Murder Sets Seed (A Bretta Solomon Mystery)

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Summary: Murder Sets Seed
Review: Bretta Solomon has decided to begin putting her life back together after her husband's untimely death by buying the historic Beauchamp mansion and restoring it. Bretta and her flower shop staff have been working hard at decorating the house in time for the shop's annual Christmas open house. Unfortunately, a week before the event, the manipulative Cameo Beauchamp, erstwhile owner of the Beauchamp Mansion, persuades Bretta to hold a select dinner for a few friends (read River City's most upstanding citizens) so that they can have a sneak peek at the restorations.

Of course Cameo has an agenda of her own that she fails to appraise Bretta of! Just before dinner, Cameo drops a bombshell: someone at this ill-fated dinner party has attempted to blackmail her and she's not going to stand for it. And then dramatically, the lights go out and when they come back on, Cameo is found strangled. Bretta is all for staying out of this investigation but when the town's leading gossip columnist accuses her of the crime, Bretta goes all out to find out who did actually kill Cameo Beauchamp.

I enjoyed this mystery alot more than the first one ("Roots Of Murder"). Bretta Solomon is a charming and sympathetic woman, and I thought the other characters were developed well as well. But I really didn't understand the sheriff's attitude or hostility towards Brettta, especially as Bretta's husband had been a rather close friend. His antagonism seemed all out of proportion. Also, I had to read the last three chapters twice in order to make sense of who had committed the murder and why. And while I did understand it the second time around, I think the novel would have been stronger if there had been a few more clues strewn about in the preceding chapters.

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Summary: A great read
Review: I have been absolutely thrilled with the new mysteries, especially the series that have started up in the last year or two, and Janis Harrison's Gardening Mystery series is just one example of theses great new series.

A Murder Sets Seed is the second of Janis Harrison's Gardening Mysteries. Widowed Bretta Solomon, owner of a flower shop, is our amateur sleuth. She is a fabulous, full-bodied character who holds up the story with her personal strength, humor, and wisdom. The entire of cast and the story line of A Murder Sets Seed are impressive and complete, so readers can expect to react, thank goodness. The mystery, with its developments and revelations, pulled together expertly.

Cameo Beauchamp-Sinclair, a rich socialite, has a couple of problems: she is being blackmailed and needs a surrogate daughter. After she meets Bretta Solomon, she sells the Beauchamp Mansion to her and turns to Bretta for help with the problems. During one of Bretta's formal dinners Cameo denounces her unknown blackmailer in front of the other guests, which causes a snowball effect into murder and mayhem.

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Summary: What a good Christmas read!!!!!!!
Review: I really enjoyed this book, and look forward to many more in this series!!!!!! Terrific book for the holidays, or anytime!

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Summary: Flowery Family Folly
Review: In this second book of a series, Bretta Soloman has moved from the home she shared with late husband Carl (see Roots of Murder) and undertaken the renovation of a neglected mansion. Set during the busy Christmas season, Bretta is a busy and ambitious florist, hoping to cash in on the season of spending. However, the tale takes more of a Halloween turn when the former owner of the mansion is strangled with the cord of some Christmas lights. Fast paced, the timing seems off in this book, and too many different components come into play. The widowed Bretta has fallen off her diet, her long lost father has made contact, and the former owner of her new home has made some interesting demands, and Bretta has issues with the sheriff. A few red herrings are to be expected in a cozy mystery, but this one meandered past the point of plausibility on many counts. A baffling "flower" arrangement, with too many design elements?

Rating:
Summary: Flowery Family Folly
Review: In this second book of a series, Bretta Soloman has moved from the home she shared with late husband Carl (see Roots of Murder) and undertaken the renovation of a neglected mansion. Set during the busy Christmas season, Bretta is a busy and ambitious florist, hoping to cash in on the season of spending. However, the tale takes more of a Halloween turn when the former owner of the mansion is strangled with the cord of some Christmas lights. Fast paced, the timing seems off in this book, and too many different components come into play. The widowed Bretta has fallen off her diet, her long lost father has made contact, and the former owner of her new home has made some interesting demands, and Bretta has issues with the sheriff. A few red herrings are to be expected in a cozy mystery, but this one meandered past the point of plausibility on many counts. A baffling "flower" arrangement, with too many design elements?

Rating:
Summary: A likeablemystery
Review: Over eighteen months ago, Bretta Solomon's beloved spouse, a deputy sheriff, died. Bretta still mourns her loss, but their love is so powerful that even death cannot keep them from conversing with one another. Bretta runs a River City floral shop, but that is inadequate to keep her mind off of her husband's death. So when Cameo Beauchamp-Sinclair offers to sell her family mansion to Bretta, the florist leaps at the opportunity.

Bretta performs a miracle restoring the mansion to much of its former glory. To celebrate her accomplishment, Bretta hosts a dinner to include Cameo and many of the elderly woman's friends and relatives. During the meal, Cameo announces that she has discovered the identity of the person trying to blackmail her. However, the lights go off and when illumination returns, Cameo is dead. Having successfully solved a murder before, Bretta begins investigating this homicide without yet realizing how close she comes to joining her husband in the afterlife.

The heroine of MURDER SETS SEED is a likable, understandable, and empathetic individual. However, the remainder of the cast seems two-dimensional, symbolizing a stereotype rather than a person. Though not enhancing the tale, that flaw fails to hurt the story line because the plot totally belongs to the brave Bretta. Janis Harrison writes an enjoyable amateur sleuth tale that sets the roots for a warm sad character starring in a gardening mystery series.

Harriet Klausner