3.75 stars

Trained culinary baker Lily has started her own tea shop on Cape Cod, next to her eccentric grandmother's B&B. Lily is struggling as a contestant in a TV cooking show after entering against her better judgment.

The TV crew spends time sniping at each other and jockeying for position. Lily just wants them all to go away, but she has signed a contract. When one of the judges is found murdered in the tea shop kitchen, police focus on one of Lily's employees as a suspect.

This is a series with an interesting setting and nicely developed characters. Lily, her grandmother, her staff, gardener Simon and best friend Bernie are a fun group to spend time with. Thanks to the publisher and to Net Galley for providing me with an ARC in exchange for my honest review.

Lily Roberts is happy running her tearoom, Tea by the Sea, and helping out with breakfasts at her grandmother's B&B, Victoria on Sea. Against her better judgment she has also reluctantly agreed to participate in the successful TV cooking show America Bakes! The resulting disruption during Lily’s busiest season has meant an overcrowded kitchen, staffing problems, disgruntled film crew and staff, along with unfamiliar deadlines playing havoc with her schedules.

After a body is found in the tearooms Lily, her grandmother, Rose, and best friend, Bernie begin their own investigation not convinced the police department's main suspect had anything to do with the killing. When another person is attacked it's clear they're getting closer to the truth but time isn't on their side as the murderer gets more desperate to cover their tracks.

It was lovely to be back in Vicki Delany's English themed tearooms once again and this was a quick and easy read I devoured in one sitting. The main protagonists are becoming more familiar now but the additional characters this time around may put you off working in television for life!

The televised bake-off style contest is a popular theme in cosy crime circles at the moment and I am enjoying reading the different interpretations on offer. There are recipes included once again at the end which all seem very nice indeed.

I was able to read an advanced copy of this book thanks to NetGalley and the publishers but the opinions expressed are my own. I love this series and the third installment doesn't disappoint.

America Bakes brings nothing but trouble to Cape Cod in this latest in a series set in a tea house/B&B. Lily isn't happy to have been entered into the competition but the crew for the show is staying at Rose's B&B and well, it might bring publicity. However, Tommy, one of the judges is loathsome, so obnoxious that he purposefully trips a waitress. Is it any surprise that someone murders him? Well, it wasn't Cheryl, whose rolling pin did the deed. At least Lily doesn't think so. Lily, Rose and Bernie set out to find the truth and what a tangled mess they discover! There are enough red herrings to keep you guessing. Don't worry if you haven't read the earlier books- it will be fine as a standalone. Thanks to Netgalley for the ARC. It's a classic cozy in a good setting.

I was thrilled to be able to read the long-awaited TEA BY THE SEA MYSTERY #3: “Murder Spills the Tea”, and was rewarded exactly like I expected to be…thrilled! I love everything I have read by Vicki Delany, and take great pride in recommending her to all my reading friends, who are also never disappointed. In all of Vicky’s series, it feels so good to reconnect with all the characters, who seem like old friends. She truly is brilliant in character development. All her characters, good, bad, or annoying, are most believable and relatable (except the murderers), and so well described throughout the stories, without making the descriptions tedious whatsoever. The plots are intriguing and most complex, and I can expect not to detect who was the culprit every time, which adds to the excitement. In this third book in the Tea By The Sea series, Vicky nicely waits until chapter 6 to reveal the murdered individual, who was indeed the one I had suspected from “getting it”. Descriptions of the beautiful setting of the book are brilliant and never just irritating “fillers” that other cozy authors castigate us with. The delicious descriptions of baked goodies are never-ending, and they kept me hungry for pastries. Her plot is quite complex and I wonder how she twists and turns her stories in such a believable and fun way. I can’t help but laugh very often. Vicki is absolutely a master of human interactions and woes. I was very pleased that both Rose and Bernie were not so annoying as in the first two books. Now they are more mellow, and actually help Lucy in her murder investigation. Again, I proved to myself that I would make a very poor detective, because I did not guess whodunnit! The book is such an easy read, and you’ll find it difficult to put down. The only problem is that it has to come to an end, and then you are left craving more. Fortunately, Vicky aims to publish 4 books a year, so the wait is compensated by more hours of un yet to come. I can’t wait until book #4 comes out, so I can sleuth along with Lucy, Rose and Bernie. Thank you.

Tea by the Sea is part of a reality program! Not that Lily is excited by this, but the buzz about the tea shop will be grand! Except, Lily finds one of the judges dead in her kitchen. With Cheryl, her waitress, the prime suspect, there is no doubt Lily, Bernie and Rose will be working to discover who had problems with the deceased. A good mystery, well written, with plenty of red herrings to follow. This series keeps getting better and this third book does not disappoint!

Murder Spills the Tea is the third book in Vicki Delany's Tea by the Sea Mysteries, a cozy amateur sleuth collection set in Cape Cod, Massachusetts and revolving around a late 20's protagonist named Lily and her English grandmother. Unbeknownst to her, Lily's grandmother and best friend enter her in a tv show cooking competition, which brings the show's cast and crew to the historic B&B and newly launched tea shop. Immediately, trouble ensues and Lily stumbles upon another dead body. This time, it's someone who was both kind and mean in the prior days, leaving Lily to wonder which side of the (wo)man was the real one. She also spars with another local bakery owner who wants to put Lily's tea shop out of business. Delany always makes me a contented and excited reader, but her books go quickly and leave me sad and desperately waiting for the next one. The series is hitting its stride and the characters are unfolding in bright and memorable ways. I look forward to the romance that appears to be brewing too. Great installment!

Murder Spills the Tea by Vicki Delany (Tea By the Sea Mystery #3) 4 stars

A hot TV cooking show is coming to Cape Cod and throwing out her common sense, Lily Roberts is competing in “America Bakes!”. The TV show cast and crew are coming to “Tea By the Sea” to film for a few days. During the filming, one of the judges, Tommy Greene loses his temper with one of the wait staff and there is a public blowup between Tommy and Cheryl Wainwright. This makes Cheryl “Suspect #1” when Tommy is found dead in the teashop’s kitchen. Although Cheryl is in the crosshairs of the local police detective, Tommy had plenty of enemies that were in the vicinity. Lily will have to figure out who the real murderer is or Cheryl will end up serving in the prison mess.

I have read this series since the beginning and while each is well written, I wasn’t fond of the relationship between Lily and her grandmother, Rose in “Tea and Treachery”. But each subsequent book has been better than the first and I now look forward to each new book. It take a village to solve a mystery and Lily, Rose and Bernie use their skills and contacts to contribute the puzzle pieces. The mystery was engaging and the finale – worthy of a scene from a thriller movie. I look forward to the next book in this series.

Thank you Netgalley and Kensington Books for this ARC.

The country's hottest TV cooking show is filming in Cape Cod at Lily Roberts’ charming tearoom, Tea by the Sea! The filming becomes intense when infamous bad-boy chef and celebrity judge, Tommy Greene, loses his temper with Cheryl Wainwright. Then, Tommy is found dead in Tea by the Sea's kitchen, murdered with Cheryl's rolling pin.
This was a good cozy mystery with great main characters and a fabulous setting I wish I could visit. I love seeing the recipes at the back of the book and hope to try them soon. The plot was a big puzzle, and I couldn’t figure out the culprit’s identity. I felt that this story was a little slow but satisfying. Thank you to NetGalley and Kensington Publishing for this advanced reader’s copy.

Lily Roberts owner of Tea by the Sea suddenly finds herself in a cooking contest with America Bakes! The judges and producer are staying at her grandmother’s B&B. When one of the judges turns up dead, one of Lily’s servers becomes the main suspect. In spite of better intentions, Lily becomes involved. I thoroughly enjoyed this installment in this series. Love the characters and the setting.

Murder Spills the Tea” by Vicki Delany the 3rd instalment in the “Tea by the Sea Mysteries”. Vicki Delany is one of my favourite cozy mystery authors, I’m never disappointed when I pick up one of her books. Lily Roberts pores over the clues in a piping hot new case when a confrontational celebrity chef is murdered at her Cape Cod tearoom during the filming of a popular baking show

I found myself engrossed in the story and reading in couple days. It was entertaining, full of twists and turns and delectable food.

The mystery is interesting and well plotted, and kept me guessing till the very end. I love the main character of Lily, her grandmother Rose, Simon, and her BFF Bernie. Cheryl and her daughter are starting to feel like family not just employees and I like where it’s heading. Romance is starting to brew with Lily and Simon as well as Matt and Bernie …

I won’t go into detail about the mystery as the book blurb does a wonderful job of it but I will say if you like afternoon tea, the seaside, and a great mystery then this series is for you. Includes recipes at back of book ... yummy

I highly recommend this series to all my cozy loving friends.

I requested and received an Advance Reader Copy of this book from Kensington Books and NetGalley. All thoughts and opinions are my OWN.

Murder Spills the Tea (great title!) is the mouth-watering third installment of Vicki Delany's Tea by the Sea cozy mystery series. I love a good food cozy, and this one serving up treats in a seaside tea room was delightfully good!

Lily Roberts runs a tea room called Tea by the Sea adjacent to her grandmother's charming Cape Cod B&B. In this one, Lily reluctantly finds herself both filming a reality tv baking show and investigating the murder of one of the judges after the body is discovered in her kitchen. One of Lily's employees is the primary suspect, so Lily works to clear her friend while competing on the show and trying to survive all the on-set drama.

Vicki Delany always delivers a well-written cozy, and this one is no exception. Well plotted and paced with several suspects to sift through and sustained suspense, it was an excellent chance to play armchair detective. A character-driven series, it is populated with engaging characters, including Lily, her grandmother Rose and best friend Bernie, who are gems. In addition, the on-set tv drama added a gossipy, messy layer to the story, making deciphering the clues a lot of fun. And for me, this charming series keeps getting better and better.
Thank you to NetGalley and Kensington Books for the opportunity to review this ARC. I look forward to book four in the series!

I'm a fan of tea, and had heard about this series. So, I decided to give this book a try. The book is charming cozy read. I enjoyed the story, characters, and solving the mystery alongside the protagonist, Lily Robert's.

The book also includes recipes for readers.
My thanks to Kensington Publishing and NetGallery for a digital copy of this book for my review. I hope to read more of A Tea by the Sea Mystery series!

MURDER SPILLS THE TEA is the third book in the Tea by the Sea Mysteries by Vicki Delany. This charming cozy mystery features a reality baking show, America Bakes! with, much to her dismay, protagonist Lily Roberts as one of the contestants. Her grandmother, Rose, and best friend, Bernie, pushed her into it and, as she feared, anything that could go wrong does, despite the judges enjoying her baking. Ms. Delany brings tension to the pages as conflicts mount between the production staff and Lily’s employees. The filming scenes feel authentic and the interaction between the players makes me feel like I’m watching a reality show with all the drama that ensues. One of the author’s strengths—across all of her series—is her character development. Each core character is memorable and well-developed, making the reader care about what’s happening. And when Cheryl, one of Lily’s employees, is accused of killing one of the judges, Lily (and the reader) can’t help but want to see Cheryl’s proven innocent.

The plot of the mystery is well-executed and I jumped from suspect to suspect, thinking I’d figured it out. There was misdirection amongst the drama surrounding the filming of the cooking show and clues craftily placed for the armchair detective to suss out. As Lily converses with the film crew and the celebrities, and eavesdrops as much as possible to find out the truth, she manages to bake up loads of tea room goodies. With a spine-chilling reveal that had me on the edge of my seat, the pieces of the puzzle come together in a satisfying conclusion.

Running a tea room along with cooking breakfast for her grandmother’s B & B guests each morning, Lily spends a huge amount of time baking. There are mouthwatering mentions of baked goodies throughout the book, and Ms. Delany has thoughtfully included a couple tempting recipes at the back of the book for the home cook to try out.

Murder Spills the Tea by Vicki Delany is the third book in the Tea by the Sea Mystery series. This was a real puzzle of a murder for amateur sleuth Lily Roberts to solve. A reality show called America Bakes is being filmed in Cape Cod. Lily reluctantly agrees to participate after her grandmother, Rose and her best friend, Bernie signed her up for the competition. This book has a complex, yet well-developed storyline. I like the characters and the way Lily, Rose and Bernie approach the murder mystery. The suspense was sustained well and the ending was great.

Thank you NetGalley, Vicki Delany and Kensington Books for the ARC of Murder Spills the Tea. This is my personal review.
Murder Spills the Tea is the third book in the Tea by the Sea Mysteries Series. This is a great cozy mystery series that gives me everything I want in a cozy book.
A cooking contest show is coming to town and Lily gets dragged into the contest on America Bakes. She in talked into being on the show because it would be good for the Tea Shop.
Well of course things do not go as planned and a judge ends up getting murdered. Lily knows she has to help solve this murder, so she jumps into doing just that.
The author does such a great job of writing the book, so it is not easily figured out who is guilty as I was reading the book.
I can not wait for the next installment in this series.

America Bakes, a reality cooking TV show is coming to North Augusta to shoot an episode of their competition at Tea by the Sea. It was Rose and Bernie’s idea and they talked Lily into participating. This decision creates the entire scenario for the mystery.
I like reading about Lily and her tea shop. I am more ambivalent toward all the reality TV characters. None of them were very likable.
There are some good suspects including Cheryl, one of the servers working for Lily. At the end of the day, the murderer wasn’t really someone I had considered.
The story is well written and creative. The food and tea service is fun to read about even if I don’t think making scones is as easy as Lily says it is.

This series is just tons of fun. I loved the spin of a cooking show coming into the tea room. It brought a new energy to the story, which I appreciated. I also liked how we got to see a little more outside of just Lily’s narrow circle of folks. It’s something the books need to do for the series to grow.

The country’s hottest TV cooking show is coming to Cape Cod. And against her better judgment, Lily Roberts is entering America Bakes! with her charming tearoom, Tea by the Sea. Filming is already proving disruptive, closing the tearoom during Lily’s busiest season. But tensions really bubble over when the infamous bad-boy chef and celebrity judge, Tommy Greene, loses his temper with Lily’s staff, resulting in an on-camera blowup with Cheryl Wainwright. Just as Lily thinks the competition can’t get more bitter, Tommy is found dead in Tea by the Sea’s kitchen . . . murdered with Lily’s rolling pin.

I can see myself loving where Lily lives and works this is a prime location and a perfect spot for a tearoom. Lily and her team do not disappoint when we see her allowing the TV Station to use the tearoom for the show. But it is not going so well for her again she is surrounded by a murder investigation. It never fails that she is the one to be blamed she must find the killer! The turns and events she encounters are intriguing and surprising let's just say you will not believe who the real killer is!!

Great title! I recently learned that is the new way to ask for gossip, unfortunately all gossip is not good but all publicity is good, right? Wrong! Lily learns this quickly enough when she reluctantly agrees to take part in a reality TV bake off featuring the Tea Shoppe and her wonderful baked goods. The funny thing about this whole ordeal is that one would think that getting up at the crack of dawn to bake, or prepping after working an entire day is an ordeal, but not Lily. Drama begets drama whether it is naturally occurring or factiously created and this time it leads to murder. There are plenty of suspects, or rather others who make far better suspects than Lily’s assistant, Chery, who unlike several of the Hollywood types, had no true motive. Like the two books that preceded it, this cozy also has quite a bit of sleuthing, a cuddly companion, a dynamic duo, a gallant gardener, and recipes that are perfect regardless of when or how you take your tea.

I love everything I've read by Vicki Delany, and 'Murder Spills the Tea' is no exception. One of the things I appreciate most is the way Vicki takes me to a location I have never, nor probably will ever visit and make me feel so comfortable there. It is a gift. The latest in the Tea by the Sea Mystery series follows a popular food channel TV show to Lily's Cape Cod business and intense competition results in the death of one of the judges. I didn't immediately figure out the culprit, something I always enjoy. It was all the more poignant in this offering because the victim turned out to be such a nice guy with a family left behind. I look forward to more, and seeing if Simon's work visa will be extended!

I received a complimentary copy of this book from the publisher via NetGalley. The opinions expressed in this review are entirely my own.