On opening day of the community garden, Maggie Walker finds a boot sticking out of a plot, with a body attached! And where is Violet Bloom, the woman in charge of the garden. Maggie doesnt believe her friend is a murderer and searches for clues to find Violet and clear her name. This was a nicely done cozy with likeable main characters and lots of red herrings. I can't wait to read the next book in this series.

I know this is categorized as a cozy mystery but something about the writing didn’t feel like it fit that genre. There was a lack of funny or romantic moments, or where the main character gets herself into difficult situations. It felt like it was mostly the main character just talking to her friend, and talking to the same few people. It was an interesting mystery which I figured out about halfway through but it was a bit of a slow moving novel.

I’m not sure, if describing this book as a cute and cozy murder mystery, is appropriate to represent a book about murder, but that’s what it was! I enjoyed reading it from start finish. It kept my interest and kept me guessing. Thank you NetGalley and St. Martin’s Press for sending this book for review consideration. All opinions are my own. #TheGardener’sPlot, #St.Martin’sPress.

The Gardener's Plot is a fun cozy mystery taking place in the Berkshires, with amateur sleuth Maggie Walker trying to solve a murder and clear her missing friend's name. Lots of interesting and relatable characters and an interesting plot (no pun intended) make this a very enjoyable read.

Thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for an ARC in exchange for an honest review.

A woman who loves gardening inherits an old house in a town where she helps create a community garden. On opening day, they find a body buried in the garden. It just gets more crazy after that.

This book was cute and just the palette cleanser I needed between other heavy hitter books. I loved the whole garden plot and just how cozy this mystery was.

The Gardener’s Plot by Deborah J. Benoit is a great small town, cozy mystery. Maggie Walker is an extremely well written character & I loved everything about her. Very entertaining from the first page- you won’t want to put it down~!

Thank you NetGalley & St. Martin’s Press|Minotaur Books for an ARC copy of this book in exchange for my honest review.

3.5 stars; A delightful cozy that does everything it's supposed to do for that genre, but it was so slow going that I almost didn't want to finish. Not much really happened other than our lead going back and forth between her friend's and her houses while they deliberated on the case. Cute characters and friendships and the mystery was well done. I knew who the killer was about 60% of the way and working to prove it was interesting.

Thank you NetGalley and publisher for this arc!

What a great book!! I loved the story and the writing style. Such a good cozy mystery! It was exciting from page 1! I enjoyed this more than I thought I would! My first for this author but will not be my last!

The Gardener's Plot is a cozy mystery that introduces a new amateur sleuth, Maggie Walker. When she moves to a small Berkshires town and helps set up a community garden, she has no idea what she is about to discover! When a body is found in the dirt, Maggie will have to investigate to clear the name of her friend. This is a fun mystery story with well-planted clues and suspects, and those who adore gardening and reading about female friendships will find much to enjoy! This looks to be the start of a series that is sure to be full of suspense!

Thank you to NetGalley for a free copy of the book in exchange for a fair review.

Thank you to NetGalley, St. Martin’s Press, and Minotaur Books for this ARC in exchange for my honest review.

SYNOPSIS: Maggie Walker is happy to be back in the small, Berkshires town where she spent so much time as a child. Marlowe holds many memories for her, and now it also offers a fresh start. Maggie has always loved gardening, so it’s only natural to sign on to help Violet Bloom set up a community garden.

When opening day arrives, and Violet is nowhere to be found, tings go from bad to worse. Maggie finds a boot buried in one of the plots… and there’s a body attached to it. Suddenly, the police are looking for a killer; Maggie doesn’t believe her dear friend could be responsible for this, and she’s going to dig up the dirt needed to prove it.

MY REVIEW: The Gardener’s Plot was a (too) slow burn… it did not captivate my attention at first, and really didn’t until about 65-70% of the way in. I felt like there was a lot of repetition, and was reading a slight variation of the previous chapter. I think a multiple POV would have added depth and made it more intriguing.

IMO this was completely plot driven; we had minimal details about the characters and I am still unsure of the timeframe of when this all takes place. I want to know more about Maggie and her back story, etc.

What I did like/love: I loved the friendship between Maggie and her neighbor, Sally; I felt the dialogue was genuine between the two women. I also love a whodunit, and there was no shortage of suspects. The small town/community feel was definitely felt, as most of the characters seem to go way back and the descriptions of the town of Marlowe (i.e., diner, print shop, garden supply store, etc.), had a realistic and varied cast of characters to go along with it.

I am looking forward to seeing how this series (and hopefully the characters) develop; for me, a sheerly plot driven novel needs more timeline jumps and a deeper plot line. Also hoping to get a POV of some of the suspects and/or those that are murdered so I can really immerse myself into the rest of the series!

3.5/5!!!!

The first in a new series, The Gardener's Plot was an enjoyable cozy mystery read!
What I liked included: the small town feel (always good when "everyone knows everyone"), the relationship between the two best friends, and the main character actually takes advice from others (turning in evidence, etc.).

I was a tad confused about what time period this takes place in (landlines/call waiting/limited cell phone use). Was this the late 90's or early 2000's?

I look forward to the next in the series and the growing of the characters.

I like this! Characters that felt real in a fresh location, and a mystery with just enough turns to keep me guessing.

This was such an enjoyable and entertaining cozy mystery. It’s so bingeable and full of lots of surprises. It kept my attention the whole time and I loved how the story unfolded and the suspense continued to build. Maggie was such a lovable character and I loved her friendship with Sally. This book had everything that I expect to find in a cozy mystery! Highly recommend!

Deborah J. Benoit is a new author for me and The Gardener's Plot was an interesting cozy mystery.

Maggie Walker is starting her life over in the small town of Marlowe in the Berkshires. She seems to be a strong and resilient woman who loves gardening and is settling in nicely in her new home. The plot is smoothly paced but does slowdown in the middle. The twists and multiple suspects kept me guessing until the reveal.

BOOK REPORT
Received a complimentary copy of The Gardener’s Plot, by Deborah J. Benoit, from St. Martin's Press | Minotaur Books /NetGalley, for which I am appreciative, in exchange for a fair and honest review. Scroll past the BOOK REPORT section for a cut-and-paste of the DESCRIPTION of it from them if you want to read my thoughts on the book in the context of that summary.

Why this book won Minotaur Books/Mystery Writers of America First Crime Novel Award is completely beyond me.

I mean, I didn’t go into it expecting to be riveted or anything; I just needed a cozy murder mystery to get me through a few stressful hours, and even though I do not have a garden proper, I love to work in my yard and with potted plants. So The Gardener’s Plot seemed like just the ticket.

Alas, it was just about as slow as molasses, and there was a lot of repetitively repeating repetitiveness. Almost like the author was saying the same thing over and over again. And again and again.

No believable characters/dialogue/plotting. And what the tickety-boo was going on with cell phone usage? Was this supposed to be set in the early 2000s or something? And how did the main character earn a living? I guess through her writing.

Oh, well. C’est la vie, as those proverbial old folks say. Just won’t plan to read anything else by this author.

DESCRIPTION

A woman helps set up a community garden in the Berkshires, only to find a body in one of the plots on opening day.

After life threw Maggie Walker a few curveballs, she’s happy to be back in the small, Berkshires town where she spent so much time as a child. Marlowe holds many memories for her, and now it also offers a fresh start. Maggie has always loved gardening, so it’s only natural to sign on to help Violet Bloom set up a community garden.

When opening day arrives, Violet is nowhere to be found, and the gardeners are restless. Things go from bad to worse when Maggie finds a boot buried in one of the plots… and there’s a body attached to it. Suddenly, the police are looking for a killer and they keep asking questions about Violet. Maggie doesn’t believe her friend could do this, and she’s going to dig up the dirt needed to prove it.

The Gardener’s Plot takes readers to the heart of the Berkshires and introduces amateur sleuth Maggie Walker in Deborah J. Benoit’s Minotaur Books/Mystery Writers of America First Crime Novel Award-winning debut.

Thanks NetGalley for an ARC of this book in exchange for an honest review. This is an American cozy book. Maggie moves back home to Marlowe in the Berkshires after her grandma passes away. She bought the house fair and square from the estate but now her cousin, Simon, wants part of it. Maggie happens to live next door to her childhood friend Sally Kendall. Maggie has been busy in her short time back including helping Violet Bloom get a Community Garden up and running. The first day the garden is open for digging, there is a body in the dirt. A pesky developer who was not liked. He was trying to buy up property and create Marlowe Estates. Maggie and Sally begin snooping, especially after no one seems to have seen Violet. Is she the victim of foul play? Did she run away? This is a quick read, you will have figured out whodunnit quickly. Benoit leaves lots of room for a sequel. Maggie’s archenemies is married to the local cop, a cute detective drives her just a little too crazy, and Cousin Simon isn’t quite out of the picture.

I think this series will get even better as the characters develop and we get more backstory. I loved the friendship of the main character with her neighbor.

Maggie Walker is happy to be home and helping set up the plots for all to garden. Until that is, she finds a body in one of the beds. Also, Violet the one setting up this garden plot is nowhere to be found. Maggie can't help but be sucked into trying to solve the murder. Question is  will she solve it or be the next victim. This was a captivating read and I will look forward to more from this author.

The Gardener's Plot didn't catch my interest at first, but after a few chapters, I was immersed in the cozy mystery. It's somewhat predictable, but well-written with engaging characters.

Maggie is getting used to being back in town after buying her grandmother's house. She's become involved with the new community garden project and reconnecting with old friends. But soon she's found a dead body, a new friend is missing, and the police are looking at Maggie as a suspect. To add to the drama, she's harassed by the old school bully and by a relative looking for money. As Maggie hunts for her missing friend, she starts to find connections to the murder as well.

It's a well-ordered plot with lots of clues, suspects, and action. For those who care about that sort of thing, it's free from sex, swearing, etc. and the violence isn't explicit. The author leaves some possibility of continuing the series but this may also be planned as a stand-alone. Overall, a worthwhile easy fun read.