I thoroughly enjoyed this delightful mystery. Written in the style of Evanovich, it contained humor, detail and a suspenseful ending. ( )

I didn't care for this novel. Perhaps because i'm not a big mystery fan, but there were a lot of flaws and I wouldn't recommend it to anyone. I didn't care about the characters. ( )

Rosemary Harris's first mystery novel has some flaws, but it also has some positive aspects that kept me turning the pages. I think the strongest aspect of the book is its characterization. Paula Holliday, former television executive, budding landscaper (pun intended), and amateur sleuth, would be an interesting person to meet at a social event. She has a good sense of humor, she doesn't have odd personality quirks, and, unlike so many cozy heroines, she is smart enough not to do her sleuthing by herself in the wee hours of the night. The diner owner, Babe, Paula's landscaping assistant, Hugo, her domestic helper, Anna, and policeman, Mike O'Malley, are all well-defined, likeable characters. The only member of Paula's circle I didn't care for was her friend, Lucy, from her days in the television business.

The plot needed tightening up. There were extraneous details that needed to be edited out, and there also seemed to be some missing information that needed to be filled in. I was expecting to read about plants and gardening since Paula is a gardener, but at times it seems like the author included information just to display her gardening knowledge rather than to further the plot.

I read an advanced reader's edition loaned to me by a friend. Perhaps some of the problems were fixed in the published version – or perhaps not. ( )

I no longer have this book, but have to add it back into the physical catalog of my library to satisfy those in charge of the Early Reviewer Program.

As I recall, I did not like this book, but since it was read over a year ago and I no longer have access to the review, I do not remember specifics. ( )

It's hard to find much to say about this debut mystery, which is sort of like rice pudding: OK if you like that sort of thing, but not the most original or tastiest dessert in the bunch. The mystery is fairly well plotted (although the murderer is obvious from the get-go), and some of the secondary characters are well drawn (unfortunately, not the heroine). One annoying point: I found it impossible to tell what the heroine's background in television was supposed to be. Was she a filmmaker? A scheduling executive? Or what? ( )