Weekend Cooking: The Deadly Dispute by Amanda Hampson

 

Hazel, Irene, Betty and the other tea ladies are back and trouble isn't far behind!

In the previous book in the series, which I reviewed here, Hazel Bates had just lost her job as a tea lady at Empire Fashion after being replaced by a coffee machine. After months out of work, she is excited to finally have a new job working as a tea lady at a union office on the docks in Sydney. It's 1967, and the docks are dangerous for anyone, let alone a tea lady. On her first day at work, Hazel even sees a dead body being hauled out of the harbour. 

The docks are under the spotlight due to the ongoing issues with theft, unionism and a very large theft of South African Krugerand (gold coins) which seems to have disappeared into thin air. It's not really a place for someone as eagle eyed and curious as Hazel, and she soon finds herself embroiled in the mystery. 

Betty is now boarding with Hazel which is a much better arrangement than when Irene had moved in. Betty is feeling a bit disillusioned with life, which didn't quite work out the way that she thought it might when she was younger. She meets a much younger woman at work who seems to see her rather than see through her and Betty is drawn into a different world which she doesn't quite understand.

As for Irene, she is still living in the high class brothel but she is beginning to see that the Maltese Mafia is taking an interest in what is going on. When she tries to warn her boss that there might be a turf war coming, her fears are dismissed. However, Irene knows what she knows, and she takes matters into her own hands.  

When things get dangerous and one of them disappears, it is up to the others to use all their detective skills to work out where she and to save her before it is too late!

I really enjoy the fact that our three main characters all get their own storylines to shine in. As always I do find Irene to be a complete hoot! She is definitely a rough diamond, although I am not sure I would want to cross her. 

One of the things that was a bit different in this book is that the ladies don't get to spend as much time together given that they no longer work in such proximity. Snooty Merl also doesn't get as much page time after she gets upset with the way that the Tea Ladies Guild is being run. There is also less food and drink in this book, but the series as a whole does feature lots of cake, home made fruit wine and, of course, tea!

Fashion is still an important part of this story. Young Pixie is trying to get out of her parent's business and set up on her own. With Hazel's help she finds a location, and the assistance she needs to set up a boutique where she can be free to design what she wants, including groovy jumpsuits like the one on the cover.

Another of the secondary characters who are an important part of the story is Hazel's next door neighbour, Maud, who is now training to be a policewoman, which her Catholic parents are not all that happy with. It's always useful to have a policewoman to call upon when needed!

This is the first series in forever that I have read in such quick succession and rated so consistently high. I went to see the author at an event at my local library in April and I have subsequently read all three books in the series. Getting through them so quickly is partially because I read them through the library and I couldn't renew them but it is mostly because I just really enjoyed the stories, especially the characters. I am already looking forward to the next book. Hopefully it will be out next year. 

I am sharing this review with the Foodies Read challenge hosted at Based on a True Story with the Historical Fiction Reading Challenge, and with the New Release Challenge hosted by The Chocolate Lady's Book Reviews. It also counts for Aussie August 2025 on Bookstagram.

Rating 4.5/5

Weekly meals

Saturday - Spaghetti Bolognaise
Sunday - Beef and Broccoli Noodles
Monday - tuscan Chicken Pasta bake
Tuesday - Baked beans and eggs on toast
Wednesday - Cajun Chicken Rice (new/)
Thursday - Out for dinner
Friday - Pork Nachos

Weekend Cooking is open to anyone who has any kind of food-related post to share: Book reviews (novel, nonfiction), cookbook reviews, movie reviews, recipes, random thoughts, gadgets, quotations, photographs, restaurant reviews, travel information, or fun food facts. If your post is even vaguely foodie, feel free to grab the button and link up anytime over the weekend. You do not have to post on the weekend. Please link to your specific post, not your blog's home page

The Cryptic Clue by Amanda Hampson

 

The tea ladies are back, and as usual trouble isn't far behind.

Each of the Tea Ladies books are set in a new year in the 1960s and this time it is 1966. After the events of 1965 which were covered in the previous book (my review), it is still a time of great change in the world of fashion, and this time we are not just talking about clothes. The owners at Empire Fashion are trying to find ways to cut costs whilst still allowing for their own whims, and so they are bringing in a fancy new coffee and tea machine. This will mean that Hazel Bates will no longer have a job. And it's not just happening at Empire Fashion. The new machines are appearing everywhere! It is time for all the tea ladies in the city to come together to fight for their jobs. After all, how will businesses remain productive if they don't get their tea breaks.

Hazel, Irene and Betty also join together with a couple of other tea ladies including the formidable sounding Mrs Li to try and figure out a couple of other mysteries as well save their jobs. Irene's good for nothing husband has sent her a cryptic letter from jail just before he dies suggesting that he might have left her something. Problem is Irene can't work out what the heck he was talking about. There are also some odd things happening up at the local Catholic church too. It's a lot to keep track of. 

If I asked you to think of an iconic image for Australia, chances are that you would think of one of a couple of places. One of those would likely would be Sydney Harbour with the Sydney Harbour Bridge on one side and the Opera House on the other. Looking at it now, it's hard to believe that the decision to build the Opera House was very controversial in itself  at the time and that the building project was beset with issues. The Danish architect who designed the now iconic building even left the project before it was completed and returned to Denmark.

This controversy provides a backdrop to the story, especially when Hazel meets a man who is connected with the project. After her heartbreak in the last book, she's not really ready to meet someone new, but sometimes things happen. I also really enjoyed that Hazel is working on herself and learning to do something which has previously held her back. 

It really is the characters who carry these books. I love Hazel who is the person that draws everyone together even if it is around some of her unusually flavoured home made wine, and Irene makes me laugh a lot. A lot of the time there is a degree of silliness around the things that happen to Irene, such as when her everyday hat gets stuck on her head, but it provides a balance to the rest of the story. I also was in turns amused by and then felt sorry for her trying to work out how the new decimal currency works which was introduced in early 1966. Poor Irene tries very hard to get ahead but her very nature gets in the way of herself!

This is another great entry in this series. I already have the third book out from the library. After I have read that one I will just have to wait impatiently for each new book as it comes out. 

I am sharing this review with the Foodies Read challenge hosted at Based on a True Story, with Weekend Cooking and with the Historical Fiction Reading Challenge, both of which I host! 

Rating 4.5/5

The Tea Ladies by Amanda Hampson

 

This month the theme for our read on a theme book club is 1960's. It was very fortuitous that the week before that was announced I had visited our local library for an author talk by Amanda Hampson about her latest release, The Deadly Dispute, the third book in the Tea Ladies series. The series is set in the Sydney garment trade with each book set in a different year. This book, the first in the series, is set in 1965.

In the series, our four tea ladies are Hazel, Merl, Betty and Irene. They all work in different businesses along Zig Zag Lane. They are all very different from each other but they always support each other as best they can! Hazel is the glue that holds the group together. Irene is a bit of a rough diamond and may or may not have her own interesting past, Merl is a bit bossy and Betty is the list maker. I look forward to learning more about them all as I progress in the series

Hazel works at Empire Fashionwear. In her role as tea lady, she not only knows what everyone's preferred biscuit choice is (Shortbread Cream for me thanks Hazel) but she is often called upon to be confidante and sometimes even the peacemaker if there is any dissent between staff members. She has access to all levels of the business from the machinists to the big boss. 

One day Hazel sees a distressed woman in the window of the supposedly abandoned warehouse across the road. The woman is holding up a note but it is in another language so Hazel isn't able to understand it. When the warehouse burns down and the Empire Fashionware bookkeeper is found dead, Hazel and her friends are drawn into the investigation, especially seeing as the police just don't seem to be interested. 

Unwittingly, Hazel finds herself caught up in the dangerous Sydney underworld where crime boss rules the streets, where people she knows are caught up in risky business, you don't know who you can trust and every action she takes could lead to danger. 

That is not the only issue Hazel is facing. She is not sure why but her husband Robert is acting a bit out of character. They are very happy together, and usually have a really set routine but there is something not quite right and she needs to figure it out.

I liked this book a lot, especially the camaraderie between the tea ladies (well, three of them at least). It really captures the feeling of the impact of rapid social change. I guess it is true of most decades, but the 1960s was a decade where there were seismic changes, particularly in the rag trade. The company where Hazel work is very conservative. They produce knee length skirts and tailored jackets in drab colours like brown. When English model Jean Shrimpton shocks the country by wearing a mini dress to the Melbourne Spring Racing Carnival, fashion changes overnight, but not everyone at Empire Fashionwear wants to change with the times, especially given some of the psychedelic fabric that is around. The orders dry up overnight, and suddenly many of the staff members are facing unemployment if things dont improve. 

As an aside now the dress looks very conservative compared to some of the fashions that are seen at the races but at the time it was very controversial because not only was the dress short, but she also was not wearing a hat, gloves or stockings. 

By the time I started working tea ladies were a thing of the past, but there were still a couple of people who did remember the days when they would work their way through the building, distributing tea or coffee, biscuits and a friendly bit of banter. I do love the idea of having someone like Hazel wandering through the building every day, dispensing biscuits and advice!

I have already requested the next book in the series so will be looking forward to reading more about the Tea Ladies and their adventures!

I am sharing this review with the Foodies Read challenge hosted at Based on a True Story, with Weekend Cooking  and with the Historical Fiction Reading Challenge, both of which I host! 

Rating 4.5/5