Steeped in Secrets

A Mountain Tea Shop Mystery

De: Mahesh Swayam

Narrado por: Virtual Voice

She inherited a tea shop. She got framed for murder. Now she's fighting for her freedom—one cup at a time.

Emma Harlow came to Pinecrest, Colorado for a fresh start. After burning out in her corporate job, she's ready to honor her late grandmother's legacy by reopening The Twisted Leaf, a beloved tea shop that's been a Main Street fixture for forty years. Three weeks of prep, careful planning, and nervous anticipation lead to her grand reopening night—a celebration of new beginnings.

Then she finds a body in the alley behind her shop.

Marcus Westfield, a wealthy real estate developer, lies dead just steps from Emma's back door. Marcus had been aggressively pursuing Emma and other local business owners to sell their properties for his luxury resort development. Emma publicly refused his offers, fought his plans, and made an enemy of a powerful man.

Now Marcus is dead, and all evidence points to Emma.

The local sheriff can't ignore the facts: Emma had motive, opportunity, and her threatening exchanges with Marcus were witnessed by half the town. Within hours, her brand-new tea shop becomes a crime scene and Emma becomes the prime suspect in a murder investigation.

With her business shuttered, her reputation destroyed, and her freedom at stake, Emma has no choice but to investigate the murder herself. Alongside Jake Thornton, a rugged park ranger with protective instincts and growing feelings for Emma, and her loyal best friend Lily Chen, Emma begins unraveling a web of financial fraud, predatory lending, and dangerous secrets.

As they dig deeper, Emma discovers that Marcus owed money to Vincent Shaw—a wealthy loan shark who's been quietly operating in Pinecrest for years. When Marcus couldn't repay his massive debt and threatened to expose Vincent's illegal activities, Vincent murdered him and carefully framed Emma as the perfect scapegoat: a newcomer with public conflicts and no deep community ties.

But Vincent underestimated two things: Emma's determination and the power of a small-town community rallying around one of their own.

Racing against time as Vincent tries to silence anyone who knows the truth, Emma must prove her innocence before she becomes his next victim. With each clue she uncovers, the danger escalates. Threatening texts. A kidnapping. A confrontation in an abandoned mountain cabin where one wrong move could be fatal.

Emma came to Pinecrest to brew tea and find peace. Instead, she's fighting for justice, discovering unexpected love, and learning that sometimes the best way to honor the past is to fight like hell for the future.

THE MOUNTAIN TEA SHOP MYSTERIES are perfect for readers who love:

• Cozy mysteries with genuine stakes and clever plots
• Small-town Colorado settings with authentic mountain atmosphere
• Amateur sleuths who solve crimes through intelligence, not luck
• Clean romance that complements rather than dominates the mystery
• Tea expertise woven naturally into the story
• Golden retriever sidekicks who steal every scene
• Found family and unbreakable community bonds
• Strong heroines who refuse to be victims

If you enjoyed Laura Childs' Tea Shop Mysteries, Joanne Fluke's Hannah Swensen series, or Diane Mott Davidson's Colorado culinary mysteries, you'll love Emma Harlow's adventures in Pinecrest.

Start the series today and discover why readers are calling STEEPED IN SECRETS "unputdownable," "the perfect cozy mystery," and "exactly what I needed."

Book 1 of The Mountain Tea Shop Mysteries. A complete story with no cliffhanger, but with characters you'll want to visit again and again.