Customer Reviews

Garden Plot, The

5 star:		(3)
4 star:		(1)
3 star:		(2)
2 star:		(1)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

I love the way this author writes. She has some different plots so you aren't bored. And they keep you up late at night to finish them!Great read!

My favorite part of this book was the setting. Although not a botanist at heart, I enjoyed the descriptions of the inns, hotels, gardens, etc., that are a part of this European trip. Sara Deane and her aunt Julia find themselves filling in a couple of vacancies on a European garden tour when the tour leader ends up taking a tumble down her cellar stairs and can't go. Then, Ellen Travino, a colleague of Sara's and the botanical 'specialist' who is also supposed to go, ends up missing and presumed dead. Everybody in the tour group is under suspicion, and Sara puts herself right in the middle of everything. Although the story seemed kind of long (by the time the book ended I was more than ready) it was still an enjoyable read.

I've read all of the books in this series, and while I wasn't completely disappointed in this book, there were some areas for improvement.

I didn't get much of a sense of the gardens. Based on the title, you'd think they would be almost a character on their own, but they were kind of glossed over.

The characters were fun, interesting, and basically well developed, but the actions of one character at the end of the book seemed to come out of left field. I even backtracked a little to see if I'd missed something, and I couldn't connect the dots.

Some annoying grammatical/typographical errors distracted me, too, but that's a minor point.

All in all, an enjoyable read.

New Englander Julia Clancy receives two free tickets to join a tour of European gardens when her friend Lillian Garth, who organized the tour, falls down a set of stairs. Julia decides to take her niece, school teacher Sarah Deane, along as her guest. Sarah does not really want to tour a bunch of stuffy gardens, but a free trip to Europe sounds too good to pass up. Sarah also learns that an old friend, Ellen Trevino, who she has not seen in several years, will serve as the tour guide. When the group board the plane at Logan Airport, Ellen is not there. The police find her corpse at a Maine rest stop. ..... The tour seems strange to Sarah as no one appears interested in gardens, yet there is no respite even in the tranquil locales. The participants act weirder and weirder, and the tour guide almost drowns. Sarah decides to learn what is going on without her spouse Alex to help her. He is busy searching for Ellen. Sarah cannot back down from trying to learn why the group is acting so strange even after her life is threatened. If she does not show a little more caution, Sarah may find her amateur sleuthing career ended very soon. ...... THE GARDEN PLOT is a wacky, but lovable mystery novel that stars the sensational Sarah Deane, mostly going solo in this novel. J.S. Borthwick has written a refreshing tale that is made more interesting by the support cast and the locale. No one does a Maine cozy (except perhaps Ms. Fletcher) better than Ms. Borthwick, who, by taking her show on the road, adds new life to an already wonderful series. ......Harriet Klausner

Yes, this is my first book by this author, and probably my last. I don't think she even knows a petunia from a marigold. The garden descriptions were so vague and useless as to make me wonder if she ever saw any of these gardens at all. The plot was convoluted and the whodunit aspects were fairly obvious. All in all a boring read during some long flights and waits in airports.

This was my first Sarah Deane mystery. I happened to pick it up at my local used bookstore. What a great find! I love mysteries that involve tour groups or traveling, so this was the perfect Sarah Deane mystery for me to start with. It's a wonderfully suspenseful story without any blood, gore, swearing, or a lot of violence. Yet, it's more than just a fluffy cozy. The author does an excellent job with developing the characters and by the end of the book, I felt they were my friends. (Gotta love crusty old Aunt Julia!)

I highly recommend this book to anyone who enjoys a great mystery. I have purchased the rest of the Sarah Deane series and look forward to reading the rest of them.

The cover caught me, the title was right down my alley, the setting was just what I like, and the cincher was the quotes, "a good fireside read" and "if you can't see the gardens of England yourself, you can with this book" (paraphrased). I HAD to read this! The book was enjoyable and the characters fun, but the story was lacking seriousness and at times disjointed. I wanted to finish because I did want to travel through England and "see" the gardens and also to see whodunit. My expectation of a dramatic climax is where my disappointment comes in. I was not totally unhappy with the book but the ending was not what I expected.