The Azalea Assault by Alyse Carlson

Everything seems to be coming up roses for Camellia ‘Cam’ Harris until a dead body is discovered causing a lot of thorns in her side.

Cam has gotten Garden Delights, a premier national magazine for garden lovers, to feature a Roanoke garden. They’ve selected the spectacular garden of Neil Patrick, the founder of the Roanoke Garden Society, and his lovely wife, Evangeline, a former Miss Virginia. To top it off, world-famous photographer Jean Jacques Georges will be taking the photographs. Meanwhile, Cam’s sister Petunia is catering the big affair celebrating the magazine coverage.

As it turns out, Jean Jacques Georges is more of a snob than a pleasure to be around. He insults and upsets a number of guests at the welcoming party. The next morning his body is found among the azaleas and the list of suspects quite interesting. However, Cam’s brother-in-law Nick is on the top of the list and it’s up to her to find the killer before the entire event turns to compost.

The cast of characters are well defined and a nice mix of personalities in THE AZALEA ASSAULT. Cam is likeable as the protagonist. She’s well-rounded in her interaction with the other characters. She’s the kind of friend you’d want in a bind or to be with on a fun outing.

Author Alyse Carlson does well in bringing a touch of Southern charm to the story. She draws you in with the easy-going conversation-style writing and holds you spellbound as she weaves in just enough twists and turns to keep you guessing. The story’s pace is smooth and relaxing with moments of suspense.

A glass of sweet ice tea and THE AZALEA ASSAULT are the perfect match for an evening of summer reading on the veranda.

This is the first installment in Carlson’s Garden Society Mystery series. The book contains an added bonus at the back, a sneak preview of the next installment - THE BEGONIA BRIBE, coming soon from Berkley Prime Crime.

Alyse Carlson is the pseudonym for Hart Johnson. The author blogs at Confessions of a Watery Tart. 

 
The Azalea Assault by Alyse Carlson, A Garden Society Mystery, Berkley Prime Crime, @2012, ISBN: 978-0425251300, Paperback, 304 Pages   

FTC Full Disclosure - This book was sent to me by the publisher in hopes I would review it. However, receiving the complimentary copy did not influence my review.

 

Do you enjoy a mystery that keeps you guessing until the every end? Do you prefer to know who is the killer is half way through and try to figure out how he’ll be caught? Thanks so much for stopping by today.

Crazy Cozy Blogfest

Today is the Crazy Cozy Blogfest, sponsored by Hart Johnson and Elizabeth Spann Craig, to celebrate the release of their new cozy mysteries and have a fun promotion for their fellow bloggers.

The idea was to think of the craziest, zaniest set-up for a cozy mystery you could strictly for entertainment value. Participants were asked to come up with a wacky theme, a zany sleuth, a crazy setting, and write it up in 150 to 250 words.

First, let me tell you about Hart and Elizabeth’s new releases and then I’ll share my try at the blogfest.

The Azalea Assault by Alyse Carlson (aka Hart Johnson)

Cam Harris loves her job as public relations manager for the Roanoke Garden Society. It allows her to combine her three loves, spinning the press, showing off her favorite town, and promoting her favorite activity. 

She's just achieved a huge coup by enlisting Garden Delights, the country's premiere gardening magazine, to feature the exquisite garden of RGS founder, Neil Patrick. She's even managed to enlist world-famous photographer Jean-Jacques Georges. 

Unfortunately, Jean-Jacques is a first-rate cad—insulting the RGS members and gardening, goosing every woman in the room, and drinking like a lush. It is hardly a surprise when he turns up dead. But when Cam's brother-in-law is accused and her sister begs her to solve the crime, that is when things really get prickly.

Alyse Carlson is the pen name for Hart Johnson who writes books from her bathtub. By day she is an academic researcher at a large midwestern university. She lives with her husband, two teenage children and two fur balls. The dust bunnies don't count. This is her first published book.

For more on Alyse/Hart, visit her website Confessions of a Watery Tart.

Quilt or Innocence by Elizabeth Craig

Beatrice has a lot of gossip to catch up on—especially with the Patchwork Cottage quilt shop about to close. It seems that Judith, the landlord everyone loves to hate, wants to raise the rent, despite being a quilter herself.

But when Judith is found dead, the harmless gossip becomes an intricate patchwork of mischievous motives. And it’s up to Beatrice’s expert eye to decipher the pattern and catch the killer, before her life gets sewn up for good.

Elizabeth Spann Craig writes the Memphis Barbeque series for Penguin/Berkley (as Riley Adams), the Southern Quilting mysteries (2012) for Penguin/NAL, and the Myrtle Clover series for Midnight Ink. She blogs daily at Mystery Writing is Murder, which was named by Writer's Digest as one of the 101 Best Websites for Writers for 2010 and 2011.

As the mother of two, Elizabeth writes on the run as she juggles duties as Girl Scout leader, referees play dates, drives carpools, and is dragged along as a hostage/chaperone on field trips. 

Now for my entry into this fun blogfest.

Hi was busy picking up worms from the freshly turned soil when her Husky began digging feverishly nearby.

“Slow down Traveler. You’ll make the worms leave and I’ll never find them,” Hi scolded lightly.

Just then Hi noticed fingertips barely visible in the dirt where Traveler was. “Traveler halt!” Hi commanded and the dog instantly stopped as he was trained.

This was not good. Hi could just hear her best friend Jeremiah ‘Jed’ Flagstaff, sheriff of their small Tennessee town. “Sally Higginbottom what have you gotten herself into now? Don’t you have enough to do running your bait store, you got to dig up a dead body with your worms? I don’t think a dead body will catch fish.”

Pulling off her gloves, Hi reached in the back pocket of her jeans for her cellphone. She’d call Jed directly no need for a 911 operator. This body didn’t need emergency help anymore.

Standing up, Hi motioned for Traveler to follow as she walked to her Jeep. Hearing Jed’s gruff, “Yeah, talk,” Hi felt safer.

“Jed, just listen. Traveler found a body while we were digging for worms on the old Johnson place just south of town. Looks like it’s fresh so I’d appreciate it if you’d leave your scolding till later and just get here as soon as you can.”

“Get in your car. Lock the doors. I’m on my way,” was all he said.

Grandpa Jesup didn’t raise a fool, 50-year-old Hi did as she was told.

Did you enter the blogfest? Be sure to stop by all the participants of the blogfest for some amazing and hilarious entries. Thanks so much for stopping by today.