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Honeyleaf Tea Room #2
Matcha for Murder
A man is dead in her prep room. The lease is threatened. And the register logged a latte no one ordered, at twenty-three forty-seven on a night the café was locked and empty.
Rory Lane is trying to run a coffee shop. That's all she good coffee, regular customers, and an unremarkable lease renewal. What she gets is Edgar Mullins dead on her floor, a camera glitch that's too convenient to be accidental, and a property manager who keeps turning up with very warm smiles and very sharp edges.
The investigation that follows takes Rory through her neighbors' secrets, an eight-year paper trail of fraud, and one fabricated fire safety inspection that was never meant to be found. Every time she thinks she has the full picture, it gets bigger. Every time she tries to step back, the next detail won't let her.
The evidence is in the records. It always was. Someone just had to be paying attention.
Matcha for Murder is the second book in the Rory Lane Café Mysteries; cozy, fair-play mysteries set in the small-town world of Willowbrook, where the coffee is excellent and the truth has a way of surfacing in the most unremarkable places.
Rory Lane is trying to run a coffee shop. That's all she good coffee, regular customers, and an unremarkable lease renewal. What she gets is Edgar Mullins dead on her floor, a camera glitch that's too convenient to be accidental, and a property manager who keeps turning up with very warm smiles and very sharp edges.
The investigation that follows takes Rory through her neighbors' secrets, an eight-year paper trail of fraud, and one fabricated fire safety inspection that was never meant to be found. Every time she thinks she has the full picture, it gets bigger. Every time she tries to step back, the next detail won't let her.
The evidence is in the records. It always was. Someone just had to be paying attention.
Matcha for Murder is the second book in the Rory Lane Café Mysteries; cozy, fair-play mysteries set in the small-town world of Willowbrook, where the coffee is excellent and the truth has a way of surfacing in the most unremarkable places.
267 pages, Kindle Edition
Published March 15, 2026
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Displaying 1 - 4 of 4 reviews
September 30, 2026
This was the first book in this series that I have read. I do feel that I need to go back and read the first one. The first book/murder was mentioned in this book but different things weren't clarified, just hinted at. A note at the beginning or some clarity would have gone a long way for me. The characters were mentioned in the same way. I still don't have a clue about the relationships between different characters or why some were introduced in a context that suggested importance but no clarification as to why.
The mystery itself was good. We knew who the killer was for a good chunk of the book, which was fine. It was then Lila that did research and talked to the suspects to get the evidence needed for an arrest.
Overall, the story was good and I will read the next one (and see how I feel about continuing the series). The characters were interesting but some things were very repetitive. We heard about the ceremonial set many times. All of its contents were listed and described several times and it didn't seem necessary. There were also two weird references that threw off the flow of the story for me. The first was in chapter seven: during Lila's thoughts "I had noted the smear on the door in Chapter Three." The other was in the last chapter where Lila is thinking about knowing Rowan outside of a professional context "after two books." Referencing chapters and books as part of the character's thoughts threw off the illusion of the story for me and broke the flow.
I received a free copy of this book via Booksprout and am voluntarily leaving a review.
The mystery itself was good. We knew who the killer was for a good chunk of the book, which was fine. It was then Lila that did research and talked to the suspects to get the evidence needed for an arrest.
Overall, the story was good and I will read the next one (and see how I feel about continuing the series). The characters were interesting but some things were very repetitive. We heard about the ceremonial set many times. All of its contents were listed and described several times and it didn't seem necessary. There were also two weird references that threw off the flow of the story for me. The first was in chapter seven: during Lila's thoughts "I had noted the smear on the door in Chapter Three." The other was in the last chapter where Lila is thinking about knowing Rowan outside of a professional context "after two books." Referencing chapters and books as part of the character's thoughts threw off the illusion of the story for me and broke the flow.
I received a free copy of this book via Booksprout and am voluntarily leaving a review.
July 4, 2026
As someone who usually picks up dark thrillers, I honestly wasn't sure how I'd feel about a cozy mystery centered around matcha and a tea room but I'm so glad I gave this one a chance.
This was such an easy, comforting read. It had that cozy atmosphere that made me want to curl up with a warm drink and keep reading "just one more chapter." I really enjoyed trying to piece together the mystery alongside the characters, and every time I thought I'd worked it out, something else would make me second-guess myself.
What I loved most was how the story never tried too hard. It let the mystery unfold naturally while giving me enough clues to keep me invested without making the ending obvious. The tea room setting was also such a refreshing change from the darker books I normally read, and it gave the whole story a unique charm.
This won't replace psychological thrillers as my favourite genre, but it reminded me how enjoyable a well-written cozy mystery can be. It was a lovely palate cleanser between heavier reads, and I'd happily return to Honey Pot Tea Room for another mystery.
This was such an easy, comforting read. It had that cozy atmosphere that made me want to curl up with a warm drink and keep reading "just one more chapter." I really enjoyed trying to piece together the mystery alongside the characters, and every time I thought I'd worked it out, something else would make me second-guess myself.
What I loved most was how the story never tried too hard. It let the mystery unfold naturally while giving me enough clues to keep me invested without making the ending obvious. The tea room setting was also such a refreshing change from the darker books I normally read, and it gave the whole story a unique charm.
This won't replace psychological thrillers as my favourite genre, but it reminded me how enjoyable a well-written cozy mystery can be. It was a lovely palate cleanser between heavier reads, and I'd happily return to Honey Pot Tea Room for another mystery.
May 12, 2026
Readers may want to whisk up a cup of matcha before settling down with the next edition of the Honeyleaf Tea Room mystery.
With the detail an accuracy of matcha making for a tea ceremony, you would imagine this was set in a Japan vs. small town Maplewick.
When the guest is poisoned, all eyes turn to Lily's preparation. So, as she delves into it step by step, she stumbles upon a surprising discovery as to how the poison was introduced, the planning, and the motive.
I received a free copy of this book via Booksprout and am voluntarily leaving a review.
With the detail an accuracy of matcha making for a tea ceremony, you would imagine this was set in a Japan vs. small town Maplewick.
When the guest is poisoned, all eyes turn to Lily's preparation. So, as she delves into it step by step, she stumbles upon a surprising discovery as to how the poison was introduced, the planning, and the motive.
I received a free copy of this book via Booksprout and am voluntarily leaving a review.
July 19, 2026
Lila Hartwell sponsored the Honeyleaf Artisan Market & invited Celeste to do a matcha tea preparation ceremony at her Honeyleaf Tea Room in Maplewick. The 2 ceremonies went well, then she found Celeste dead on the floor after it ended. She figured who whodunit & why to clear her name & tea shop. I got this book as an ARC from Book Sprout & am leaving an honest review.
Displaying 1 - 4 of 4 reviews