Scones & Bones: 12 (Tea Shop Mystery)

Great series, love the recipes at the back

Another good addition ton the series - thoroughly enjoyed it

Item as described. Very good seller.

I cant tell you how much I love American Cozies (Cozy), they dont tax your brain and are a nice easy read. I really looked forward to the return of Theodosia, Drayton and Haley and Laura Childs doesnt disappoint. Good story and it keeps you guessing until the end. Now Ms Childs, please read this carefully. My only gripe about the books (and I love them) is this lashings of WHIPPED DEVONSHIRE CREAM. Here in Devon England there is no such thing. So I will quickly explain. In the USA they sell what is called Devonshire Cream in comes in a jar and is sold in supermarkets, supplied by a company in Swindon England (nowhere near Devon I must add). Ive tasted in when in Rochester NY and its sour and not very nice. Now here in Devon England we have what is Clotted Cream this is a congealed thick golden cream that is sweet and very moorish (we were all brought up on it, hence being overweight). There is no taste like it, and, of course its great with Scones and Jam which is your Devonshire Cream Tea. So for the UK reader dont get confused when you read about lots of whipped or fluffy Devonshire Cream, its the awful jar stuff from Swindon. I wish Laura Childs could taste Clotted Cream and pass it onto Theodosia, maybe a visit to England? That really is my only little titter about the books. Apart from that I love them and all of Laura's books, very well written and easy to read when you want a nice relaxing time. Thanks Laura.

This is the twelfth book in the Tea Shop Mystery series by Laura Childs.Theodosia Browning is the owner of the Indigo Tea Shop in Charleston. Theodosia left a successful but stressful career in advertising, and opened a quaint little teashop with the help of her friends and co-workers; baker extraordinaire, Haley Parker and tea specialist, Drayton Conneley. During the Heritage Society's Pirates and Plunder show, someone steals a precious diamond-embedded skull, kills a young history intern, and injures Camilla Hodges, the society's office manager. Theodosia is determined to help the society's president Timothy Neville retrieve the stolen artefact and bring the murderer to justice.I loved all the previous books of this series, but as much as I wanted to like this one as well, I just couldn't. It's is as if it is written by a different author and everything that we knew and loved from the previous books is completely changed. First of all the characters are unrecognisable and in my view not likable at all. Theodosia who used to be a caring, loyal, well-mannered lady, in this book is rude, aggressive, and disloyal to her dearest friends. She is actually unfaithful to her loving boyfriend Parker Scully, with none other than the man her good friend Delaine Dish is dating. Similarly, charming old-fashioned gentleman Drayton, in this book, is snobbish and nasty, and southern socialite Delaine is portrayed as half crazy and hysterical. Sadly it is not just the characters; the mystery is practically nonexistent and overshadowed by Theodosia's complicated love life and the descriptions of Charleston are not as brilliant as they were in the previous books.Apart from the mystery plot, as this is a Tea Shop Mystery there are some tea trivia; information about various blends of tea, different flavours, ways to serve tea, decoration ideas and ideas for tea related events, all these weaved into the story. Also there are very detailed descriptions of the mouth-watering dishes prepared by Haley for the Indigo Tea Shop and there are recipes at the end of the book for some of these great dishes. Sadly, we are not provided with recipes for all the dishes mentioned. In addition to the recipes, there are interesting and useful "Tea Time Tips", on how to host themed tea parties like a "Bridal Shower Tea", a "Scottish Tea", and a "Shabby Chic Tea", to mention just a few.The Favorite Recipes from the Indigo Tea Shop include "Chilled Peach and Ginger Soup", "Haley's Proprietary Lemon Scones", "Easy Chai Tiramisu", "Tomato and Basil Dip", "Cheesy Bruschetta", "Miss Dimple's Favorite Tea Cakes ", "Goat Cheese Truffles", "Couscous Salad", "Old-Fashioned Crumpets", "Creamy Dreamy Parfait", and "Lemon Chess Pie".In addition, the book includes a preview of Laura Childs's next Scrapbooking Mystery,  Postcards from the Dead (Scrapbooking Mystery)