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The Tea Series #1
Hot Tea
Looking for a quirky series with an almost cult-like following? Look no further than Hot Tea, the first novel in the beloved Tea Series. This series is a fresh take on the serial novel, with each installment serving up fast-paced reads that will have you on the edge of your seat wanting more.Meet Cara O'Flynn, a spunky redhead with a wild Irish family and a penchant for vintage nightgowns. With a newfound windfall and the support of her feisty sister Teagan, Cara is eager to start a new chapter in her life. But when she takes on an odd job cleaning out a deceased man's condo, she finds herself embroiled in a dangerous game of cat and mouse with a killer on the loose.With a cranky cop on her tail and a mysterious new roommate to contend with, Cara will have to rely on her wit and unconventional approach to solve the case and avoid oversharing with her mother (but that's a whole story in and of itself). Will she be able to outsmart the killer before it's too late?Full of suspense, romance, and humor, Hot Tea is a must-read for anyone who loves a good mystery. So grab a cuppa and settle in for a wild ride that will have you hooked from the very first page!
173 pages, Kindle Edition
First published February 28, 2010
104 people are currently reading
240 people want to read
About the author
Sheila Horgan
57 books49 followersI signed up for Goodreads years ago, with every intention of joining in. Life got in the way. Three adult children, five grandchildren, and blessed to have my father able to travel and visit (at age 95) has been keeping me busy. Since signing up, I've been to Ireland a couple of times, accompanied my father on a number of cruises (including from England to the US and from California to Hawaii and back). I know just how blessed I am.
It's time to get back to my life and a huge part of my life is reading and getting to know my readers. It may take a little time to get accustomed to this site and to populate everything, but know that I am working on it.
For those generous enough to have stayed with me all these years, I owe you such a debt of gratitude. I'm back and much more focused.
Sheila
It's time to get back to my life and a huge part of my life is reading and getting to know my readers. It may take a little time to get accustomed to this site and to populate everything, but know that I am working on it.
For those generous enough to have stayed with me all these years, I owe you such a debt of gratitude. I'm back and much more focused.
Sheila
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 46 reviews
January 4, 2015
At first I thought it was a little bit too much fluff and tongue in cheek but I decided to give it a chance and I am glad I did. The first in the series, it spent a lot of time introducing Cara and Teagan, and maybe tried a little bit too hard to show how funny they could be.
But when the story finally starting developing, I was intrigued and I will definitely check out the next book.
But when the story finally starting developing, I was intrigued and I will definitely check out the next book.
January 24, 2011
This is a fun series to read. I am enjoying it. Looking forward to book four and more.
June 25, 2017
As enjoyable as it was, this book left me feeling as if I have been somewhat cheated of something. I think it's because nothing was resolved. Issues were raised and left unresolved to bait then reader into buying the next book. Which I did and then because things were still not resolved, I got the third. And then I quit because I felt like I was being strung along. The heroine, Cara, was quirky enough to keep me interested in her.
I daresay if you are a fan of Stephanie Plum, you'd really like this. I kinda object to the Tea Series for the same reasons I object to the Stephanie Plum books. Stephanie has not grown into an adult woman. Her character has not grown and matured since the first book.
I feel like that is what is the case with Cara O'Flynn. I read three books and learned nothing new about her in the next two. Her romance began too quickly and her lover has no real identity except that he a snappy dresser, liked to cuddle on the couch in shorts and nothing else while Cara wears one or the other of her glamorous lingerie sets of nightgowns and peignoirs as they watch movies.
No one really has much of a personality. They are all rather one-dimensional. I think I kept reading because I thought something was going to happen. It never does. In book 2 Cara inherits a locked trunk from her grandmother's best friend and by the end of book 3 she hadn't even opened it.
In book 1 she decides she is going to solve a mystery and win the $10,000.00 reward. Although the mystery is mentioned, she doesn't actually work to solve it.
Something else that bothered me is that at around 175 pages or so each, I can't call any of the volumes a novel/ Each volume ends in the middle of things so if one's curiosity is sufficiently aroused, one will keep buying additional stories in the series. Someone is stringing the buying public along and I don't care to be manipulated.
Reader be warned: books must be read in order.
I daresay if you are a fan of Stephanie Plum, you'd really like this. I kinda object to the Tea Series for the same reasons I object to the Stephanie Plum books. Stephanie has not grown into an adult woman. Her character has not grown and matured since the first book.
I feel like that is what is the case with Cara O'Flynn. I read three books and learned nothing new about her in the next two. Her romance began too quickly and her lover has no real identity except that he a snappy dresser, liked to cuddle on the couch in shorts and nothing else while Cara wears one or the other of her glamorous lingerie sets of nightgowns and peignoirs as they watch movies.
No one really has much of a personality. They are all rather one-dimensional. I think I kept reading because I thought something was going to happen. It never does. In book 2 Cara inherits a locked trunk from her grandmother's best friend and by the end of book 3 she hadn't even opened it.
In book 1 she decides she is going to solve a mystery and win the $10,000.00 reward. Although the mystery is mentioned, she doesn't actually work to solve it.
Something else that bothered me is that at around 175 pages or so each, I can't call any of the volumes a novel/ Each volume ends in the middle of things so if one's curiosity is sufficiently aroused, one will keep buying additional stories in the series. Someone is stringing the buying public along and I don't care to be manipulated.
Reader be warned: books must be read in order.
January 16, 2020
Great read
Good book all around. Funny, a bit romantic, easy to read, and had enough suspense to keep me interested all the way through. I was bummed when it ended. I will definitely read more Tea series books.
Good book all around. Funny, a bit romantic, easy to read, and had enough suspense to keep me interested all the way through. I was bummed when it ended. I will definitely read more Tea series books.
November 29, 2018
Very Interesting
I loved the story but not the fact that it is open ended. I want my books complete but this is how many authors write.
I loved the story but not the fact that it is open ended. I want my books complete but this is how many authors write.
January 30, 2024
Love this series
October 31, 2019
I am not sure if I am going to love or hate this series. I am not sure it can even really be counted as a mystery when there is really no death story line. Mostly the main character and her sister talk about men, and not being able to stand up to their mother. The mystery seemed second to silly fights and crazy dreams. This is called a tea series but besides drinking tea everytime someone visits someone tea doesn't seem to play a role. That being said I will try the second book to see if it gets better.
April 7, 2012
This is a hard book to rate/review.
I really struggled with the beginning. Really. So much so that I ended up skimming a lot and thinking (at about a quarter in) that I'll just give up on it. I couldn't figure out the genre ("really tedious chick-lit" is the best I could come up with) and the writing, while technically not awful, with relatively few wrong words and missing commas for a self-published book, was just incredibly dull and irritating, full of repetitions and ... well, it just seemed to lack any sort of point at all.
At the same time, I didn't want to give up because I kept wondering whether there might be a plot turning up at any point.
Fortunately it did get a bit better (or less irritating anyway) about half-way in and something slightly reminiscent of plot turned up at about the 80% point. And I actually started to get interested. And at that point, I was thinking "ooh, maybe it'll manage to become a three star book after all" (yes, I was actually thinking about the star rating in Goodreads terms while reading the book; I guess that shows how involved I was in the proceedings).
And then... it was just over. The plot had barely started to show itself, and the book ended.
I gather it's supposed to be a "serial" format, done intentionally so that the reader would keep buying and reading more books, but... (a) this isn't a nice thing to come across as a reader (proper cliffhangers are bad enough, but at least they get you excited and impatient about the next book, but if the book just sort of randomly ends, it doesn't really even create that excitement), and (b) the book ought to be a lot better written for that trick to work.
That said, since I got a four-books-in-one omnibus edition of the books (either for free on Amazon or very cheap; can't remember which), there is a slight chance that I might read on some day. If I didn't already have the next books, I'm quite sure I wouldn't.
I really struggled with the beginning. Really. So much so that I ended up skimming a lot and thinking (at about a quarter in) that I'll just give up on it. I couldn't figure out the genre ("really tedious chick-lit" is the best I could come up with) and the writing, while technically not awful, with relatively few wrong words and missing commas for a self-published book, was just incredibly dull and irritating, full of repetitions and ... well, it just seemed to lack any sort of point at all.
At the same time, I didn't want to give up because I kept wondering whether there might be a plot turning up at any point.
Fortunately it did get a bit better (or less irritating anyway) about half-way in and something slightly reminiscent of plot turned up at about the 80% point. And I actually started to get interested. And at that point, I was thinking "ooh, maybe it'll manage to become a three star book after all" (yes, I was actually thinking about the star rating in Goodreads terms while reading the book; I guess that shows how involved I was in the proceedings).
And then... it was just over. The plot had barely started to show itself, and the book ended.
I gather it's supposed to be a "serial" format, done intentionally so that the reader would keep buying and reading more books, but... (a) this isn't a nice thing to come across as a reader (proper cliffhangers are bad enough, but at least they get you excited and impatient about the next book, but if the book just sort of randomly ends, it doesn't really even create that excitement), and (b) the book ought to be a lot better written for that trick to work.
That said, since I got a four-books-in-one omnibus edition of the books (either for free on Amazon or very cheap; can't remember which), there is a slight chance that I might read on some day. If I didn't already have the next books, I'm quite sure I wouldn't.
July 19, 2014
This book was an odd read; I kept expecting something earth shaking to happen for the plot to revolve around, but it was a really gentle read about a young woman and her family. It wasn't until the end that the plot started to thicken, so I'm going to buy the next book to see what happens.
I think I liked it because it was such an easy read. Nothing really went wrong. There's a murder or two to be solved, but they aren't the focus of the book and they weren't resolved. The only potential problem I can see is that if it gets dragged out too much, I will lose interest.
The format is an interesting idea and the characters are engaging. It's kind of like watching someone's life go by. I give big bonus points for not making the lead character stubborn to the point of stupidity which so often happens when the protagonist is female.
I think I liked it because it was such an easy read. Nothing really went wrong. There's a murder or two to be solved, but they aren't the focus of the book and they weren't resolved. The only potential problem I can see is that if it gets dragged out too much, I will lose interest.
The format is an interesting idea and the characters are engaging. It's kind of like watching someone's life go by. I give big bonus points for not making the lead character stubborn to the point of stupidity which so often happens when the protagonist is female.
Want to read
February 15, 2016173p In Hot Tea, Cara O'Flynn finds herself in an unusual position. She's quit her job and can afford to take a few weeks to find a new career, plus, her roommate has run off and left her with an empty room to fill. If she can just accomplish those two tasks before her mother finds out she has no income and no one to help pay the bills, she's in good shape.
The problem - Cara didn't plan for three careers in as many days nor did she anticipate the new guys that dropped in her lap. And then there's her sister Teagan, always helpful and funny, she can be a bit annoying at times.
When you're Irish, all things (good and bad) come in threes. It's inevitable. Cara should have remembered not to forget that part.
Cara and Teagan bring laughter, intelligence and family tradition to every experience they encounter.
The problem - Cara didn't plan for three careers in as many days nor did she anticipate the new guys that dropped in her lap. And then there's her sister Teagan, always helpful and funny, she can be a bit annoying at times.
When you're Irish, all things (good and bad) come in threes. It's inevitable. Cara should have remembered not to forget that part.
Cara and Teagan bring laughter, intelligence and family tradition to every experience they encounter.
June 8, 2011
I don't know exactly what to say about this book. The fact that I'm currently reading the next in the series must mean I liked it. What gives me pause is that I can't put my finger on why I liked it. It's actually unclear what the primary mystery is. At the end nothing has been solved or resolved. As at least one other reviewer mentioned, there are some things that I found annoying such as far too much eyebrow wiggling. For some reason, though, I found it hard to put down. The stream of consciousness internal dialog of the main character should have been irritating, but wasn't. It kept me turning the (electronic) pages of my Kindle. So.. for now I'll keep reading book two and hopefully will be able to make up my mind.
May 7, 2015
It's not a bad book, by any means, but it's not the greatest I've read either. I'm enjoying the series, I read it on the Kindle feature on my phone before bed nearly every night.
I like the characters and I like the plot. However, I'm getting a wee bit tired of the same sexual references that seem high school-ish, and the comments about the wiggling of eyebrows. There's just too much of that, in my opinion.
But, as I said, I'm enjoying the series and look forward to finding out all the little mysteries in the end.
I like the characters and I like the plot. However, I'm getting a wee bit tired of the same sexual references that seem high school-ish, and the comments about the wiggling of eyebrows. There's just too much of that, in my opinion.
But, as I said, I'm enjoying the series and look forward to finding out all the little mysteries in the end.
October 11, 2011
I enjoyed this book alot. The sudden ending took me by surprise but the great characters in this book make it worth while. I come from an Irish family and alot of the sayings are very familiar to me and so were very funny to see them in print. I loved the great big Irish family and all the dynamics there :0) . I will be following future books in this series esp so I can find out what happened next.I do hope those questions will be answered in the next book.
June 15, 2013
when i first started this book it took me some time to get into it, but after a few pages i decided to continue and hope i could get hold of the story line, and im so glad i did..i really enjoyed the mystery, the murders,and the general family life of a huge irish family and to add to surprise me even more i discovered that the book i bought was actually 4 books all together which again i thoroughly enjoyed..there is another 4 books to this series which i will read next..
April 2, 2012
Punny. Cute. Cozy. But mysteries left unsolved in anyway by the end of a book? Not for me. Part of me is curious and feels I need to buy the next to find out, but with thousands of books on my Kindle for me to read, I am just not that into this series. Thanks anyway.
It would be a fun read for a day at the beach, you know?
It would be a fun read for a day at the beach, you know?
April 15, 2014
It's a good thing this was a free download to my Kindle. If I had paid for it, I wouldn't have given it even one star. Here is a quote from the book: "Can I just say that I was still wearing my heals from earlier in the day....." "Heals" is not my mistake. When I saw that, I almost quit but I finished it anyway, because that's what I do with books, even the stinkers.
October 23, 2011
Oh my, at 26% into the book, I have already laughed quite a few times.
I enjoyed the characters in this book. However, the story ended abruptly...so I headed over to Amazon and bought the next in the series. Well worth the 99 cent price.
I enjoyed the characters in this book. However, the story ended abruptly...so I headed over to Amazon and bought the next in the series. Well worth the 99 cent price.
January 20, 2012
I'm not sure what was the purpose of this book but I will probably read the next one. There is no plot and the characters are a little strange. Surprisingly, the story reads pretty fast. The ending leaves a lot of loose ends, probaly the reason for reading the next book.
February 8, 2012
At first I didn't like this book, because it was a lot of conversation and the characters were a little weird. About 70% through, it started getting better. I'll give it another shot with the next book in the series, so we'll see.
July 19, 2012
The book was kind of quirky. The main character, Cara, is all over the place. She bounces around from one thing to the other. I was somewhat confused while reading but I settled in to the chaos and enjoyed the book. I just started the 2nd book in the series and like it.
January 19, 2013
I really tried to read this several times on my kindle but it's just a slow paced and oddly timed book. It's too bad, because Irish American sisters who want to solve crimes over a cuppa could have been fun.
July 14, 2013
Hate to do this, but I'm 20% into it and still can't relate to the characters or to their plot, either. I do recognize a lot of work went into it. Hopefully it will find readers more able to care what happens next.
October 11, 2013
This was really hard to read. Boring and redundant. Funny in some parts. Likable characters. The mom and their relationship was a bit extreme and unbelievable. Just when it finally got good, the book ended!
January 1, 2015
There is nothing wrong with a 3* read! This is a lovely little series, it's very easy to read and perfect for when you want to give your brain a rest. By the time you've finished a few of the books you'll feel like you're part of the family. Plus, recipes, I love a book with recipes.
October 8, 2016
Hot Tea
This is the second time reading this series. Sheila Horgan has managed to mix comedy, romance and mystery into an enjoyable escape. I also happen to be the eldest female from a large Irish Catholic family. I've lived that life.
This is the second time reading this series. Sheila Horgan has managed to mix comedy, romance and mystery into an enjoyable escape. I also happen to be the eldest female from a large Irish Catholic family. I've lived that life.
February 27, 2011
okay - don't know if I'm going to read the rest of the series. Fluff reading, which is good now and then.
June 28, 2011
Bumbled and rambling. Loved it.
August 12, 2011
Keeps you going but I got sick of the sisters bickering.
November 4, 2011
I didn't care for it at 15% through and still not enjoying at 30% so I gave up. There seemed to be no real point to the book and the humor was lacking as well.
February 23, 2012
Loved this series of books!
Displaying 1 - 30 of 46 reviews