead on the premises with a scone stuffed into his mouth, Gemma takes it upon herself to figure out who’s guilty! So far, so good. But enter an ex-flame as the Inspector in charge and 29-yr-old Gemma behaves like an immature, irritating teenager 😜 I know cosy mysteries are supposed to be more simplistic and endearing than regular thrillers but that’s no excuse to make the protagonist so silly in my opinion! I’ve just read another book in the No.1 Ladies Detective Agency by Alexander McCall Smith that falls into the cosy mystery category, and Precious Ramotswe and Grace Makutsi and they are by no means as silly and fluffy as Gemma who is if nothing else, more educated and privileged than they ever were.
The only refreshing characters were the quartet of old biddies - a must in every English village - audacious, interfering & opinionated. Although stereotypical, they were engaging, whereas everyone else was stereotypical and boring - unforgivable! Also...the kind of romance portrayed here is just not my cup of tea. It felt juvenile. The mystery itself was alright and not badly written, but I couldn’t get over my frustration with Gemma and so didn’t give a damn when she stumbled onto the solution helped along by some amazing coincidences.
A light, fluffy, quick read that could have been so much better than it was.
When a nasty American tourist is found dead on the premises with a scone stuffed into his mouth, Gemma takes it upon herself to figure out who’s guilty! So far, so good. But enter an ex-flame as the Inspector in charge and 29-yr-old Gemma behaves like an immature, irritating teenager 😜 I know cosy mysteries are supposed to be more simplistic and endearing than regular thrillers but that’s no excuse to make the protagonist so silly in my opinion! I’ve just read another book in the No.1 Ladies Detective Agency by Alexander McCall Smith that falls into the cosy mystery category, and Precious Ramotswe and Grace Makutsi and they are by no means as silly and fluffy as Gemma who is if nothing else, more educated and privileged than they ever were.
The only refreshing characters were the quartet of old biddies - a must in every English village - audacious, interfering & opinionated. Although stereotypical, they were engaging, whereas everyone else was stereotypical and boring - unforgivable! Also...the kind of romance portrayed here is just not my cup of tea. It felt juvenile. The mystery itself was alright and not badly written, but I couldn’t get over my frustration with Gemma and so didn’t give a damn when she stumbled onto the solution helped along by some amazing coincidences.
A light, fluffy, quick read that could have been so much better than it was.
I never thought I'd end the week facing an American with a sharp knife.
Gemma Rose has returned to Meadowford-on-Smythe after several years in the corporate world of Australia. She has opened the Little Stables Tearoom much to her mother's dismay. Business is good as the village sits on the outskirts of Oxford. An obnoxious American breaks the peaceful vibe of the tearoom with his belligerent manner. He creates chaos in a pub later that evening. Gemma finds him dead in the courtyard of her tearoom the next morning with one of her scones crammed in his mouth.
What a delightful book. I love the tearoom setting and the village. Gemma is trying hard to be an independent business owner to show her mother that she can make it on her own. Of course the police officer that is in charge of the case is Gemma's old flame from University. There seem to still be sparks there even during his frustration at her meddling.
The best meddlers are the older women that Gemma refers to as the Old Biddies. They have decided to take up sleuthing as well. The American lied about not being in Oxford before yet knew things that only a former student or local would know.
Gemma delves into the mysteries of the various colleges of Oxford in order to find a killer. I enjoyed the information shared about the formalities of the University.
The disappearance of Museli, the chef's cat, was another mystery that was ongoing with the murder investigation. Interesting tie in at the end.
I didn't guess the killer until Gemma did. I was quite sad at the reveal.
This was a well written mystery with good characters and the possibility of a love triangle. It was a quick read that entertained me through an evening.I look forward to reading the next book
3.5 stars
Gemma Rose has returned to Meadowford-on-Smythe after several years in the corporate world of Australia. She has opened the Little Stables Tearoom much to her mother's dismay. Business is good as the village sits on the outskirts of Oxford. An obnoxious American breaks the peaceful vibe of the tearoom with his belligerent manner. He creates chaos in a pub later that evening. Gemma finds him dead in the courtyard of her tearoom the next morning with one of her scones crammed in his mouth.
What a delightful book. I love the tearoom setting and the village. Gemma is trying hard to be an independent business owner to show her mother that she can make it on her own. Of course the police officer that is in charge of the case is Gemma's old flame from University. There seem to still be sparks there even during his frustration at her meddling.
The best meddlers are the older women that Gemma refers to as the Old Biddies. They have decided to take up sleuthing as well. The American lied about not being in Oxford before yet knew things that only a former student or local would know.
Gemma delves into the mysteries of the various colleges of Oxford in order to find a killer. I enjoyed the information shared about the formalities of the University.
The disappearance of Museli, the chef's cat, was another mystery that was ongoing with the murder investigation. Interesting tie in at the end.
I didn't guess the killer until Gemma did. I was quite sad at the reveal.
This was a well written mystery with good characters and the possibility of a love triangle. It was a quick read that entertained me through an evening.I look forward to reading the next book
3.5 stars
Delightful cozy mystery. Not a particularly shocking conclusion, but sufficiently intriguing to keep interest throughout. 3.5/5
I really liked this book. Which is how most cozy’s are for me. Nothing to dislike, but they never really wow me. Most of the time they are just really nice diversions from reality.
A Scone to Die for by H.Y. Hanna is pretty much in the same boat. It was a quick read (I was able to finish it in two sittings), and all the characters were for the most part likeable. You don’t really get much from any of the supporting characters, except filler. Gemma is pretty much front and center the whole time. Which is okay, I liked her. I wish there was a little more substance to the rest of the characters, especially Gemma’s mother. That was an avenue that could have been explored a little better! The mother is very annoying and could also be very hilarious.
The mystery regarding the deaths was okay. There isn’t much to say about it. The twists were nice, I wasn’t expecting the second body or who the murderer actually was at the end; however. The end really lacked any excitement, it was over so quickly, and was honestly very much an anticlimactic scene. However, I did have an aha moment when all the evidence finally caught up, and we discovered who the murderer was, though I really don’t see how we could have EVER saw that coming.
There is a hint of a love triangle, I am weary of that; however I like Devlin O’Connor for the most part, he is an old boyfriend, where we are constantly hinted towards an ugly breakup but never actually get any information on it! That was kind of annoying! The second love interest is a man, I honestly already forgot his name, whom she was set up with by her mother. They have a commonality in that their mothers are annoying and overbearing; we don’t get much info on him at all, in fact he is only in the book twice, and the second time is to call to see if she is okay (after her brush with almost death) and to ask her to dinner. Hmmm…
Anyway, I think this was a very nice first installment to the series. I feel adequately introduced to Gemma and her sleuthing; however I do hope that in the second book the supporting characters are explored a little more.
I received this title from Netgalley and the Publisher for free in exchange for an honest review.
A Scone to Die for by H.Y. Hanna is pretty much in the same boat. It was a quick read (I was able to finish it in two sittings), and all the characters were for the most part likeable. You don’t really get much from any of the supporting characters, except filler. Gemma is pretty much front and center the whole time. Which is okay, I liked her. I wish there was a little more substance to the rest of the characters, especially Gemma’s mother. That was an avenue that could have been explored a little better! The mother is very annoying and could also be very hilarious.
The mystery regarding the deaths was okay. There isn’t much to say about it. The twists were nice, I wasn’t expecting the second body or who the murderer actually was at the end; however. The end really lacked any excitement, it was over so quickly, and was honestly very much an anticlimactic scene. However, I did have an aha moment when all the evidence finally caught up, and we discovered who the murderer was, though I really don’t see how we could have EVER saw that coming.
There is a hint of a love triangle, I am weary of that; however I like Devlin O’Connor for the most part, he is an old boyfriend, where we are constantly hinted towards an ugly breakup but never actually get any information on it! That was kind of annoying! The second love interest is a man, I honestly already forgot his name, whom she was set up with by her mother. They have a commonality in that their mothers are annoying and overbearing; we don’t get much info on him at all, in fact he is only in the book twice, and the second time is to call to see if she is okay (after her brush with almost death) and to ask her to dinner. Hmmm…
Anyway, I think this was a very nice first installment to the series. I feel adequately introduced to Gemma and her sleuthing; however I do hope that in the second book the supporting characters are explored a little more.
I received this title from Netgalley and the Publisher for free in exchange for an honest review.
It was a good way to pass the time. The writing is competent, but it's not especially interesting. There's nothing compelling about the characters nor the mystery. Thoroughly mediocre - wish I had more to say on it, but it only was an inoffensively bland reading experience. I hope the author does find her own voice and develops it further some day.
I have wanted to try a cozy mystery series for a while now. I found this series free on Kindle. They looked promising - British murder mysteries that involve cats and baking? Sign me up! But after starting this book, then getting annoyed, putting it aside, then giving in and reading the whole thing, I clearly did not choose wisely for my first cozy mystery. This book is so annoying!
The main character, Gemma, is supposed to have been some Oxford-educated high-level executive in Australia, before giving up her high-paying job to follow her dream of opening a tearoom back home. Great, nothing wrong with following your passion. But this girl is so childish and rambling that I couldn't believe that she ever made it through Oxford. The book is full of rambling streams-of-consciousness and silly descriptions that feel like gratuitous explanations of British customs just for non-British readers.
And Gemma's mother is painted as this awful caricature of an overbearing, annoying, matchmaking Baby-Boomer-who-can't-understand-technology. The amount of times that we have to listen to her ask Gemma what her iPad password is again - like 7 times I think. And it's not even a plot point, which I could have forgiven. It's just obnoxious.
I figured out pretty early on whodunnit, so most of the effort I spent in reading this book was just to say that I finished it.
There are a few redeeming points - the Old Biddies, regulars at the tearoom, are sweet and funny and realistic characters. And the cat (a main reason I chose this series)? While he's not present for most of the book, he does save the day. The cat gets 5 stars. The book only gets 2.
The main character, Gemma, is supposed to have been some Oxford-educated high-level executive in Australia, before giving up her high-paying job to follow her dream of opening a tearoom back home. Great, nothing wrong with following your passion. But this girl is so childish and rambling that I couldn't believe that she ever made it through Oxford. The book is full of rambling streams-of-consciousness and silly descriptions that feel like gratuitous explanations of British customs just for non-British readers.
And Gemma's mother is painted as this awful caricature of an overbearing, annoying, matchmaking Baby-Boomer-who-can't-understand-technology. The amount of times that we have to listen to her ask Gemma what her iPad password is again - like 7 times I think. And it's not even a plot point, which I could have forgiven. It's just obnoxious.
I figured out pretty early on whodunnit, so most of the effort I spent in reading this book was just to say that I finished it.
There are a few redeeming points - the Old Biddies, regulars at the tearoom, are sweet and funny and realistic characters. And the cat (a main reason I chose this series)?
I loved this book for several reasons.
1) The writing is superb. Well written scenes and dialogues, everything a reader could dream of and hope for. The use of language is perfect.
2) This is one of the first mysteries where I didn't know who the murderer was until almost at the end! The clues were all there, but it was so fantastically written that I really was misled on the identity of the murderer.
3) The characters are extremely likeable, but versatile. As I like to say: They are in 3D. No, they aren't perfect, but you love them and are intrigued by them.
4) The setting! You have to love the setting. Oxford and surroundings is beautifully described in a detailed way too!
5) The story is really good and that is all that matters right? ;)
6) It isn't a typical first book in a series book. It is much more imo, because while we get to know the characters Hanna doesn't take forever to describe them, we get to know them on the go.
All in all an amazing book and I already read the second one and am currently on the third.
1) The writing is superb. Well written scenes and dialogues, everything a reader could dream of and hope for. The use of language is perfect.
2) This is one of the first mysteries where I didn't know who the murderer was until almost at the end! The clues were all there, but it was so fantastically written that I really was misled on the identity of the murderer.
3) The characters are extremely likeable, but versatile. As I like to say: They are in 3D. No, they aren't perfect, but you love them and are intrigued by them.
4) The setting! You have to love the setting. Oxford and surroundings is beautifully described in a detailed way too!
5) The story is really good and that is all that matters right? ;)
6) It isn't a typical first book in a series book. It is much more imo, because while we get to know the characters Hanna doesn't take forever to describe them, we get to know them on the go.
All in all an amazing book and I already read the second one and am currently on the third.
Doing a reread of the earlier books because I finally finished the last books.
I like Gemma but she comes off as somewhat annoying in the beginning. She just randomly thinks that Devlin should tell her everything, still be in love with her, and give her special treatment. But even though that seems to be the case, this is a good set up for all of the characters and the tearoom.
The mystery wasn't bad. I feel like she refuses to even entertain that it could be some people... when she should have. She also barges in and blames others because of personal dislike.
I was so in my feelings when she took Museli to the shelter though. So glad she ended up keeping her.
I like Gemma but she comes off as somewhat annoying in the beginning. She just randomly thinks that Devlin should tell her everything, still be in love with her, and give her special treatment. But even though that seems to be the case, this is a good set up for all of the characters and the tearoom.
The mystery wasn't bad. I feel like she refuses to even entertain that it could be some people... when she should have. She also barges in and blames others because of personal dislike.
I was so in my feelings when she took Museli to the shelter though. So glad she ended up keeping her.