Teatime Trouble by Tonya Penrose is set on idyllic Shell Island, a place of sunshine, glittering water and friendly people. Page Wright and her cousin Betsy Ross, who run the Honey Bees Bakery there, are asked to provide a high tea for a group of bestselling British authors staying at Three Fables Inn, a place considered by some to be haunted.

Betsy is a creative cook who specializes in hot and highly spiced. Page, as well as managing the bakery, has what she describes as inklings – flashes of perception warning that something unsettling, even tragic, is about to happen, though she cannot be sure what it is. Just before the high tea is served, Page follows the bidding of an inkling and finds the body of one of the authors sprawled over a bench in the Inn’s garden, a fallen statue beside her.

Page and a somewhat reluctant Betsy attempt to uncover the identity of the murderer. Unfortunately, every single member of the group of authors had reason to dislike the victim, but who hated her enough to commit murder? And, it seems, the inn’s ghosts are intent on persecuting some of the authors. Or is that someone playing behind the scenes? Page’s inklings are respected by the two local detectives involved in the case as Page has previously solved three murders on the island, with Betsy’s help. The detectives try to discourage the women’s sleuthing for their safety, their concern heightened by the fact that Page and Betsy are romantically involved with the detectives.

The story is told with humour and has a satisfying number of twists, building to a page-turning ending. In all, Teatime Trouble is a delightful cosy mystery with a range of ingredients from murder, multiple suspects and ghosts to a touch of romance and a sprinkling of magic. Excellent holiday reading.

Teatime Trouble is the fourth book in the Shell Island Mystery series but reads well as a standalone. A collection of Betsy’s recipes can be found at the end of the book including the magical Enchanted Honey Cake.