Love these books, have read all 14. Gentle, simple observations about life and love. No sex, no violence, just a comfortable story about living life the best you can.

Another solid installment in this series. A little thin on the mystery side of things but Mma Ramotswe's musings on life are worth it anyway.

Another lovely encounter with Mma Ramotswe, the owner of the No. 1 Ladies Detective Agency in Botswana. What I like about this series are the gentle observations of country, gender roles, and people. The cases she resolves are not the main attraction of these books, but the interactions between people with all their strengths and weaknesses.

This is the first "Number One Ladies Detective Club" book that I have read. This probably explains why it felt like a long "really special episode" of a long running TV series I've never seen before. Ultimately forgettable and inoffensive.

A little too sentimental for me, but still a fun read.

Initial Thoughts: Mma Makutsi had a baby! She was reluctant to discuss maternity leave with Mma Ramotswe, but how they miss each other during Mma Makutsi brief absence. Their friendship is truly special, especially the fact that Mma Makutsi keeps the kind of tea her friend likes at her house, to make her some when she comes to visit. There was a couple cases and when Mma Makutsi returns, they solve them together.
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“Now, what would you like? We have red bush tea or we have ordinary tea. Both are available.”

“She filled the kettle and prepared her first cup of tea. It was, in fact, her third of the day, but she did not count the two that she had at home before she reached the office; those cups were merely preparatory and therefore exempt from tally. Her cup of tea in her hand, she stood by the window, looking out at the acacia tree behind the office.”

—The Minor Adjustments Beauty Salon, Alexander McCall Smith

Picking up where I left off with my friends Mma Ramotswe and Mma Makutsi, having red bush (rooibos) or ordinary tea.  This time I chose a red bush blend with almond from @plumdeluxe and I hope Mma Ramotswe would be ok with that.

But, what's new with them, yes, that's the point of this post and I will be brief. 

Mma Makutsi is having a baby & she's any day she can have this baby status & seems reluctant to take maternity leave.  When she has the baby (a snake is involved oh my!) and she's gone for a short spell, Mma Ramotswe realizes just how much she misses not her associate detective, but her friend.

Even Charlie who seems to push all of Mma Makutsi's buttons and vice versa, is changed when she returns with her baby.  Mr. J. L. B. Matekoni, Mma Ramotswe husband, even tries to be a modern husband.  His attempt to make potatoes I think, was funny, but very considerate & loving but not fit for eating.

The cases for investigation show up, as in most of the books, but this time, the focus on the ladies friendship (and of course the tea), take center stage.

Utterly charmed again. Wish these folks were real people you could go visit and share a pot of tea with.

Went some places I didn’t expect in the ongoing personal stories but even more so with one of the investigations.

I just love the pacing of these novels. I like to read them when I need a break from the harsh realities of this world. Not that they aren't often dealing with serious topics. It's just that the approach to the problems in Botswana and the world of Mma Ramotswe is just so calming. So reassuring. I always look forward to the next installment. And this one was particularly sweet, with the new addition.