| Meg
Barrett is an interior designer with a background in the magazine
industry when she lived in Manhattan. Nowadays she resides
in a small rental, while she straddles legal hurdles toward
actual ownership of the cottage she purchased from a church
in Montauk, in The Hamptons. It seems a distant relative of
the cottage's former owner, who had left the cottage to the
church, has surfaced and laid claim to the property.
Meg keeps
her mind off of things by focusing on her work. She and her
friend, Elle, get permission from Elle's Uncle Harry to clear
out anything they want to from a beach bungalow on his Montauk
compound. Unfortunately for Meg and Elle, one of the first
things they find is a skeleton hidden in a locked hidden room!
The bones belong to Uncle Harry's long missing son, Pierce.
Who killed him, or left him for dead, and why? With someone
unknown targeting Meg with pranks full of evil intent (a dead
seagull, fish guts in a bucket that spills on her, etc.),
she decides to dive into the thick of things and find out
what really goes on behind closed doors among the rich and
famous
I missed
the first book in this series, Better Homes and Corpses, but
you can be sure I'm going to go back and read it as soon as
possible! I was hooked on Hearse and Gardens within a few
pages. The protagonist Meg is eminently likable, and the action
kicks into high gear on page six.
The inside
view of the lives of the privileged and wealthy felt realistic,
and Meg and Elle helped keep things grounded in the more usual
realm of day-to-day life. The author's words flow in such
a way that I could practically smell the salt air of the ocean,
taste the delicious food, and see the beautiful landscapes
and feel how the other half lives!
I highly
recommend this book to cozy enthusiasts everywhere! There
are even tips on repurposing vintage finds and a few recipes
after the story wraps up. I can't wait to go back and read
the first book now and will eagerly await the next installment.
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