Description (from cover):'Florist Audrey Bloom, co-owner of the Rose in Bloom, creates fragrant bouquets for brides. But when a wedding goes fatally wrong, it's up to Audrey to sniff out a killer...
Everything is coming up roses for Audrey when her dazzling creations are picked to be featured on a wedding reality show. The hot series is filming an episode about a bridge who's bonkers for bells, and Audrey's bouquets of campanulas, calla lilies, and Bells-of-Ireland are perfect for the bridal theme.
But Audrey's debut quickly becomes a hothouse of trouble. Her ex, Brad, shows up as a crew member on the show, threatening her blossoming relations with Nick the baker. To make matters worse, when one of the show's hosts is found dead in the bell tower of a historic church, all the evidence points towards Brad.
Now Audrey needs to weed out the real killer before someone else's chance at stardom is permanently nipped in the bud...'
My thoughts:
I jumped right into this book after I enjoyed Bloom and Doom so much. I was hoping to get the same kind of reaction to this book, but alas, it was not meant to be. I figured out the mystery about three-fourths of the way through this book and that has to be one of my biggest pet peeves when reading a mystery. I love the surprise and the buildup of suspense and the shock of the mystery being revealed to be something other than what I expected. That most definitely did not happen in this one as I figured it out quickly and nailed it pretty much spot on. Therefore, I didn't get my shocking ending and big reveal.
The theme of this book was about a wedding reality television show being filmed in Audrey's small home town of Ramble, Virginia. I feel like that theme has been used by all of the cozy series and it seems a little unoriginal and played out. I really do like the characters and the setting, but I need more than that to really enjoy a book. I am hoping that the next in the series is as good as the first and lacks the disappointing parts of the second. I hate that I feel this way after raving about Bloom and Doom. The first book was absolutely exciting to read and I enjoyed it a lot. I just wish I could have felt the same about this one.
I am curious to see what other readers thought about this book and Bloom and Doom. Did you have the same reaction that I did? Or did you enjoy both books or not enjoy either one? I think that it is interesting to find out other reader's perspective and opinions about books that I read and I would welcome some feedback from some of you. I will say that I am not quite ready to give up on this series yet and the first book packed a punch. I am hoping that the third will be utterly compelling and will suck me right back into the world of flowers and murder.
Overall Rating: 2.5
Title: For Whom the Bluebell Tolls
Author: Beverly Allen
Series: Bridal Bouquet Shop Mystery #2
Publisher: Berkley
Publication Date: January 6, 2015
Pages: 304
Genre: Cozy Mystery
Get It: Amazon; Barnes & Noble
Disclaimer: This book was selected from the library by myself and I reviewed this book without compensation of any kind. All thoughts and opinions are solely mine.
