Theodosia Browning was asked to join in the annual Charleston Point-to-Point Race sponsored by the Wildwood Horse and Hunt Club when one of the members suffered an accident. Theo is doing great until her horse balks at a noise right before a jump; Theo loses her seat and is thrown. While assessing herself for injuries she sees blood on the ground in front of her, but it isn't hers; it belongs to the dead woman slumped against the split rail fence. And, talk about coincidence, the woman is not only the sister of Theo's ex-lover, Jory Davis; the deceased was also recently seen in a heated face-to-face confrontation with Theo.

Detective Burt Tidwell, who has always urged Theo to leave his murder cases alone, surprises her by hinting she could be of some help in finding Abby Davis's killer. Perhaps more people would talk to a civilian than to a police detective. Abby had recently transferred to a Charleston television station as an anchorwoman from Savannah, and stepped on a lot of people to get to the top of her profession. She was investigating several things -- a secret society in Charleston and a millionaire's kidnapped son among them. Could Abby's snooping in either of these matters have caused her death? Oh, and since Theo has been snooping in Abby's life, her own life is put at risk. Then, there is Theo's personal life juggling Parker, her current boyfriend, and Jory, her ex.

OOLONG DEAD is entertainment at its finest, with murder, mystery, and mayhem running through the swiftly turning pages. The Indigo Tea Shop's personnel, Drayton Conneley and Haley Parker, are front and center as are several of the familiar shopkeepers on Church Street. Laura Childs has a rare talent for creating cozy series featuring bright, interesting, and strong heroines. May Ms. Childs' pen -- or her imagination -- never run dry.