Stars: 5 out of 5
Pros: Wonderful characters, tons of fun
Cons: Plot does slow down a little in the middle
The Bottom Line:
Language of flowers
Delightful new characters
Mixed up in murder
Debut That Blooms
I almost passed up Bloom and Doom this spring. After all, it's a cozy mystery series set in
a flower shop, and I'm a guy. Flowers
just aren't my thing. (Not to mention my
allergies to pollen.) However, I heard
such good things about it that I had to give the book a try. I'm glad I did because this was a completely
delightful debut.
Audrey Bloom and her cousin Liz have settled in the town of Ramble , Virginia, and set
up a florist shop. Audrey has learned
the language of flowers and uses them to help craft beautiful and meaningful
bridal bouquets. Her latest client is
Jenny, a former friend who is now marrying Derek, the most eligible bachelor in
the county.
However, two weeks before the wedding, Jenny has decided to
call the entire thing off because she’s realized she doesn’t love her
fiancée. The morning after she does,
Derek is found murdered in his car outside Jenny’s apartment. With the evidence pointing to Jenny, Audrey
feels the need to step in and save her former friend. Derek wasn’t well liked, so the list of
suspects is actually long. Can Audrey
find the truth about what happened to Derek?
The thing that really drew me to this book was the
characters. There is already a full
cast, and they are all delightful. I
didn't have any trouble keeping them all straight as the book progressed
because they were fully formed already. I'm
sorry the book is over because I really wasn't ready to say goodbye to them,
which means I'm definitely looking forward to the sequel.
Unfortunately, the plot did slow down a little in the middle,
but the characters kept me turning pages.
Once the story picked up again, it didn't slow back down until we
reached the logical conclusion. I had a
couple of sub-plots guessed correctly, but I didn't figure out who the killer
was until right before Audrey did, and even did I didn't have all the clues
correct.
This is all mixed together with a dose of humor. There are two scenes that are fun and some
great lines scattered throughout. There
is plenty on the language of flowers as well, but it is all presented in an
interesting way that never detracts from the story.
I'm glad I listened to those great reviews for Bloom and Doom because I really enjoyed
this book. You can bet I'll be lining up
for the sequel with no hesitation at all.
Ok, I'm glad you liked the book. But can I confess that I laughed at the "Bridal Bouquet" description. This is definitely not what I was expecting to see and it totally caught me off guard! :D
ReplyDeleteYes, occasionally I do read some interesting series like that, but it was well worth it.
DeleteGlad I could provide you with a laugh.
Great review - this sounds like such a fun cozy. It's on my wish list!
ReplyDeleteIt is definitely fun. Bump it on up that wish list.
DeleteThanks again, Mark, for the great review.
ReplyDeleteYou are very welcome.
Delete