Murder with Cucumber Sandwiches

Written by Karen Rose Smith

Narrated by C. S. E. Cooney

Daisy's Tea Garden in Pennsylvania's Amish country is known for its elegant finger foods-but now owner Daisy Swanson has to finger a killer . . .

Restaurant critic Derek Schumaker, notorious for his bitter reviews, is about to visit Daisy's Tea Garden, and Daisy and Aunt Iris are simmering with anxiety. A bad word from the culinary curmudgeon could really hurt their business, but Daisy tries to stay confident. After all, how can he resist her cucumber sandwiches with pimento spread-not to mention the cheesy cauliflower soup and strawberry walnut salad?

Schumaker takes a to-go order when the afternoon tea service is done, which Daisy hopes is a good sign. But when he perishes from a seizure, it looks like his food was dosed with something deadly. Considering a threat that recently appeared on his blog-and whispers of scandal in his past-Daisy has quite an assortment of suspects to sift through . . .

• Language: English
• Publisher: Tantor Media, Inc
• Release date: Oct 15, 2019
• ISBN: 9781977333285

Karen Rose Smith

Karen Rose Smith was born in Pennsylvania. Although she was an only child, she remembers the bonds of an extended family. She and her parents lived with her grandfather and aunt until she was five, when her parents built a house next door. Since her father came from a family of ten and her mother, a family of seven, there were always aunts, uncles, and cousins visiting on weekends. Family is a strong theme in her books and she suspects her childhood memories are the reason. As a teenager, music became as important to Karen Rose as reading. The Beatles were her favourite group. But she and her cousin took their first sojourn into writing by collaborating on a script for The Monkees television program. They sent that script to every concert venue where the group appeared that summer! In college, Karen Rose began writing poetry and also met her husband-to-be. They both began married life as teachers, but when their son was born, Karen Rose decided to try her hand at a home decorating business. She returned to teaching for a while but changes in her life led her to writing romance fiction. Now she writes full-time. She has had over 30 novels published since 1992. Married to her college sweetheart for almost 30 years, believing in the power of love and commitment, she envisions herself writing romance for a long time to come!

Reviews for Murder with Cucumber Sandwiches

[Lynn Lye · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

Excellent character development. The plot took a turn I did not see coming!

[thornton37814 · Rating: 3 out of 5 stars]

Derek Schumaker, a food critic who gained fame hosting a television program, visits Daisy's Tea Garden, but before his blog post appears, he dies. The last thing he ate was a cucumber sandwich from Daisy's. Daisy begins investigating to clear her restaurant's reputation. People know what he ate and assume a case of poison when investigators don't release the actual cause. Daisy's employee Foster is hiding something and not being forthcoming in his answers. Her adopted daughter Jazzi needs support when her newly-found birth mother doesn't embrace her as openly as she wishes. Lots of things going on in the installment--perhaps more than needed. The mystery seems lost to the rest of the story, and the solution will likely surprise most readers simply because the mystery's development is lacking.

[cyderry · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

Daisy's Tea Garden is expecting a visit from TV Chef turned food critic Derek Schumaker. Daisy isn't sure she should have agreed to his coming since his recent reviews of other eating establishments have not been glowing, in fact they have been down right harsh. Many people aren't happy with Derek but Daisy's Tea garden puts on a smiling face and serves their best to Derek. When leaving he asks for a take-out order of Cucumber Sandwiches.When Derek is found dead later and the police believe he has been poisoned, word gets out that it was Daisy's Cucumber Sandwiches which did it. Detective Rappaport tells Daisy that there were foreign ingredients (drugs) in the sandwiches and that he doesn't believe that she put them there but he doesn't want to let that information out. Needless to say, Daisy's business starts to disappear as people fear to be poisoned. Daisy has no choice but to try to figure out who killed the critic. Not only does Daisy have to worry about the decline in business but her employee Foster (who's dating her daughter) is acting a bit strange and her boyfriend Jonas is extremely disappointed when Daisy cancels a weekend getaway to stay home to talk with her daughter who asks for time.All the action, searching for the murderer, family issues and boyfriend troubles keep Daisy hopping throughout.Love the way that the business and characters are woven together as well as the family life.Looking forward to future visits to Daisy's Tea Garden.

[kris_anderson-1 · Rating: 3 out of 5 stars]

Murder with Cucumber Sandwiches is the third book in A Daisy's Tea Garden Mystery series. I recommend reading the series in order to avoid confusion (there are a number of characters and ongoing personal situations). Karen Rose Smith has a relaxed writing style which makes for an easy to read story. I like the various characters that include the kindly Aunt Iris, the kitchen manager Tessa Miller, Foster Cranshaw, Jazzi, Violet, Daisy’s Amish best friend Rachel and various townspeople. While Daisy is busy looking into Derek’s death, she is also dealing with personal drama at home and at work. Foster Cranshaw, an employee & her social media expert, is acting unlike himself and needing extra time off. He refuses to tell Daisy what is bothering him. Jazzi, Daisy’s teenage daughter, wants to have a close relationship with her biological mother, Portia. First, though, Portia needs to come clean to her husband about Jazzi. Sean, Daisy’s father, has concerns and needs some helpful advice. Jonas Croft, Daisy’s boyfriend, is not happy when Daisy cancels plans with him for Violet (Daisy’s eldest daughter). Daisy wonders if Jonas is the right man for her. Violet has some important news to share with Daisy and it is going to change all of their lives. There is a regular customer interested in dating Iris, but first he needs to work up the nerve to ask her out. Murder with Cucumbers Sandwiches is heavy personal drama and light on mystery. There are multiple suspects for Daisy to question in her attempt to identify Derek’s killer. Detective Rappaport wants to keep her nose out of the investigation (as he tells her several times). I do wish the author had put more work into the mystery and had made it the focus of the story. My favorite quote from Murder with Cucumber Sandwiches is “children give us hope that a new generation will treat the world more kindly than we did”. Murder with Cucumber Sandwiches is a light cozy mystery with an unpleasant food critic, a jittery employee, a tearful teen, a hopeful beau, delectable delights, two affectionate felines, tasty tea, and a worried mom with a penchant for sleuthing.

[gpangel_1 · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

Murder with Cucumber Sandwiches by Karen Rose Smith is a 2019 Kensington publication. Buckle up folks, there is a lot going on in this third installment of the Daisy Tea Garden Series. For starters, famed food critic Derek Schumaker is all set to write a review of Daisy’s Tea Garden, but before he can post his critique on his popular blog, he is murdered. Not only that, Foster, who happens to be dating Violet, Daisy’s oldest daughter, has refused to cooperate with the investigation. Worried that the suspicions about the timing of the murder and the role her cucumber sandwiches, played in Derek’s demise, will hurt her business, Daisy is determined to help solve the mystery, despite the clear warnings from our not so favorite detective to stay out of the way. Meanwhile, Jazzi may be setting herself up for disappointment after her birth mother promises to finally tell her husband, she has a daughter she never told him about. But, that’s not all- just as Jonas and Daisy’s relationship begins to solidify a little more, a sudden, shocking turn of events sends Daisy and her entire family into a tailspin. Whew!! There was never a dull moment in this book, that’s for sure. This mystery is very intriguing, with many suspects to choose from. It would seem Derek’s harsh reviews made him a few enemies along the way.There is no way I could have possibly guessed who the murderer was! In fact, this was one of the most puzzling cases I’ve encountered in a cozy mystery in a long time. Yet one of the things that makes this series so solid is the family drama which gets equal billing in the book. Daisy’s personal life is more complicated than ever before, as nearly every person she cares about is encountering a crisis of some sort. While she tries to save the tea garden’s reputation, she is also coping with heavy personal problems, and her ability to remain calm and balance everything on her plate quickly becomes tenuous. I read this book in one sitting! I couldn’t put it down without finding out what was going to happen next. I’ve been neglecting my cozy series for a while now, not consciously, though. This book has reminded me of just how much I enjoy reading them! This series is really starting to gel, as the characters develop, and I find myself starting to care for them. Karen Rose Smith has become one my ‘go to’ cozy mystery writers in the past few years. While she writes contemporary romance novels as well, I think she’s really found her niche in this genre!