Reviews

PARTNERS IN LIME is the sixth book in the Seaside Café Mystery series by Bree Baker. Set on the island of Charm, North Carolina, this charming book features protagonist Everly Swan and her delightful tea shop Sun, Sand, and Tea. Ms. Baker has developed a strong cast of characters alongside Everly. I especially love her elderly aunts, one who just happens to be the mayor of the town and the other who runs their shop, the Blessed Bee, which sells all sorts of bee products from their hives. Everly is also dating Detective Grady Hays and their relationship is moving forward and provides a subplot thread throughout the story. The author’s strong descriptive voice captures all that island life has to offer. There are beaches and tourists, plus surfers coming into town for a competition. Alongside that is the backdrop of the upcoming historical production, The Lost Colony with its more than one hundred participants. Ms. Baker intertwines the events and people together in a convincing fashion, setting the stage for murder and lots of suspects!

When the reigning surf champion is found murdered, Everly’s one-time fling, Matt, is the prime suspect. Here the storyline fell off for me as Everly ignores all the evidence piling up against Matt. Despite her detective boyfriend’s advice and warnings, she repeatedly meets up with Matt, even in unsafe locations. At times it felt like the author wanted to introduce a love triangle but wasn’t sure if that was the direction she wanted to go. Fortunately, it’s resolved by the end. That said, the author weaves a tightly plotted mystery with plenty of clues and suspects to keep the reader guessing and writes an edge-of-your-seat reveal. With a heartwarming and hopeful ending, Partners In Lime will appeal to fans of this series and will have us coming back for more.

While running the Sun, Sand, and Tea shop, Everly serves up all sorts of tempting treats and drinks. Thankfully, Ms. Baker includes several recipes at the back of the book to entice a hungry reader.

I was provided with an advance copy. All thoughts and opinions are my own.

samantha_45's review against another edition

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medium-paced

3.0

rants_n_reads's review against another edition

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emotional funny lighthearted mysterious medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? A mix
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? No
Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated

4.0

alexlikesbooks123's review

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adventurous funny lighthearted mysterious reflective medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? A mix
Strong character development? It's complicated
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? No
Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated

4.5

rrqueen7's review

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3.0

I love this series so much but I was really disappointed about how much time was spent on Everly's weight versus the actual investigation. I will definitely be reading the next one still.

omgnikki's review

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4.0

oh bree cutting that last scene short was the biggest crime in this book for REAL

fwog19's review

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5.0

This was a fun read, like all of the other books in the series. As usual, Everly got into some trouble and had to figure out a way to get out of it. Thankfully she has friends and family to help her. There were times when all I could do while reading was shake my head. She really reminds me of Daphne from Scooby Doo at times, but in a more "I really didn't mean to trip over a dead body" kind of way. I was glad to get a bit more time with the other characters and also just being able to see more of Charm. It was an enjoyable story that had me jumping right in to the next book. I'm going to be bummed when the series ends.

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