Sunny Meadows had left home and moved to Divinity, New York. She realized that at age 29, it was time that she followed her passion and live her life the way she wanted to. Her parents do not understand her and are not happy with her career choice. You see, Sunny is a fortune teller and a darn good one, if she does say so herself. She has moved into a “haunted “ house, which she feels will be good for business. What is not so good for business is the fact that her first customer winds up dead only a few short hours after the reading. A reading that warned that the client was in danger and would be killed.
After the client left, Sunny was so concerned about what was going to happen that she called the police. When a detective (Mitch Stone) showed up, Sunny tells him that a murder is going to happen and even who the victim is. Even though the detective is skeptical, he pays a visit to the victim’s house, only to find her dead. Sunny becomes the number one suspect, since she warned of the murder and tea was found at the crime scene. Being a suspect will not be good for business, so Sunny decides there is only one thing she can do. Find the killer herself. And much to the chagrin of both Sunny and Mitch, they eventually find themselves working together to solve the case.
I found the concept of a fortuneteller unique and refreshing. There are probably other fortuneteller series that have been written, but I have not read any. I love reading paranormal cozies and this fit the bill nicely. The fortunetelling and the “haunted” house and the magical cat, Morty, that just appears inside the house were the perfect combination of mystical and mysterious. I loved how the author wove all of these elements to give the story a magical feel.
Another thing that I found refreshing was the fact that Sunny is basically on her own. In most of the cozy series I read, the protagonist always have a group of friends to help her investigate. Most of the time they have been friends forever. And do not get me wrong, I enjoy these and love reading about their friendships and relationships. But I also enjoyed the fact that Sunny did not have that group of friends to lean on and had to rely more on her own skills (and those of Morty) to solve the case. I really enjoyed that and made this book a standout, in my opinion.
I thought this book had it all. There was humor, mystery, supernatural and suspense. I found myself laughing out loud reading about the relationship between Sunny and Mitch. I enjoyed the bickering and bantering between the two. I loved the loyalty Morty had to Sunny and how he was able to relay messages to Sunny and help her with the case. The mystery was carried out through much of the book and I thought it was well plotted. I eventually figured out who the killer was before it was revealed but that was alright. I still did not know how the book would end.
I would recommend this book to anyone who enjoys a paranormal cozy read. This is the first book in the series and There are two more books already written. I will definitely be reading both of them. I am just sorry that it took me so long to read the first book.
mjbreviewers 
There are so many new books coming out. I can’t keep up with them.
Mary, I gave “Tempest in the Tea Leaves” to a friend for her birthday. She loved the book and gave it back to me to read. I’m glad that you enjoyed the mystery as well as I did. I haven’t had the time to read the next book in the series, but my friend did. She thought the first was the better of the two. I don’t know if she read the third.
I also enjoy humor in cozies. I want to laugh out loud also. I enjoyed your review very much. Thank you.
This series has been on my TBR pile for a long time. My pile just keeps getting larger all the time
I know what you mean. I liked this one.