MUMS and MAYHEM book review

 

MUMS and MAYHEM

by Amanda Flower

A famous fiddler has been kilt. A magic garden's left to wilt. Does Fiona Knox's father hold the guilt? Will florist Fiona's blood be spilt?

World-famous fiddle player Barley McFee arrives in blustery Bellewick, Aberdeenshire, Scotland, for a grand homecoming concert organized by jeweler Bernice Brennan. Fiona Knox, owner of the Climbing Rose Flower Shop, is starting to regret volunteering to help with the concert. Bernice is an exacting taskmaster, and Fiona has enough tension dealing with her parents, who have traveled from Tennessee to visit Fi and her younger sister, Isla, and to reveal a secret about Fi's birth. But when Barley is found dead in his trailer during the concert's intermission, and his death is shockingly tied to Fiona's father, Fiona discovers there are more secrets surrounding her family than she realized.

Much to the chagrin of handsome Neil Craig, Chief Inspector of the County Aberdeen Police, Fiona delves into the case to clear her father's name. To make matters worse, Fiona learns that Duncreigan, the magical garden that she inherited from her godfather, is dying. At some point during the concert, someone broke into the garden and cut the centuries-old climbing rose--the source of the garden's magic--from the standing stone.

The stakes are higher than ever and Fiona could lose all that she's grown unless she's able to dispel this terrible curse and dig up the truth--fast.

MY BOOK REVIEW: 

5 Stars: 5/5 Star Rating

Fiona seems to find herself constantly among two things, flowers and murder. Once again, she is busy providing the mums for the town's concert for Barley McFee and then finds herself discovering him DEAD! She also can't resist poking about and helping to solve these same crimes, much to the dismay of her boyfriend, the Chief Inspector of the County, Neil Craig. Fiona will find this murder far to close to those she loves. Will she solve this one in time to save her loved one from a life of doom? or is she too late?  

I love reading about Fiona and especially about Scotland and the magic garden there.  I feel like I am actually visiting in Scotland from Amanda Flower's vivid descriptions. It's as if I have taken my own personal little vacation, via this book. 

I received a digital ARC of this book from netgalley and Crooked Lane Books.  All opinions expressed are my own.

About the Author:

Amanda Flower, a USA Today bestselling and Agatha Award-winning mystery author, started her writing career in elementary school when she read a story she wrote to her sixth grade class and had the class in stitches with her description of being stuck on the top of a Ferris wheel. She knew at that moment she’d found her calling of making people laugh with her words. In addition to being an author, Amanda is a former librarian in Northeast Ohio.