Secrets, Songbirds, and Succulents (Succulent Sleuth Series #3)
by Iris March
My Rating: 4 stars
Genre: Cozy Mystery
Age Category: Adult
Type of romance: m/f
Blurb:
The annual Buckeye Trail Town Festival. A trail construction site. And one dead naturalist.The charming town of Hawthorn Heights is celebrating its connection to the Buckeye Trail with a weekend-long town festival. When a local naturalist is found dead at the bottom of a ravine off the trail, amateur sleuth and garden center manager Molly Green finds herself tangled in a murder investigation – again.
As the Trail Festival concludes, Molly unearths unexpected secrets about the bird-obsessed naturalist’s life along with other people in her small community. When the police focus on who Molly knows is the wrong suspect, she starts her own investigation with her flock of fellow amateur detectives. Will Molly and her team identify the killer or will they fly away free?
Secrets, Songbirds, and Succulents is a heartwarming and suspenseful cozy mystery that will keep readers guessing until the very end. Perfect for fans of small-town mysteries and amateur sleuths with both birding and eco-friendly themes.
My Review
I received a copy from the author and voluntarily reviewed it.
I enjoyed the first 2 books in this series and was looking forward to this third book. It follows Molly as she gets involved in another mystery. This book takes place around the Buckeye Trail Town Festival which was a fun theme for the book.
I enjoyed reading this book. I liked the nature focused theme of this book with Molly running a plant store with her sister as well as plenty about nature and birding with the town being close to a popular hiking trail and a festival taking place to celebrate the trail and town. There were some fun scenes with the characters attending the festival. I would’ve liked more scenes at the plant store and on the trail as I liked those, but was happy reading about the festival.
I like reading about Molly and it’s refreshing to read a cozy mystery with the main character already in a committed relationship. Molly and Scott felt like a close couple, although they do have some things to deal with. I didn’t like how Scott decides something big without talking with Molly about it and didn’t feel this properly got addressed and I still felt like Molly wasn’t fully in, which made me feel uncomfortable as this was a big decision. I like seeing how Molly and her twin May interact and also how May helps investigate. I also liked Molly’s best friend Claudia.
While I like the theme and characters the mystery didn’t grip me as much. A local naturalist dies and there are some suspects to investigate. Molly gets involved again. I appreciated how there were some suspects that got ruled out somewhat early on as it feels like progress and doesn’t keep as suspects possible till the end. I just wasn’t as invested in the mystery and I would’ve liked a few more hints in the direction of the murderer. I do like how Molly figures things out.
To summarize: This was a good third book in the series. I like reading about the characters and how they investigate the mystery. I also like the nature theme of this book with the hiking trail, festival to celebrate the trail as well as the plant store Molly works in with her twin. The mystery didn’t grip me as much, but I did appreciate how a few suspects get ruled out before the end of the book. I would’ve liked some more hints and clues as well as more scenes on the trail and in the plants store. I liked reading about the festival and the activities the characters participate in.
Glad you are still enjoying the series and seeing Molly in action even if the mystery itself wasn’t that engaging for you.
I am glad I enjoyed this second book even with the mystery being less engaging. Molly is fun to read about and the nature and plant theme is well done.
Sounds like a fun series.
I think it’s a fun series so far 🙂
Would love this one about a naturalist. Attractive cover too.
Sounds like a fun series and I love the bright colors and pictures on the cover! Great review!
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