Book Review: Live and Let Chai by Bree Baker

Recently, I have had the pleasure of finding a renewed love of all things mystery. Knowing what people know about me, it may be surprising for them to find I have a soft spot for cozy mysteries. This led me to finding a cozy mystery group on Twitter that I am enjoying very much. Let's get to the review!

Title: Live and Let Chai
Author: Bree Baker
Genre: Cozy Mystery

Synopsis:

​The first book in a delightful new beachside cozy mystery series!

Trouble is brewing in Everly's new cafe'. Can she bag the culprit?

Life hasn't been so sweet for Everly Swan over the past couple of years, but now that she is back in her seaside hometown and the proud owner of a little iced tea shop and caf' right on the beach, things are finally starting to look up--until a curmudgeonly customer turns up dead on the boardwalk. With one of her hallmark glass tea jars lying right next to him and an autopsy that reports poison in his system, it doesn't look good for Everly or her brand new business.

As the townspeople of Charm, formerly so welcoming and homey, turn their back on Everly, she fights to dig up clues about who could have had it in for the former town councilman. With a maddeningly handsome detective discouraging her from uncovering leads and a series of anonymous attacks on Everly and her business, it will take everything she's got to keep this mystery from boiling over.

Goodreads //  Amazon 

My Review:

Disclaimer: My reviews are based on my own opinions. By no means will I ever discourage a reader to form their own opinions by reading the author's book. Do NOT contact me and complain about your review. I am and always will be brutally honest and expect my reviewers to be the same.

Live and Let Chai follows the story of Everly Swan, a young woman who just opened up a dream cafe within her home where she serves tea to the lovely patrons of Charm, North Carolina. A man by the name of Mr. Benedict Paine makes it apparent his disdain of the lovely little shop. However, he soon winds up dead, apparently poisoned with a jar of Everly's tea in hand. This does not bode well and Everly finds herself defending not only her reputation but the reputation of Sun, Sand and Tea by tracking down the killer(s). All this while falling for the handsome Graty Hays, a detective who recently moved to Charm.

To start, this book was a lovely read. I enjoyed almost everything about it. It was my first venture into Bree Baker's work and let me say, it does not disappoint. It has many aspects one comes to expect from a cozy and executes them in an impressive manner.

The writing was beautiful, flawed in some places, but more on that later. The characters were probably my biggest problem. I couldn't really connect with any of them nor did I find myself feeling too much sympathy for Everly. However, I did indeed understand her drive and could experience it pleasantly throughout the book. I did not like the concept of the Aunts. As a fan of Joanne Fluke and Charlaine Harris, I am more fond of the over-controlling parent figure but can respect the desire of the author to change.

I also found myself wanting more sleuthing on behalf of the sleuth BUT loved the dynamic between Everly and Detective Hays. Those two made up my favorite characters, which in retrospect, is what needed to happen.

As I mentioned above, the writing was absolutely beautiful. There were a few places an editor could have caught but it is not uncommon to find a few mistakes and I can easily overlook them in light of a good read.

This novel will bring me back to Ms. Baker's work as I want to know more about her work. A refreshing read and a beautiful one. Highest recommendations to lovers of a good cozy mystery with a change from bakeries and libraries.

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