Murder Crops Up [Mass Market Paperback]

Lora Roberts (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: July 29, 1998

A GARDEN OF GOOD AND EVIL

In the cheerful community garden where struggling freelance writer Liz Sullivan grows her veggies, someone is raking up old, hurtful scandals. So when a dead body turns up in nosy Lois Humphries's meticulously maintained plot, Liz is labeled a murderer!

With her reliable friend Detective Paul Drake out of town, Liz has a hard row to hoe--until she digs up dirt on some fellow gardeners who seem more than capable of giving the grim reaper a hand. But it'll take a deadly encounter among the cornstalks to catch a green-thumbed killer red-handed. . . .

Editorial Reviews

From Publishers Weekly

Peripatetic, cynical, emotionally cautious Liz Sullivan is back in her fifth mystery and has settled down in a rickety cottage in suburban California. No longer living out of her VW bus (crime scene of her first outing, Murder in a Nice Neighborhood), she ekes out a living as a freelance writer and organic gardener. Having served time for the attempted murder of an abusive spouse, Liz considers her own criminal past over, until a gardener hints that Liz better show up for the community garden workday, warning her that one of her fellows is planting the seeds for blackmail. At the workday, it's not just Bermuda grass that gets sent to its just reward; a body is pushing daisies in one of the garden plots. A bushel of suspects keeps Liz and the police guessing about motives. Despite some understandable distrust of emotional entanglements, the arrival of a desperate niece and body number two leave Liz yearning in more ways than one for her absent neighbor, handsome police detective Paul Drake. Liz is a capable and likable character and Roberts has managed to mesh the clean and cozy atmosphere of compost-loving gardeners with the seedier side life.
Copyright 1998 Reed Business Information, Inc.

From the Inside Flap

A GARDEN OF GOOD AND EVIL

In the cheerful community garden where struggling freelance writer Liz Sullivan grows her veggies, someone is raking up old, hurtful scandals. So when a dead body turns up in nosy Lois Humphries's meticulously maintained plot, Liz is labeled a murderer!

With her reliable friend Detective Paul Drake out of town, Liz has a hard row to hoe--until she digs up dirt on some fellow gardeners who seem more than capable of giving the grim reaper a hand. But it'll take a deadly encounter among the cornstalks to catch a green-thumbed killer red-handed. . . .

See all Editorial Reviews

Product Details

• Mass Market Paperback: 230 pages
• Publisher: Fawcett; 1st edition (July 29, 1998)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0449150488
• ISBN-13: 978-0449150481
• Product Dimensions: 6.8 x 0.8 x 0.3 inches
• Shipping Weight: 5.6 ounces
• Average Customer Review: 3.6 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (5 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #2,270,894 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

4 of 4 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Finally a mystery with real life characters!, July 23, 1998

By A Customer

This review is from: Murder Crops Up (Mass Market Paperback)

Got a hold of an advanced copy of this book and is the first one of her Liz Sullivan series that I've read. I loved her real life characters. Intriguing garden mystery that involves a free-lance writer trying too eek out a means of living as best as possible but at the same time meeting everyday life characters who are jealous, backstabbing, fru-fru, and murderous. Great to see a main character also who has the support of friends who are moms as well as older women. Happy to see a main character who also 'feels' rather than just being. A true multidimensional character. Also glad that the romance is kept to minimum, that women don't always need men to rescue them in whatever situation.

4 of 6 people found the following review helpful:

2.0 out of 5 stars Lame, December 17, 2001

By 

ReggieRoy (Chicago, IL) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Murder Crops Up (Mass Market Paperback)

I don't think even Liz cared who dun it. This mystery was severely lacking in mystery. It was mostly about Liz driving back and forth to the garden and obsessing about whether to make it with Paul Drake. (Maybe in the first book his silly name was explained - Paul Drake as in the old Perry Mason series, I presume.) I found this boring and preachy. I don't think I'll read another in this series -- I enjoyed "Murder in the Marketplace" -- but I'm tired of Liz's poor-but-happy-I-can-shop at-the-thrifts personality. Let's face it - is there a woman alive who doesn't crave a new piece of clothing sometimes?

4.0 out of 5 stars Funny and light; Easy Read, July 10, 2000

By 

Sue Smithe - See all my reviews

This review is from: Murder Crops Up (Mass Market Paperback)

I enjoyed ths book very much. I found it easy to read and follow. I enjoyed the descriptions which were pleasing without excessive detail. The characters are interesting and believable; moreso than the crimes which are there but beside the point. A little too much politics woven into the story, but all in all a very good read. Well worth the money.