If there's one thing tea ladies can handle, it's hot water.
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And that's why The Tea Ladies (Penguin, $32.99, April 12) by Amanda Hampson is such a good read. I couldn't put it down and read it in one day.
The Tea Ladies is a wickedly witty cosy crime novel set in Sydney in the swinging 60s.
Tea ladies. They keep everyone's secrets. Until there's a murder. And here the fun starts.
It's Sydney in 1965 and after a chance encounter with a stranger, tea ladies Hazel, Betty and Irene become accidental sleuths, stumbling into a world of ruthless crooks and racketeers in search of a young woman believed to be in danger.
In the meantime, Hazel's job at Empire Fashionwear is in jeopardy.
The firm has turned out the same frocks and blouses for the past 20 years and when the mini-skirt bursts onto the scene, it rocks the rag trade to its foundations.
War breaks out between departments and it falls to Hazel, the quiet diplomat, to broker peace and save the firm.
When there is a murder in the building, the tea ladies draw on their wider network and put themselves in danger as they piece together clues that connect the murder to a nearby arson and a kidnapping.
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Therese Murray
Wordsmith. Senior journalist. Editor. I have a proven track record in helping people and communities solve their problems. My career is all about telling stories.
Wordsmith. Senior journalist. Editor. I have a proven track record in helping people and communities solve their problems. My career is all about telling stories.
