☆☆☆ ½

Thanks to Netgalley and Boldwood Books for this ARC.

Loving Spirits at the Vintage Teashop is the second book in Sharon Booth’s Ghosts of Rowan Vale series, and it continues the cosy, comforting tone that readers will recognize from the first installment. Set once again in the charming village of Rowan Vale, the story blends gentle romance, a touch of mystery, and a whisper of the supernatural in a way that’s warm and inviting.

This time, the narrative centers around the upcoming 1940s weekend—a promising and fun idea—but I found myself wishing it had been more of a focus. Given how central the event is to the premise, it felt surprisingly underdeveloped. The pacing also slowed in the middle, which made the story feel a little uneven overall.

Still, the book has some lovely highlights. The big twist surrounding the mystery was genuinely unexpected and added emotional weight to the story. It was a satisfying surprise that elevated the narrative and gave it more depth than I anticipated. The romantic thread is sweet and understated, and the magical elements add just the right touch of whimsy.

While it didn’t quite hit all the marks for me—mainly due to pacing and a somewhat underused central plot device—Loving Spirits at the Vintage Teashop is a heartwarming, easy read perfect for a cosy afternoon. Fans of the series will enjoy returning to Rowan Vale, and the ending makes it clear there’s more to look forward to.

A 1940's murder and its repercussions👍

An excellent cozy mystery built around a community where ghosts are the norm.

The author did a great job of mixing a contemporary second chance romance with a historical murder in the years just after WWII. Great Aunt Polly's ghost is still present and accounted for, sharing the joys and daily life of her brother Norman's descendants. But the tragedy of her murder has remained a secret she just can't discuss, until the grandson of a German POW Polly knew shows up in Shona's tea shop. Max is looking for his daughter who's been working as a land girl on a farm in the 1940's recreation in Rowan Vale. But he believes his grandfather was mistreated on that same farm and unfairly blamed by many in the village for Aunt Polly's death. Max appeals to Shona, Polly's great niece, to help set the record straight. Their collaboration promotes romance.

The murky story of Polly's murder was really well done and I particularly liked the way Booth brought other ghosts from different periods of history into the story as participants in the old action or to provide snippets of information (the ghosts are stellar eavesdroppers!).

The first story in this series introduced the premise and host of ghosts residing on the estate. With this second book, Booth has used that appetizer and moved on to the cozy mystery meat first course. I am eager to read more.

Thanks to Boldwood Books and NetGalley for sharing a complimentary advance copy of the book; this is my voluntary and honest opinion.

Review shared on 6/19/25 on Waterstones and Goodreads. To be shared on kobo, Google Play, Bookbub and Barnes & Noble after publication.

oh Sharon sure knows how to write these comforting and heartwarming books. i feel like shes tucked me in and made me all cosy every time i get the privilege of opening the pages to her books. and this one is no different. and what a story with a beautiful cast of characters. i loved this book so much and smiled most of the way through.
i can really get invested in the world that Sharon is creating in these books and really hold on to their being more. it takes a special kind of author that can make this kind of things seem real, believable and Sharon does it ever so well. im in, im believing, im loving characters that are ghosts!
this book gives us Shona who is running the village 1940 tea shop, her themed tea shop. but shes not alone because living with her is her great Aunt Polly...who died...shes a ghost...yep, yep she is and she a a fab one.
enter Max a newbie who has come to the village with a connection to it all of his own. but that connection sends ripples through not only Shona but also Pollys world too. but Max wants to find out more, but in doing so it might bring up more things for the family that should definitely stay buried and never come back to haunt them. Can Shona find her way around this without anyone getting hurt including herself?
what i love in this book is how yes we are loving the characters of the living stories. but its the ghosts too, and in this book its Polly's story that makes me want to know more and gets me emotional too. her story was just as important and i was invested in it all the way until the heart thumping end.
loved this book. yes loved it. more please Sharon.

This was a nice cozy little book. I did think it started out a bit slow. It had some surprises I wasn’t expecting.
While I enjoyed this book I think I liked the first one best.

Loving Spirits at the Vintage Teashop by Sharon Booth is the second in the Spirits of Rowan Vale series, and while it works as a standalone, reading the first adds extra charm. Set in a quaint, ghost-filled village, the story follows teashop owner Shona as she investigates the mystery surrounding her Aunt Polly’s death. Her journey crosses paths with Max, who’s uncovering secrets about his POW grandfather, leading to a heartwarming second-chance romance wrapped in a gentle mystery.

This cosy read has everything—ghosts, love, friendship, and all the charm of the Cotswolds. The characters are endearing, the writing is warm and inviting, and the mix of past and present keeps the story engaging. It’s a sweet, uplifting book with a satisfying ending that’s perfect for curling up with—and one you might wish you could read again for the first time.

Thank you to @rachelsrandomresources for my copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.

This is the second book in this series, but reads really well as a standalone. We’re introduced to the ghosts and residents of this cute little village as they prepare for a 1940’s weekend. This causes a bit of a stir to begin with, what about the ‘60’s hairdressers and other “newer” businesses?

But all soon calms down and preparations are well underway, then a newbie walks into the tea shop and sets Shona’s heart racing! I really like Shona, such a lovely lady who’s had a lot gone on in her life but is quite content now. She falls for Max in a big way and gets caught up trying to solve a mystery with him that could uncover past family and village secrets that are best left alone.

This is such a lovely cosy fun book that I read most of it in one day and bought the first one too! I can’t wait to read that one and hope there’s more to come from the ghostly village.

This series has quickly become my favourite new series of 2025! In this one we are back at Rowan Vale and Callie has a great idea to turn the village into the 1940's for the weekend. It's a fun idea and everyone is on board - even Shona's great-aunt Polly, who lived and died in the 1940's. However, it soon turns out that it is going to stir up more bad memories than good, as Polly was murdered in the late 1940's.

If you love cozy paranormals you need to read this series. It's light and cozy and completely unputdownable. Sharon Booth brings her years of experience writing beautiful stories set in England and provides a really unique concept - a village where ghosts can be seen by family members. A village that is also like a living history museum.

My other favourite genre is cozy mysteries and I feel like this one was a combination of the two, because the reader is on the edge of their seat, waiting to find out who Polly's murderer was. I was absolutely hanging on to every word, trying to guess, and waiting for the big reveal.

Loving Spirits at the Vintage Teashop is an A++++++ read for me! Just perfect, and I will be counting down the days until the next one.

This was my first book by Sharon Booth, but I read the words "cozy romance" and "magical twist" and thought to myself that I would most certainly enjoy that - and I did! I think small towns always have a certain requirement to contain a mystery that nobody wants to discuss openly, but everyone still wants to know about it.

We read this story from two points of view: the teashop owner, Shona, and her great-aunt Polly, who is a ghost. Between these two, we slowly learn about Rowan Vale's special ghost population and how moody these ghosts can get. We learn that Polly's death wasn't a nice one. Her family hasn't asked or talked about it to spare her feelings, but when a new (handsome) man turns up in the village and catches Shona's eye, things get more complicated (and more mysterious).

The beginning felt a bit slow to me, but as soon as we learned about Polly's death and the tragic mystery around it, I was hooked. I was a little annoyed by Max and Shona in the middle because their feelings developed a bit too quickly for my taste. After meeting twice, they suddenly feel that they are each other's new great love.

However, I quite enjoyed the solving of the (various) mysteries at the end and the small history lessons that were interspersed in the story. I did learn a new thing or two about the German PoWs, and as a German, I think that is important!

Thank you to Boldwood Books and NetGalley for providing me with this ARC. All opinions are my own.

A cute little book, great for a cleanser or as something light to read when you just need to pick something up but don't know what!

Personally, I wasn’t a super fan of this book. I felt the characters were a bit flat and unengaging. The love story aspect felt forced and I didn’t love having to read the whole “oh at my age” thing repeatedly. I liked that the Shona and Max were over 50, that felt refreshing.

While I loved the idea of the ghosts, I felt there were way too many characters and things going on. I mean it is a second in a standalone series so I’m sure the first would give you more context, but as I didn’t read the first I’m not sure. I didn’t love that Shonas perspective was written in first person while Polly’s was written in third.

Overall not for me, but could be for someone.

Thanks to NetGalley and Boldwood Books for providing an ARC for my honest opinion.

This second book based in the village of Rowan Vale is just as good as the first one. I absolutely love the characters, those living and those of the spirit kind, how their individual backstories are explored but especially the interactions between them all. Shona runs a 1940’s style tea room in the village that is a living museum but not many people are aware that some of the residents are actually ghosts. Shona’s great-aunt Polly lives in the flat above the tea room and has done since her death. However no one really knows the facts about the night she died and she doesn’t ever want to talk about it but when a stranger turns up asking questions will she end up having no choice. This has so many delightful warm moments and a great feeling of family and community. There are also some more serious moments too. I’m really hoping that there is going to be another one! Thanks to Boldwood Books and Netgalley for the ARC
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Thank you to NetGalley and Boldwood Books for an ARC of this book. Shona lives in Rowan Vale where ghosts live amongst the living but only their family members can interact with them except for the owner of the estate. A mysterious man (Max) comes to town and brings up bad memories for Shona’s ghost aunt, Polly. This starts the search for Polly’s murderer and to prove Max’s grandfathers innocence in the murder. Despite this being the second book in a series, I was able to understand what was going on. I thought this was really cute and very entertaining!

Second in the series; you don't need to have read the first to understand what's going on, but I'd recommend it as it's a good read.

Rowan Vale is a living history tourist village - but some of the inhabitants can see the ghosts of their family who still live there, and others can see all the ghosts in the village.

This story focuses on Shona, the teashop owner, and what happened to her aunt, Polly.

Lovely mix of a second-chance romance (between Shona and Max) and unpicking mysteries from the past, as Max searches for answers about what really happened to his POW grandfather, and Shona wonders who murdered her aunt, Polly.

Thoroughly enjoyed it - a warm, sweet book, lovely characterisation and the kind of ending readers really root for.

"Loving Spirits at the Vintage Teashop" is a charming story set in the quaint town of Rowan Vale. When I started reading this book, I didn't realize it was a sequel, but I found that I didn't need the first book to understand the plot.

This delightful cozy murder mystery takes place in Rowan Vale, an English town where everyone feels like family, even the resident ghosts. Shona, the manager of the Vintage Teashop, enjoys spending time with her father and her Aunt Polly, who was murdered on New Year's Eve in 1947. Aunt Polly has always claimed not to know who killed her, but is she hiding the truth?

Enter Max, an outsider seeking answers to the stories told by his grandfather. As Shona and Max investigate, they discover that their families are intertwined. Together, they search for answers, but will helping Max only draw Shona into a tragic story about her own family? Will Polly realize that hiding the truth about her murder might hurt her loved ones and ultimately affect Shona’s happiness? You'll have to read the book to find out!

Thank you to Negalley, Sharon Booth, and Boldwood Books for this advanced ARC copy for my honest review.

I just loved this book so much so that I read it in one sitting as I couldn’t put it down. I loved how it carried on from the first book and I loved getting to know more about Aunt Polly. I loved the quirky characters in this book too, it would be amazing if you were able to speak to the ghosts the way they are in this book. I really hope that there is an another book in this series as it’s just an amazing book with an amazing story.

I would highly recommend reading this book and the first book in this series as they are amazing books with great characters and so heartwarming as well.

I would like to thank Boldwood Books and NetGalley for giving me the opportunity to read and review this book early.

RATING: 3.5
A cute return to Harling Hall!

I enjoyed coming back to Harling Hall for this second book in the series, and the second-chance romance between Max and Shona was really sweet - I was rooting for them the minute Shona admitted to herself that she had a little crush on him. Max’s search for answers about his German POW grandfather was interesting as I don’t read a lot of historical fiction (but am obviously well aware of WWII) and the way this was integrated with the village’s 1940s themed weekend helped set the tone for the book.

I will say though that I would have liked more of Shona & Max’s story and a bit less of Polly’s POV, or that the two elements were interwoven more or something; they felt a little separate (even though they were two angles of the same story). And it’s for that reason that I’ve given it the 3.5 rating.

That said! I am looking forward to returning for the Christmas instalment when it comes out!

Thank you to Booth, Boldswood Books & NetGalley for the opportunity to read & honestly review Loving Spirits at the Vintage Teashop prior to its release.

This book was just as cozy as the first one.
In this story we follow Shona, the manager of the tea house who alongside her ghost aunt Polly, get shaken up when meeting Max, a German teacher. Slowly it comes clear that Max might be tied to how Polly ended up being a ghost; but between a 1940s inspired weekend, polly herself not wanting the truth to come out and Shona and Max not knowing if they can find love again; the situation gets messy.
Personally I really liked this story and the historical setting that was in the background. I did not see the plot twist coming, but I throughly enjoyed this story. As I said for the first one, this one as well doesn’t need a romantic subplot, however I liked how this one was integrated way better. Also really enjoyed reading from a grown woman’s perspective.
Thank you NetGalley and the publisher for an e-arc copy in exchange for an honest review.

Thank you to NetGalley and to Boldwood Books for providing me with an ARC!

Ghosts, romance, teashop, and all the Cotswolds charm you could ever need and want in such a cosy and warming book. I loved every second of this novel, and it took me right out of my reading slump. This goes down on my list of which novels I wish I could read again for the first time <3

I am loving this series. The premise is just SO GOOD, and I wouldn't be surprised if there were sequel after sequel with this much scope for stories.

This novel has it all from old mysteries solved, romance, new characters, misunderstandings and family love and loyalty. I like the protagonist being a curvy 52 year old woman who is a true teashop owner through and through.

I like that the community of ghosts is revealing so much more than before and having little parts to play throughout, for example Isaac and his naughty eavesdropping to the vicar (Silas?) finally getting a smile on his face and even some ghosts from loooong ago joining in the fun.

The 1940's event sounds so amazing and I wish I could have been there myself. Buckling in for the next installment and hope it will be a Victorian Christmas theme! Loving the series and seriously jealous that it isn't real so I can visit.

Thanks to Netgalley and Boldwood Books for the ARC, all opinions are my own.

I loved this book! Honestly feels like a warm hug in a book. I feel like it had everything I look for in a nice cosy fantasy, a little romance, relatable characters and a storyline that keeps you gripped. Highly recommend!