Steeped in secrets

At the start of this charming series launch from Elliott (the Beyond the Page Bookstore mysteries), Shayleigh "Shay" Myers returns to her hometown of Bray Harbor, Calif., newly divorced, broke, and with no prospects. Much to her surprise, she discovers that Brigit Early, a woman she barely knew growing up, recently died under mysterious circumstances and left Shay Crystals & CuriosiTEAS (a tea and psychic shop), a cottage on the beach, and a prescient white dog. Shay has always had what her mother called "heightened senses," but she isn't quite prepared to give psychic readings for a living, so when her realtor tries to talk her into selling the store, Shay seriously considers it--until she spots a corpse lying on the glass ceiling of the shop's upstairs greenhouse. Who was this man and why was he killed on the roof of the store? When Shay investigates, she discovers the answer may be written in the tea leaves. Elliott delivers appealing characters, surprising twists, a bit of magic, and the promise of romance. Lovers of paranormal cozies are sure to get on board. Agent: Sandy Harding, Spencer Hill Assoc. (Dec.)

Opening a tea shop brings surprises welcome and unwelcome for a recent divorcée. Elliott's first page amounts almost to a parody of a shopkeeper cozy. Having shed her faithless husband, Brad, Shayleigh Myers gazes at the quaint Victorian houses lining the main street of picturesque Bray Harbor, California, "finding it hard to believe she was actually back in the small town she thought she had left behind forever." But this series opener has a twist. Instead of a coffee shop, bakery, or candle outlet with a preciously punning name, the emporium Shay inherits from Bridget Early, a woman she barely knew, is Crystals & CuriosiTEAS, specializing in herbs, teas, and objects of the occult. In life, Bridget read tea leaves and was rumored to possess special healing powers that Shay's beginning to believe she may share. So instead of selling the shop, as the pushy realtor presses her to do, she refurbishes the dusty old place with the help of Tassi, the niece of her old friend Joanne, who owns Cuppa-Jo, Main Street's coffee shop. Since every cozy needs a murder, Shay's renovations are soon halted by the discovery of a corpse on her roof. Her obligatory romantic interest is Liam Madigan, owner of the pub next door to CuriosiTEAS. If all this sounds pretty formulaic, the discovery of an amulet with mystical powers, a box of mysterious old photos, and the lingering presence of Spirit, a mongrel with uncanny intuition, take Shay along a road less traveled. A promising series debut. Copyright (c) Kirkus Reviews, used with permission.