Tea with Milk and Murder

Oxford Tearoom Mysteries, Book 2

By: H.Y. Hanna

Narrated by: Pearl Hewitt

Length: 7 hrs and 10 mins

Publisher's summary

While at an Oxford cocktail party, tearoom owner Gemma Rose overhears a sinister conversation minutes before a University student is fatally poisoned. Could there be a connection? And could her best friend Cassie's new boyfriend have anything to do with the murder? Gemma decides to start her own investigation, helped by the nosy ladies from her Oxfordshire village and her old college flame, CID detective Devlin O'Connor.

But her mother is causing havoc at Gemma's quaint English tearoom and her best friend is furious at her snooping...and this mystery is turning out to have more twists than a chocolate pretzel! Too late, Gemma realizes that she could be the next item on the killer's menu. Or will her little tabby cat, Muesli, save the day?

©2016 H.Y. Hanna (P)2017 H.Y. Hanna

Thoroughly enjoyable mystery with the perfect narrator!!

The Oxford Tearoom Mystery series is one of my absolute favorites. Each book has been even better than the last, and Tea With Milk and Murder is no exception. The audiobook version adds to the enjoyment of the book because the narrator is so adept at conveying the emotions of each individual character, even down to the little mischievous cat, Muesli. The witty parts in the book are enhanced by her talented storytelling. She really does a stellar job.
As for the book itself, I loved the perfectly plausible mystery, the cat's antics, the protagonist's love interests, and her mother's penchant for proper decorum at all times. When you couple that with the Oxford University setting, the old biddies' interferences and the charm of a British Tearoom, you can't go wrong. This is a cozy mystery series that always makes me chuckle, and puts a big smile on my face. Definitely recommended.

Talented author! More, please.

It took me two books in the Oxford Tearoom series to warm up but now I love it. The tone throughout is elegant and charming. The main character is a young lady in her 20s with no ridiculous, overly girly tones. She's intelligent, calm, and classy. Generally I'm not so interested in romance yet the small touches of a budding romance involving a past love are sweet and fun. Muesli the curious kitty is also a nice diversion. Polished and smart author with concise structure, noticeably more skilled than many cozy mysteries I've suffered. Great find. The historical component of Oxford town and colleges is intriguing! I'm continuing on to next book in the series and will try her other series as well.

get the rest of the series please!!!!

to audible do your th I thing buy the rest of the series please

Great Series

I am loving this series so far. I just bought the next book. Narrator is excellent and the story is really good

Enjoyable, wishing for more

This was a lovely book to listen to. The murder was believable yet no gory scenes which is appreciated by this listener. The main characters are easy to warm up to, and I find myself wishing for Cassie to someday see Seth as more than a friend. The biddies add humor, Gemma's mother is becoming more human and less of a robot, and I see the series really developing well.I do hope that the rest of the series will be available for audible listeners soon.

Don't Pass This Series By

This series is so good! I normally only listen to books on my daily commute, but couldn't stop listening when I got home. Good stories with great characters! I even laughed out loud several times in each of the first two books. I'm so happy to have found this series, and can't wait for the third book to be recorded and made available. I've heard an except and it promises to be another great story. I should note that the narrator of the series is exceptional! Her voice is perfect for these wonderful British characters!

Wonderful Addition !!!!!

Any additional comments?

I was super excited to get the 2nd book in The Oxford Tearoom Mysteries Series! It is living up to my expectations. Once again we find ourselves in the middle of a murder and all the usual characters are back, with some new ones thrown in the mix. I just love love the old Biddies who keep us giggling! And my favorite part of any series is getting to know the main characters and their surrounding friends and family. It makes you feel like you're immersed in their world. This book does not let you down! For a bit we can feel like we are in a quaint little English town. Can't wait for book 3!!!

Murder at an art gallery

In Tea with Milk and Murder, the second book in the Oxford Tearoom Mysteries series by H.Y. Hanna, Gemma Rose goes to a party at an art gallery where the art painted by her best friend Cassie is being displayed by Cassie’s new boyfriend, Johnny Kelsey, owner of the gallery. The party is crashed by Sarah Waltham, who claims to be Johnny’s girlfriend, and shows up drunk and violent. Then, Sarah has a seizure and dies, bringing in Gemma’s college love, Devlin O’Connor, now a Detective Inspector, to look into the murder.

Invested in the case for Cassie’s sake, Gemma does her own investigation into the death. Upon returning home after being questioned at the party, Gemma learns that Sarah had lived next door to her own parents, so she begins her own snooping there. It doesn’t take long before Gemma learns just how many people have had reason to hate Sarah. Since this long list includes Johnny, Cassie’s boyfriend, Gemma has a major falling out with her best friend, creating problems for the tearoom owned by Gemma and for which her mother is the cook. Gemma makes important discoveries, but it is Muesli, Gemma’s new cat, that saves the day!

This book is a very fun, creative book that gives a lot of flavor of Oxford, both the city and the university. It made me desire all the more to visit the school and wish I could study there! Besides the local flavor, the best thing about the book is the delightful characters and their unique elements. There is the critical but loving mother of Gemma. I loved the four “old biddies” who love to snoop and gossip with everyone around. But my favorite character is the cat Muesli, whose lively nature seems so realistic. I also liked seeing the developing relationship between Gemma and Devlin, who look like they are starting to renew the relationship they had eight years earlier.

I enjoyed the narration of Pearl Hewitt, who helps to take us to the world of Oxford. She creates good voices for the characters, especially making Muesli sound like such a real cat. When a book has first person narration, the perspective of the character influences the way the book must be read, since we are hearing each one through Gemma’s voice and perspective. Hewitt does a terrific job of performing this style of narration.

I thoroughly loved Tea with Milk and Murder even more than the previous book, A Scone to Die For, which you can read here. I give this book another five stars!

Such a pleasant diversion

Nothing particularly witty or life changing, but so nice to have a story line with human foibles and surprise twists but no evil to make one lose sleep. And the Oxford setting is sweet.

Wonderful second installment in the series!

Would you listen to Tea with Milk and Murder again? Why?

Yes! The narrator (Pearl Hewitt) does a wonderful job with all of the characters, and the story is well-written and translates very nicely to audio.

Who was your favorite character and why?

Gemma - as the protagonist she's intelligent, strong-willed, inquisitive, determined....all wonderful qualities to have. :-)

Which scene was your favorite?

Probably when Gemma and the Old Biddies (well, three of them) had to hide under a bed while searching another character's room.

Was there a moment in the book that particularly moved you?

The end, when Gemma made a particular decision.

Any additional comments?

Pearl Hewitt is an excellent narrator for these stories. It's very easy to differentiate between the characters, and she adds just the right amount of emotion and feeling.