Shakespeare comes to Hampshire—and Pru Parke is cast into the role of cunning detective gardener once again.
Pru’s friends and neighbors are abuzz with the news of an acting troupe putting on an outdoor performance of A Midsummer Night’s Dream. And while many are eager to catch a glimpse of famed actor Ambrose Grant, Pru can’t wait to finally see the spectacular gardens of the private estate where the play will be performed. When the estate’s gardener abruptly quits—frustrated with actors trampling his beloved plants—Pru is called upon for her gardening expertise. She throws herself into creating magical woodland forest scenes, and is quickly drawn into the excitement of putting on a play, as she watches the drama on and off the stage. But the play’s suddenly no longer the thing, when one of the actors turns up murdered.
Pru’s husband, Detective Inspector Christopher Pearse, relies on Pru’s knowledge of all the players in this particular intrigue, and Pru finds herself using rehearsals to investigate. But playing the role of private eye could prove perilous for Pru, as she closes in on a murderer who won’t let anyone—least of all the gardener—keep him from stopping the show . . . dead.
Release Date: Nov 6, 2018
Series: A Potting Shed Mystery
Book: 7
Publisher: Random House
Imprint: Alibi
Price: $4.99
Pru Parke is excited to take over the gardening duties to help prepare for an outdoor performance of “A Midsummer Night’s Dream” at a private estate. Even though it’s a daunting task, Pru loves the gardening and the fun of seeing the actors rehearse for the play. However, when a philandering cast member is murdered, Pru is enlisted to help her husband, DI Christopher Pearse, weed out the killer from a large list of suspects.
This book is the seventh book in the Potting Shed Mystery series, but readers can easily jump right in without having read all the prior books. If you like this book, you may want to check out the first one in the series to see how Pru and Christoper met and how an American woman from Texas ended up as a renowned gardener in England. Some of the books in this series go into a lot of historical background, which is often interesting but sometimes slows the pace of the story. This book goes easy on the history lessons, but does have a lot of information and lines from Shakespeare’s featured comedy. The play is important to the mystery, but don’t worry if you’re not familiar with it. It’s been years since I’ve read the play and the author does a good job of including the necessary background.
Pru and Christopher are both likable characters and I love when they work together on investigations. This time, Christopher welcomes Pru’s help since her work on the play gives her an inside track into the witnesses and potential suspects. They make a great team, so I was disappointed when at one point, Pru withheld an important clue from her husband until she made more inquiries. She eventually filled Christopher in and things worked out, but I didn’t like that she did this, although it does make her seem human since she isn’t perfect.
The author does a great job of adding light moments to the story that make the characters come alive. It was cute and easy to relate to when Pru’s friends beg her to introduce her to one of the actors in the play who used to star in their favorite soap opera. The investigation goes in circles for a while, so these entertaining extras help make the book more fun to read. I guessed the identity of the murderer before Pru did, but I was way off on the motive , so there were some surprises for me at the end. In spite of the problems in the production, ultimately the show must go on and the ending is cute and satisfying. Fans of the series and fans of English cozy mysteries will enjoy the latest by Marty Wingate.
~ Christine
Amazon | iBooks | B&N | Kobo | Google Play