Murder with Cherry Tarts is the fourth installment in the Daisy's Tea Garden Mystery series set in the Amish town of Willow Creek, PA and featuring tea garden owner Daisy Swanson and her two daughters. Daisy is busy planning for her pregnant daughter Violet's wedding to Tea Garden employee Foster Cranshaw while finishing up the apartment she has built for them over her garage and trying to support younger daughter Jasmine (Jazzi) efforts to get to know her biological mother a little better.

Daisy notices that one of her employees, the young single mom, Karina Post is beginning to ask to take all of the leftover baked goods and soups home with her at the end of her shifts. When a customer mentions that they've seen Karina in the "seedy" part of downtown, Daisy becomes curious and asks her boyfriend Jonas Groft to join her to tail Karina one evening. They discover that Karina is bringing the food to a single father; homeless and living in his van with his small and sickly daughter, Mandy. Jonas and Daisy quickly agree to try and help the father and daughter, giving them a home, finding them a job and getting Mandy the medical attention that she needs.

Keith Rebert has been supporting himself and his daughter since his wife died by buying and selling antiques and most recently he's been working with the local Civil War Shop, Pirated Treasures. The elderly owner Otis has failing eyesight so his nephew Barry has taken over control of the shop, but he's not treating folks fairly. Knowing the Keith is down on his luck, Barry takes full advantage of the situation by low balling the amounts his willing to pay. After a testy argument between the two men, Otis stumbles upon the bludgeoned body of his nephew and unfortunately the only person he remembers seeing the previous day is Keith. Daisy and Jonas are convinced that Keith is innocent and they set out to clear his name.

A fast paced and easy read. While this addition to the series can read as a stand alone I strongly encourage readers to start at the beginning in order to grow along with Daisy, her girls and her relationship with Jonas. I look forward to more adventures in Willow Creek.

Share/Like this Review?

Murder with Cherry Tarts by Karen Rose Smith has Daisy Swanson preparing for her eldest daughter's wedding in Willow Creek, Pennsylvania. She cannot help but notice that that something seems to be going on with Karina Post, one of her employees at Daisy's Tea Garden. Since Karina will not open up to Daisy, she is left with only one choice. Daisy and Jonas follow Karina one evening to discover that she is helping Keith Robert and his daughter, Mandy who are living in a van. Keith's deceased wife has ovarian cancer which led to a number of medical bills and time missed from work. Keith lost his wife, his job and his home. The father and daughter duo have been living in the van with Karina providing food that she purchased from the tea shop and Keith earning money by selling antiques to Pirated Treasures. Jonas moves Keith and Mandy into his home while Keith works at getting back on his feet financially. Then Otis Murdock, owner of Pirated Treasures, is found bludgeoned to death with a marble rolling pin. Keith's fingerprints are on it which makes him a prime suspect. Daisy and Jonas need to clear Keith's name or Mandy will end up without her only parent. Murder with Cherry Tarts is the fourth novel in A Daisy's Tea Garden Mystery series. It can be read on its own for those new to the series. Daisy is busy helping her daughter, Violet plan her wedding to Foster Cranshaw. She has an apartment created for them and they will be moving in after the nuptials. Violet is going to need her mother to get through the wedding and what lays ahead with the baby. Jazzi, Daisy's sixteen years old adopted daughter, wants to invite her birth mother and her husband to the wedding. Jazzi wants to get to know her bio mom. As if Daisy does not have enough going on in her life, Karina has been acting odd. I like that Daisy was concerned about her employee and wanted to help her. In the real world, though, I have a feeling that following her would not fly. The characters are kind, thoughtful and relatable. The mystery was straightforward and those who read cozy mysteries frequently will have no problem fingering the guilty party. There were some clever developments in this whodunit that I enjoyed. I am not a fan of Detective Zeke Willet. I would like to see him replaced in the series. I thought the pacing was mild with it picking up near the end. Murder with Cherry Tarts focuses on the people. Daisy cares about her family and friends. She will go out of her way to help those in need. When it is time for a discussion, the food comes out. Cherry tarts and chicken soup were the two items featured in this cozy mystery. My favorite lines from Murder with Cherry Tarts is, âHappily ever after is not a fairy tale. It's a choice.â Murder with Cherry Tarts is a lighthearted cozy mystery with tempting treats, wedding worry, mom melodrama, antique artifacts, and a disagreeable detective.

Share/Like this Review?