Jane Reads: Between a Rock and a Hard Place by Marty Wingate

The author of The Red Book of Primrose House is back with another Potting Shed Mystery!

The Blurb

Perfect for fans of Laura Childs, Ellery Adams, and Jenn McKinlay, Marty Wingate’s enchanting Potting Shed Mystery series heads to Scotland as Pru Parke plans her wedding . . . all while a vengeful murderer is poised to strike again.

After her romantic idyll with the debonair Detective Chief Inspector Christopher Pearse culminates in a marriage proposal, Pru Parke sets about arranging their nuptials while diving into a short-term gig at the Royal Botanic Garden Edinburgh. At hand is the authentication of a journal purportedly penned by eighteenth-century botanist and explorer Archibald Menzies. Compared to the chaos of wedding planning, studying the journal is an agreeable task . . . that is, until a search for a missing cat leads to the discovery of a dead body: One of Pru’s colleagues has been conked on the head with a rock and dumped from a bridge into the Water of Leith.

Pru can’t help wondering if the murder has something to do with the Menzies diary. Is the killer covering up a forgery? Among the police’s many suspects are a fallen aristocrat turned furniture maker, Pru’s overly solicitous assistant, even Pru herself. Now, in the midst of sheer torture by the likes of flamboyant wedding dress designers and eccentric church organists, Pru must also uncover the work of a sly murderer — unless this bride wants to walk down the aisle in handcuffs.

Between a Rock and a Hard Place by Marty Wingate
Series: A Potting Shed Mystery, #3

Genre: Cozy Mystery

Publisher: Alibi / Random House LLC

Publication Date: August 4, 2015
E-Book File Size: 2076 KB
Print Length: 276 pages

The Review

I just read an amazing book recently, y'all — Between a Rock and a Hard Place by Marty Wingate. Let me tell you a little about it.

Between a Rock and a Hard Place is the third book in a great cozy mystery series, the Potting Shed Mysteries. Before beginning Between a Rock and a Hard Place, I took the time to read the first two books in the series — The Garden Plot and The Red Book of Primrose House — and I'm very glad I did. Not only are those books enjoyable great reads on their own, they gave me deep background into Pru, Christopher, and the other recurring characters — background that I wouldn't know otherwise. Between a Rock and a Hard Place can be read as a standalone, and you'll be able to follow the plot just fine. If you like to really be in the know (about badgers, for instance), you'll want to begin at the the beginning. I rated each Potting Shed Mystery five stars. The second and third books are better than the one(s) before it!

Here is a wee bit of Pru's back-story: Pru (aka Prunella) Parke was born and raised as an only child in Texas, to a Texan WWII veteran and his English war bride, themselves only children too. Pru's daddy taught her important things such as how to fix biscuits (American biscuits, not English cookies), and how to refer to the preparation of food items as "fixing" them. Pru's mum brought her up as a proper Englishwoman — telling Pru stories of her childhood in England, and having Afternoon Tea.

When Pru was in her early 50s, she was "orphaned" after her mother passes away. Since she has no family remaining in Texas, has dual citizenship, and heard so much about England all her life from her mum, Pru decided to move to England. The action of The Garden Plot takes place during the year following her move. The Red Book of Primrose House takes up where The Garden Plot leaves off. Between a Rock and a Hard Place directly follows The Red Book of Primrose House.

Between a Rock and a Hard Place is a really fun read with a really good murder mystery. Plus there's a catnap, a great ending, and a wedding! Who doesn't love a wedding? I always cry at weddings — even fictional ones. How about you?

The fourth book in the series, The Skeleton Garden: A Potting Shed Mystery , is available for pre-order from Amazon and will be released on March 8, 2016. I'll be anxiously awaiting it. Stay tuned to Marty's website and Amazon for the Cover Reveal!

I can't say enough good things about Author Marty Wingate's Potting Shed Mysteries, especially Between a Rock and a Hard Place, her best one yet! (I also have to take care not to say too much, and reveal spoilers.) But take my word for it, y'all, Between a Rock and a Hard Place is a winner. Especially if you're a gardener, or a vicarious gardener (that's me!), you'll love this book (and the series) with the unique story lines, wonderful characters, and marvelous settings! I highly recommend Between a Rock and a Hard Place, and bestow upon it our highest rating of Five Kitties.

Five out of five kitties

Note: I received a complimentary copy of Between a Rock and a Hard Place in exchange for my honest review.
All opinions shared are 100% my own.

The Author

About Marty Wingate

Marty Wingate is the author of two previous Potting Shed mysteries, The Garden Plot and The Red Book of Primrose House. Her new Birds of a Feather Mystery series debuted with The Rhyme of the Magpie. Wingate is a regular contributor to Country Gardens and other magazines. She also leads gardening tours throughout England, Scotland, Ireland, France, and North America. More Potting Shed and Birds of a Feather mysteries are planned.

The Giveaway

Marty will award eBook copies of
The Red Book of Primrose House and 13 Hollywood Apes
to one randomly drawn winner
via rafflecopter during the tour.

a Rafflecopter giveaway