I received both of these titles from NetGalley in exchange for a fair review.

Sweet Tea and Secrets is the second in a series and I have not read the first but it did not hinder my enjoyment of this installment.  There were references to events in the first book but they were explained enough for the reader to follow along without having read it.  Callie Aspen has moved to her Great Aunt’s home town, Heart’s Harbor, Maine and has taken on a new job at her vintage tea shop.  She is not entirely certain that she is making the right move but pushes forward with fixing up her new home, taking on her new job, and then she gets pulled into investigating an old mystery involving a celebrity disappearance in the town.  Her investigation stirs up old secrets and a killer.

There is a lot going on to keep the reader entertained.   Along with the mystery plot, there are romantic subplots, and the pull from  Callie’s old life as well.  I really enjoyed this and would recommend it to cozy readers as a well paced, fun, mystery read.

Belinda Blake and the Snake in the Grass is the first in the Exotic Pet Sitters Mystery Series.  Belinda is a pet sitter for the more unusual types of pets.  Currently, she is pet sitting a python.  She moves to a carriage house on an estate and immediately stumbles over a body in the garden.  This pulls her into an investigation involving the estate owner’s son as a romantic lead.  She winds her way through the wide cast of characters and another murder to end up in the killer’s sights herself.  Plenty of characters to sort through in trying to solve this mystery.  Reads like a cozy mystery with a chick lit flair.