Pushing Up Daisies: A Dirty Business Mystery

by: Rosemary Harris

Published by: Thomas Dunne Books (February release)

Reviewed by Stephanie Boyd

Newly transplanted landscape designer Paula Holiday left behind her formerly glamorous job in New York to get back to nature in the wilds of Connecticut. But literally digging up the body of a dead baby isn’t what she had in mind when she started her gardening business.

Then when someone else is murdered and a friend of Paula’s is arrested for the crime, Paula finds herself knee deep in the mystery, determined to prove her friend’s innocence. Only someone doesn’t want Paula to find the truth, and as she moves closer to the answer, she becomes a bigger threat to the murderer. Can Paula save her friend and solve the mystery before the murderer strikes again? Or will Paula be the next victim?

Pushing Up Daisies is a cute, well-done beginning for a charming new gardening cozy mystery series. If you love cozies and love garden folklore and planting tidbits, you will not want to miss this series. Paula is smart, smart-mouthed, sexy, loyal and determined to solve the mystery even at her own peril. Paula is also causing a stir among the attractive men in her new hometown, and she has more than one potential suitor hanging around vying for her attention.

I really enjoyed the quirky and fun secondary characters that add to the charm of Paula’s new life and town. I was able to figure out parts of the mystery before Paula does but not all of it! Author Rosemary Harris throws in a couple of good twists to guarantee you will be guessing right up to the end. I found this mystery delightful. I love the small town setting with its eclectic cast of characters and the gardening information. I enjoyed the romantic tease running through the book as Paula may or may not be interested in different men in the story. And I am looking forward to the sequel!

Armchair Interviews says: Another fun cozy with great characters.

Author’s Web site: http://www.RosemaryHarris.com