The Deadly Dispute book club questions

The latest instalment in The Tea Ladies cosy crime series, The Deadly Dispute, follows Hazel, Betty and Irene through a series of new adventures. Hazel’s new job at the docks leads her to a criminal underworld, Betty is led astray by a charismatic new friend and Irene decides to take on a mafia.

Full of fun, nostalgia and – of course – tea and biscuits, this book is sure to inspire lively book club conversations.

Discussion Points and Questions

• Do you think the main characters have evolved over the series, and in what ways?
• What elements of the story captured the mood of the sixties for you? Do you think these were better times?
• ‘Even a tea lady has her limits,’ says Hazel. Do you think that’s true?
• Betty’s only ambitions were to get married and have children; now she feels life has passed her by. Do you think this was a common regret for women of that generation?
• It seems to Betty that young people understand the world much better than her generation ever did. In what ways does she see this, and is it still true today?
• The friendships of the tea ladies suffer an upheaval in this story. Do you think Merl could return to the fold?
• Betty makes the comment that it’s ‘a man’s world’ – a common phrase of the time. Do you think it’s still true today?
• Do you think the characters are representative of older, highly capable women of their time? How do they compare with older women today?
• ‘It’s the clue right under your nose that’s the hardest to see.’ How does this play in out in The Deadly Dispute and other books you have read in The Tea Ladies series?
• Have you read other books by Amanda Hampson, and which is your favourite?

Want more of The Tea Ladies? See the full series here.