Customer Reviews

Snipped in the Bud (Flower Shop Mysteries, No. 4) (Flower Shop Mystery)

5 star:		(11)
4 star:		(2)
3 star:		(1)
2 star:		(2)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

Flower Shop owner Abby Knight is asked to deliver a black rose to Professor Puffer, who terrorized her during her brief time as a law school student. Abby is hoping to drop off the rose and run, but much to her dismay she runs into not only Puffer but another law professor, Carson Reed, who not too long ago had Abby arrested at an animal rights protest. Both men bully Abby into fleeing the building, but she decides to stand up for herself and goes back inside only to find that Professor Reed has been murdered. Plenty of people heard Abby's fight with Reed and she is a chief suspect in his murder and there's a real chance she'll be arrested. While Abby fights to clear her name, she stumbles upon a series of pet nappings and is convinced the two are related. But can she and hunky ex-cop Marco find the real murderer and pet nappers before she is arrested for murder?

This was a nicely plotted cozy mystery. Although I've read many mysteries where the heroine is considered a suspect, this is the first one I've read where the situation wasn't contrived and there was a legitimate reason for the police to suspect Abby. Abby is an engaging heroine, although there were times in this book when her meddling was a bit too much and once or twice I rolled my eyes while reading the book. The book has lots of humor and Abby's various disguises as she hides from the Media and various townspeople who think she is the murderer are quite humorous. The mystery is well written and I didn't guess who the real murderer was until the very end.

Very enjoyable.

I recently started reading this mystery series, and I have read all three of the predecessors. I love this book, I couldn't put it down. I loved the other three also, but I clearly think this one is the best. Abby is a great amateur sleuth with a sharp wit and a nose for murder. Collins creates wonderful, believable characters that will keep you coming back for more. I loved Abby's disguises in this book, they were hilarious. I also am quite fond of the cat Simon, who Collins seems to work into every story, which I appreciate. I love her descriptions of the flowers and Abby's banana colored convertable. This is a great new series and so far I haven't been disappointed. I hope Kate Collins continues to produce these books because I can't get enough!

In the 4th book in the Flower Shop Mystery series, Abby Knight, owner of the Bloomers flower shop, receives a funeral order and decides to deliver it herself. None of this initially sounds odd for a florist, but the order that Abby received was for one perfect "black" funeral rose. When she sees that it is to be delivered to one of her most hated prior educators in law school, Professor "Snapdragon" Puffer, she is determined to bury her bad memories and make the delivery herself. Nothing goes well in the delivery...first Abby almost runs over Puffer with her car. Then, she tries to sneak into his office to deliver the flower and gets caught riffling through his desk. Puffer is famous for breaking pencils and throwing them at students, and doing a poor imitation of him, Abby gets caught by a furious Professor Puffer. Fleeing from the office, Abby then runs into another nemesis professor, Carson Reed. Professor Reed is involved with Dermacol Labs, a company that performs lab tests on animals. Abby was recently involved in a protest in front of the lab and was arrested. When she sees Professor Reed in the hallway and is taunted by him, she yells some very harsh words in his direction and stomps off.

Feeling smug for having the last word, Abby decides that she has finally buried the demons that have haunted her after flunking out of law school. But when Abby righteously decides to get back the flower she delivered to Puffer, she finds out that the nightmare is just beginning. She stumbles over the dead body of Professor Reed, and once her fingerprints are found on the murder weapon, the town starts to insist that she be arrested. While dodging the relentless press, staying away from angry law students, and cracking a pet-stealing ring, Abby works diligently to clear her name.

This is a fresh, funny series! Even though I figured out early on how several of the details tied together, I was still intrigued to see how Abby would solve the case. She stumbles around a bit in her investigating, and gets herself involved in quite a bit of mischief, which is always amusing. I found her choice of disguises to be hilarious, and her budding relationship with Marco was sizzling. Great addition to the cozy genre!

The first book in the series is called "Mum's the Word". Enjoy!

I loved this book! She is funny and the story moves quickly. I am going to collect them all!

Loved It!!! I can't wait to read the other Flower Shop Mysteries.

Abby Knight is nervous. She's delivering a black rose to her old law school nemesis, Professor Puffer. Sure she could have had someone else delivery the order, but she refuses to let the fact that he terrified her in her short term at law school keep her from doing her job.

Things didn't start out well, when she almost runs him over in her car and then while trying to sneak the flower on his desk he walks in and catches her. Yelling and screaming at her, he throws the flower in his trash and sends her running out of the room where she runs into another professor, Carlton Reed, who had recently had her arrested at an animal rights protest.

Making it safely to her car, Abby decides that she wasn't going to leave a perfectly good flower die in the Professor's trash can, so she sneaks back up to pluck it out and finds Carlton Reed dead in Professor's Puffer's chair with one of the Professor's signature pencils stuck in his neck.

Now things are really a mess as Abby realizes that she is at the top of the police's list of suspects. (So what if she had forgot to mention she had handled the pencils earlier, just because the one used in the murder had her fingerprints on it didn't make her a killer, did it?)

You would think being suspected of murder would be the worse thing that could happen to you, but unfortunately for Abby, that distinction falls on her cousin Jillian, who in the last story Abby spent most of the time convincing that she really, really, really wanted to get married. Jillian has left her husband on the honeymoon and has moved in with Abby and her roommate Nikki.

It's up to Abby, to find out who killed Carlton Reed, who is stealing pets from the neighborhood, and can she get Jillian to go back to her husband, or at least to move out of her apartment. With the help of her "boyfriend" Marco Salvare - owner of "Down The Hatch" bar and grill, Abby sets out to solve the mystery before she ends up in prison herself.

Highlights:

Abby and Marco. Marco is a former cop and instead of always telling Abby to stay out of investigating, he actually encourages and helps her all he can. Being a former cop, he still has contacts with the police department and they make a great team.

Abby's flower shop employee's. These women are always willing to help Abby in her investigations, which usually consists of them having to do all the work at the shop, as Abby can't show her face due to all the reporters hanging out in front.

Abby's disguises: Due to all the reporters, Abby has to resort to disguises to get around town and do her investigations. Unfortunately, she is relying on her cousin Jillian to dress her up.

A very good mystery which reaches out in several different directions, causing Abby to suspect a lot of people of the crime. Abby solves it by really investigating, discovering information and following up on it, not just having the killer announce, "it's me, I did it."

Jillian - the runaway honeymoon bride. She was exasperating in the last book and you want to smack her upside the head in this one as well.

Lowlights: Only minor ones.

Not enough of the flower shop employee's, they weren't used in investigating this time, only to cover the shop while Abby did all the investigating.

Abby's mother's creations. Abby's mother is into creating art and the pieces she has unloaded at the flower shop to sell are a riot. Nothing outrageous this time around.

A great series. Hasn't had a miss so far. The only problem had been Abby's lone-wolf persona in the first book, which has evaporated over the series into a lot of great relationships.

Kate Collins is a gifted writer who knows her setting- a flower shop. This was a good read, although I could do without the occasional "earthy" language.

Abby becomes a suspect in the murder of her law-school nemesis Professor. Will she be able to beat the rap? The usual supporting characters return in this installment of the Flower Shop Mystery series.

I've always loved mysteries. The first novel I ever read was a Nancy Drew. However, I've read a few of this series now, and I find that every time I get into it I feel like I'm reading something from the fifties. References to cell phones aside, there is something very dated about these characters. When the main character is about to see her boyfriend, she "pinches her cheeks" for color. The last time I'd heard of someone doing that it was when I was in high school in the seventies and the girl actually bruised her face. Also, the law professor characters in this book seem completely unaware of the sexual harassment laws in this millenium. I actually worked for a law school as a secretary and I know that no professor would refer to anyone, especially a student, as "Betty Boob." He'd be sued and more than likely fired before the week was out. There's no tolerance for that kind of harassment in universities anymore. Finally, I find the main character less than exciting. She's not especially smart; she's not very edgy. She solves her mystery through perseverance and a gigantic helping from the ex-cop boyfriend. And though I can read and respect literature from that era as a product of its culture, I find that these stories are a little jarring because of different expectations from contemporary literature. I wonder if the author just wants to write G-rated mysteries for the audiences out there who don't like sex, violence or bad language, or very strong female characters with their entertainment.

Abby Knight is back and once again finds herself involved in a murder investigation, as the number one suspect. She innocently delievers a rose to an old law school professor which leads to a confrontation between the two. Old feelings rush to the surface during their exchange and Abby runs out of his office. When she reaches her car, she realizes she's not a law student anymore and her former professor did not have the right to speak to her as such. She pulls herself together and decides to get her flower back. When she returns to his office, she discovers a dead body and soon finds herself at the top of the police suspect list.

Much of the book is spent with Abby in disguise trying to find the real killer. There's a sub-plot of animal kidnapping that eventually ties into the murder investigation. Abby's cousin, Jillian, makes another appearance when she returns from her honeymoon, only to bring drama with her. Overall I thought Snipped in the Bud is the best in the series so far.