Steeped in Malice is the fourth book in the series (Tea by the Sea). It is another great book by the author. The murder is based around a family who has ties to Lily’s past life in New York. The author always does a great job laying out all the suspects and getting you completely absorbed into their personalities and life. You also really get to know the main characters in the book; it feels like you are watching everything unfold in person.

The main character, Lily, is a no-nonsense type of person and her best friend, Bernie, is a lot of fun. Lily’s grandmother (Rose) owns the B&B that is next door to Lily’s tearoom. The relationships between all the different characters is my favorite part of the book, and series. Rose has a unique relationship with everyone. With Edna (her helper at the B&B) it is downright hysterical. With Bernie, they are co-conspirators getting Lily into trouble. With Lily and Rose, the relationship is quite unique. It’s hard to describe, but each relationship between the characters is so interesting. You really feel like you know them.

There’s lots of talk of tea, China patterns, food, and gardening. There is a little romance as well. The mystery is well thought out and the writing is superb. It’s a really good book. I’m looking forward to the next in the series!

Thank you NetGalley and Kensington Books for this wonderful ARC. I am submitting my unbiased and voluntary review and opinion. I will post this review to my blog, Goodreads, Bookbub, & Amazon accounts on the publication date, 7/25/23.

Steeped in Malice by Vicki Delany is book #4 in the Tea by the Sea Mysteries series. This cozy mystery has its roots in a dysfunctional family. There's a missing will involved and what it declares is very important. Tea by the Sea owner, Lily, her best friend Bernie and Lily's grandmother Rose can't resist getting involved in solving the mystery. I like these three characters very much. The other secondary characters add to the enjoyment of the read. This story kept me guessing and turning the pages. It a great addition to the series.

First of all a thank you to #NetGalley for the chance to read this book. I have read and loved all of Vicki Delany/Eva Gates series but this one just doesn't do it for me. I had read the first two books in this series then decided to stop. When book four was available I decided to try one more time. As in most of her books the setting is interesting, the mysteries are different and the book well written, the problem in this series is I just don't like the characters and there is an underlying nastiness to everyone involved in the murders. Lily is a wishy washy mess, she does not speak up for herself, she works like a dog, an takes crap from everyone even her best friend and grandmother. I am sorry Bernie and Rose just have no regard and no respect for Lily and I just don't know why she puts up with them. The mystery included a former colleague and Lily's ex who is beyond slimy. While the mystery was interesting I just couldn't care for any of these people, including the victim.

Love this series! It just gets better and better. Afternoon set. Antique tea sets. Charming characters. A good solid mystery. Have fun trying to pour out the killer in this fun read! Thanks#netgalley and #Kensington for the eARC in exchange for an honest w. All opinions are mine.

Lily Roberts is a restaurant chef👩🏻‍🍳 and owner of a tearoom called Tea by the Sea which is on a bed-and-breakfast property called Victoria-on-Sea owned by her maternal grandmother Rose Campbell. Lily moved to Cape Cod from Manhattan to help her grandmother run her B&B and stayed back to open her tearoom.

At Victoria-on-Sea Lily offers her guests a traditional full English breakfast every day along with cereal and yogurt, pastries and fruit 🍳 🥞 The B & B consists of eight rooms and suites.

Tea by the Sea needs new china 🍵 🫖 for the tearoom and to this end Lily has gone to North Augusta Antique Fair with her grandmother 👵🏻 and her friend Bernie, hoping to find a good bargain.

At the fair she buys finds a booth—McIntosh Antiques—where she buys matching teapots, cups, and side plates, 🫖 🍵 🍽️ and so on. Lily then exchanges pleasantries and business cards with the owner.

While scanning the antique vendor’s items, Lily’s eyes land on a brown Beatrix Potter tea set in a wicker box, cracked and worn with age. The box contains a children’s tea set nested cozily in a lining of faded blue cloth. The set of six cups cost two hundred dollars which Lily and Bernie find quite steep.

The vendor, however sensing Lily wouldn’t pay such an amount for a fragile teacup set, offers Lily a twenty percent discount and Lily accepts.

A few days later, a woman walks into Lily’s tearoom demanding to speak with Lily. According to the lady, the teacups she bought earlier at the fair are hers and she’d like them back. Like now.

Lily tells her it’s not possible seeing as some of her guests using it. But she asks the lady to come back at closing time so they could talk about it.

Later when Kimberly returns to the tearoom, Lily hands the box to her whereupon she rips the inner lining in the box, extracting an envelope and the dashes off without the box.
Lily suspects the envelope may contain something of sentimental value but shrugs it off.

Not too surprisingly another lady turns up at the tearoom; Rachel Morrison, an interior designer specializing in restaurants who Lily knew from her days as a pastry chef in New York. Turns out Rachel is Kimberly’s half-sister and she’s here for the envelope ✉️.

Not too long, the sisters are seen having an altercation in the dining room at breakfast. Later that night Lily hears people arguing outside her cottage. When she goes to investigate she finds Kimberly lying dead.

Recipes include Gluten-Free Pancakes 🥞, Blueberry Muffins🫐, and so on.

Thank you to Vicki Delany, NetGalley, and Kensington Books—Kensington Cozies for the arc of this book.

This is one of my go-to authors that I look for upcoming books. I have enjoyed this series. The characters are interesting and as the series goes along, they develop stronger relationships. In this one, Lily is thrown into a situation which at the beginning is the result of others' misbehavior, As the book progresses, she is increasingly involved because they won't go away! She does solve the mystery and there is a surprise at the end. You won't be dissapointed.

Lily Roberts is the proprietor of Tea by the Sea, a tearoom not too far from her grandmother Rose's beautiful B&B in Massachusetts. After leaving her job as a pastry chef in Manhattan behind, she's finally achieved her dream and couldn't be happier. What she needs now, however, is to peruse the aisles of an antiques fair in town, hoping to find new tea sets, because China is fragile and occasionally a piece or two gets broken.

When she, along with Rose and Lily's best friend Bernie arrive, they soon find what Lily is looking for: lovely things including a child's Peter Rabbit tea set nestled in a cute woven basket. Although the price is a bit steep, Lily can't resist. She's happy with her purchase and can't wait to use it. However, the next day a young woman comes looking for her and demands she produce it. Lily, irritated at the woman's rudeness, tells her it's being used right now and she'll have to come back after closing. The woman argues for a while, then storms out.

When the woman, who states her name is Kimberly Smithfield, returns for the set, all she does is rip the lining and take an envelope, telling Lily she can keep the set and throws money at her. Lily is surprised, but glad she gets to keep her prize. Later, an acquaintance from her old New York days, Rachel Morrison, arrives, also looking for the set, is dismayed to find that Kimberly took the envelope.

But the real surprises come later: Lily discovers that Kimberly -- and her new husband -- are staying at Rose's B&B. Rachel and Kimberly are half-sisters. And Kimberly's husband is none other than Lily's ex-boyfriend, Wesley, whom she broke up with and left behind along with her past. But he doesn't seem to be done with Lily. He wants her to come back to work for him, and seemingly won't take no for an answer.

When Lily hears a late night conversation and her little dog finds a body, the police are called. Now Lily is reluctantly involved in another murder investigation, and it may take all her wits and the help of her friends and Rose to solve this one. No one is saying anything, and Lily doesn't have a lot to go on. Everyone is keeping secrets and lies...and one of them is a murderer...

This is the fourth book in the series and I have loved them all. It just keeps getting better and better. The author is not only a prolific writer, but a talented one who takes us places we dream about and would love to visit. I can't imagine anything nicer than staying at a seaside B&B with a tearoom nearby.

I get a kick out of Bernie and her constantly changing book plots; it's amazing because she's so smart otherwise and knows her way around the inside of a computer (being married to an IT specialist myself, he knows the ins and outs and it leaves me in awe -- and I know computers pretty well myself). Bernie has a knack for finding things out, and she's a great help to Lily.

Lily is a woman on a mission, and it's a good thing she has a good staff, because this investigation leaves her a bit stumped. It doesn't help that her ex is a nasty piece of work, and his being in town is not something she's enjoying. But at stake is an estate worth millions, and none of the parties are willing to give up until what was in the envelope is found, and it leaves Lily wondering about it.

Watching her go through the motions of questioning people and trying to figure it all out is worth reading the book. Lily and her friends conspire to find the truth of the matter, and when it all comes together at the end, there are unexpected resolutions and a killer who's been hiding just barely under the wire. The ending is also worth reading the book for, and there are some recipes in the back that you might find interesting. I am looking forward to reading the next in the series and highly recommend this book.

I received an advance copy of this book from the publisher and NetGalley, but this in no way influenced my review.

This is the fourth book in the delightfully charming Tea by the Sea cozy mystery series. I love a good tea shop series so, as usual, I thoroughly enjoyed this one.

Lily, the teashop owner, bought a cute little Peter Rabbit childrens' tea set at an antique show, but unbeknownst to her, there is a handwritten will in the lining of the tea set's box and two half sisters are desperate to get their hands on it. When one of the sisters is found murdered, Lily, her best friend Bernie, and her grandmother Rose are all on the case.

A wonderful small town New England setting with plenty of terrific characters and a plot full of red herrings left me with plenty to savor.

Highly recommended for cozy mystery fans!! You can never go wrong with a Vicki Delany book.

Steeped in Malice by Vicki Delanynis an excellent cozy mystery that is the fourth book in the delightful A Tea By the Sea Mystery series. I highly recommend this one.

I love the location of the small seaside, New England town of North Augusta. The Tea By the Sea tea house that Lily owns and runs along with her spunky Grandmother Rose owning the joining Bed and Breakfast is just wonderful.

The mystery was fun, the whole cast of characters is engaging and essential to the books: Rose, Bernie, Simon, Cheryl, Eclair, and the rest of the gang make for a great experience. And that ending!!!!

I can’t recommend this series enough!

5/5 stars enthusiastically

Thank you NG and Kensington Books for this wonderful arc and in return I am submitting my unbiased and voluntary review and opinion.

I am posting this review to my GR and Bookbub accounts immediately and will post it to my Amazon, Instagram, and B&N accounts upon publication on 7/25/23.

Steeped in Malice is another great read in the Tea by the Sea series by Vicki Delany. Lily buys an adorable Peter Rabbit tea set at an antiques show. Unbeknownst to her, there is a handwritten will in the lining that two feuding half sisters are each desperate to get. When one of the sisters is murdered, and Lily becomes a possible suspect, its time for Lily to do some sleuthing, with the help of her best friend Bernie, and of course, grandma Rose. This was a wonderful cozy that had me hooked from page one! Lots of suspense, suspects, red herrings, likable characters, two cute pets, a little romance, and some humor sprinkled throughout. I can't wait to read the next installment in this wonderful series. Thank you to Kensington Books and netgalley for allowing me to read and review this book. 5 stars!

This is in my top 5 favorite series and Vicki Delany/Eva Gates is an auto buy author for me. Her books are always good and fun and interesting. She has never let me down to be completely hooked by the end of the first chapter all the way to the last word. I loved this book so much!! I would kindly ask for more in this series please!!
I just reviewed Steeped in Malice by Vicki Delany. #SteepedinMalice #NetGalley
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Another good story in the series of Lily, who runs a tea shop, finding a child's tea set, and unbeknownst to her included a copy of a will. Murder and theft soon follow and she must try to find out the killer before she is next. Fun series and story. Would recommend.

When Lily finds her past life from New York visiting her, she doesn’t expect her ex and his new wife to show up on her doorstep. Nor does she expect the new wife to be killed right outside her own home. But that’s what happens and she finds herself dead center in the middle of a family squabble as well.

Time for Lily to spill the tea on her ex and the gang to figure out who killed the new bride who has inherited her family’s estate. It’s a matter of life and business after all!

Another superb entry in this series set in Cape Cod. A well developed cast of characters, tea, treats, a solid mystery and the cutest kitty and pup will keep your coming back for each new serving! This is a must read series for me and I never miss an entry…give it a read and you’ll find yourself visiting Cape Cod often as well.

Tea, Treats and Troubles
Ms. Delaney pens a fun tea house/ B&B tale. Pastry chef Lily returned to her home town to run a tea house at her grandmother’s B&B. Both ladies are doing well and are happily enjoying life together with their friends and employees, when an unhappy blast from Lily’s past appears and upsets the status quo. There’s a search for a missing object that draws the attention on Lily.
Arson, murder and accusations fly. Well thought out cozy, written with humor and hints of romance. It’s a definite buy for any culinary cozy lover. It has some delicious sounding recipes at the end.
I requested and received a NetGalley ARC to peruse gratis and offer my opinion in the same.

I’ve read all of the books in this series and I like this one the best. I did guess the murderer about halfway through but it was still fun to see Lily and the police come to the same conclusion. Lily seemed more independent in this book and stronger when dealing with others. Bernie wasn’t as annoying as she could be in earlier books. Maybe it’s because she and Matt are spending time together. Even Rose didn’t use her “frail little old lady” act very often. This story has interesting characters and a few twists and turns. I love the setting of Cape Cod and the Tea Shop. It is was a real place, I would go!

Delany's latest Tea Shop mystery is full of twists and turns and laced with enough red herrings to keep readers guessing. The quaint location, interesting characters and humorous interludes make this another entertaining read. Fans of the series will enjoy the continuation and new readers will have no problem following the action.

steeped in Malice finds Lily visiting an antiques fair for replacement pieces needed for her tea shop. The mystery starts when one of the items she purchases in the fair has a hidden compartment. The story is fun, easy to read, and the characters are likable.

Highly recommend Steeped in Malice!!

Oy! Have you ever wanted to reach into a book and slap or strangle the person? This book made me want to do just that. The book made me grumpy. Between Detective Williams who is infuriating and incompetent. Lily's ex boyfriend Wesley. Oy! Then the sisters. Lily buys an antique peter rabbit tea set and then drama ensues. Another dead body is found right outside Lily's cottage. Overall a good mystery and I had no clue who the killer was.

Steeped in Malice is the 4th book in the Tea by the Sea Mystery series. The story takes place in the town of North Augusta on Cape Cod. Lily Roberts is the main character who owns The tea shop called Tea by the Sea. She lives in a small cottage on her grandmother, Rose's Campbell property and owns a B&B called Victoria by the Sea. Simon McCraker is the B&B gardner who also helps Lili with the baking when needed. He is also her boyfriend. Marybeth and her mother, Cherl help Lili in her tea shop. Bernadette (Bernie) is her best friend who rents a house down the road who is trying to write a book. Lily realizes that she is getting low with tea cups and decides to go to the North Augusta Antique Show with her grandmother, Rose and Bernie. While there she buys a child's tea set along with other tea cups. Kimberly Smithfield comes to the tea shop and asks Lili if she can buy the set back. It belonged in her family and was given to an antique shop in Chatham by mistake. She gets rude when Lili tells her that she can't do now but if she comes back at closing she would be happy to give the set to her in it's original box. Kimberly comes back at the end of the day and is interested in the box. She gives Lili $200.00 but only removes some of the lining and takes out an envelope and leaves. without the box or tea set. The next day Rachael Morrison who an interior designer specializing in restaurants. She is also interested in the tea set but becomes upset when she hears that her half-sister has already been there and taken the envelope. She tells Lili that it is her mother's revised will.

Kimberly is staying at Rose's B&B along with her husband, Wesley Schumann who is Lili's ex=fiancé. The next morning Rachael, Wesley and Kimberly have a fight in the dining room about the envelope. That night outside of Lili's cottage she hears a fight and goes to investigate. She finds Kimberly dead and calls the police. Detective Amy Redmond ad Detective Chuck Williams arrive. Lili has a bad relationship with Detective Williams.

This is where the story takes off on an adventure to finding out who killed Kimberly and why, There is so much going on in the story that I will leave it to the reader to find out and enjoy. It builds up to an exciting ending..

Lili's father who lives in Detroit comes and surprises Lili at the goodbye party for her neighbor who is going to help her daughter who is expecting a child. He arrives with his suitcases. He is planning to stay with his best friend Doc. The story ends with Lili and Simon going back to her cottage and stops and they kiss. I am guessing that in the next book the reader will find out more about her father coming to North Augusta and more about the relationship between Lili and Simon.

Thank you NetGalley and Kensington Publishing Corp for this ARC.

culinary, cozy-mystery, Cape Cod, small-business, small-town, amateur-sleuth, bed-and-breakfast, law-enforcement, murder-investigation, murder, family-dynamics, friendship, situational-humor, siblings, animosity, chef, tea-shop*****

Brangling sisters and a sleazeball chef make for a basis for a murder.
The publisher's blurb is a good hook, but I'm already hooked on the series. This one also has good sleuthing, interesting characters, sneaky twists, and inventive red herrings.
I loved it!
I requested and received a free ebook copy from Kensington Books via NetGalley. Thank you!