A Rose from the Dead [Large Print] [Hardcover]

This newest installment of the Flower Shop Mysteries by Kate Collins is a great read for those who enjoy mystery, romance, and quirky humor! Abby continues to show her spunk, Marco continues to be the guy all us ladies *wish* we knew...and hanging out with them while solving the mystery is as much fun as ever.

Florist Abby Knight agrees to attend a convention of funeral directors hoping it will drum up business for her. She thought the convention would be rather boring and is surprised that it has events like casket racing. There are even more surprises in store for Abby when organizer Sybil Blount is murdered. The police suspect Abby's friend Delilah Dove committed the murder but Abby doesn't believe it and thinks she knows who the real murderer is. The convention will soon be over and Abby and her boyfriend Marco only have a few hours to solve the mystery or a killer will go free.

"A Rose from the Dead" is another good entry in Kate Collins delightful flower shop cozy mystery series. Abby is a good heroine, a bit more confident now as a business owner and with a penchant for getting a little too involved in solving the mysteries and putting herself in danger. All the favorite characters are here in this book - the sometimes-enigmatic Marco; Abby's helpers in the shop, Lottie and Grace; and police sergeant Sean Reilly. Abby's roommate Nikki isn't in the book that much which is a shame and Abby's mother is also missing for much of the book, but her latest artistic endeavor, a baby gift, is laugh out loud funny. In fact, there is a nice sense of humor throughout the book that makes it even more enjoyable to read. The mystery aspects of the book are well done. Giving Abby a short period of time to solve the mystery is a nice touch as it gives a bit of tension to the book. The mystery is well plotted with plenty of suspects although I was able to figure out who the killer was because of what I thought was an obvious clue. Still, it was a fun book to read.

"A Rose from the Dead" is a nicely done cozy mystery.

Reviewed by Kathy Perschmann

The sixth in the Abby Knight Flower Shop Mysteries, this adventure with diminutive redhead Abby is as fun as the previous books.

Abby is at the Midwestern Funeral Directors Convention trying to drum up business for her small flower shop, Bloomers, sharing a booth with her friends Delilah and Max Dove. Convention organizer Sybil Blount has a run-in with Delilah early on in the convention over the size of the booth, and later is found dead in one of the decorated coffins she was supposed to be judging. In addition to coffin races, there was a decorated coffin contest!

Delilah had just been working on some repairs to her entry and was late to the banquet, and unfortunately she becomes the main suspect. Abby ropes in her ex-policeman boyfriend Marco to help clear Delilah.

Sybil was brash, pushy, obnoxious, and a predator. Was she blackmailing someone? Was she killed by an irate lover? What hold did she have over handsome Chet Sunday, the cable TV star whom she coerced to appearing at the convention? Were the wealthy prank-playing twin Urban boys, Ross and Jess, responsible? Was Eli Cotton, an activist for green burials, who was denied a space at the convention (he sells bio-degradable body bags) angry enough with Sybil to kill her? What is going on with spacey Angelique, the harp-playing Goth girl who admired Sybil?

Abby and her colleagues Grace and Lottie find plenty of clues in the few days of the convention, trying to find the killer before everyone leaves the hotel. They are able to accomplish some amazing feats. My favorite scam was how Abby got into and out of Sybil's locked hotel room-she is a very creative actress.

Check out Abby's My Space page-there is a link on the author's web site. FUN!

Armchair Interviews says: Lots of most interesting characters in an unique setting.