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35th out of 660 books
—
636 voters
Mum's the Word (A Flower Shop Mystery #1)
by
Kate Collins (Goodreads Author)
Abby Knight is the proud owner of her hometown flower shop, but a new low-cost competitor is killing her profits-and a black SUV just rammed her vintage Corvette in a hit-and-run. She's determined to track down the driver, but when the trail turns deadly, the next flower arrangement might be for her own funeral.
Mass Market Paperback, 304 pages
Published
November 2nd 2004
by Signet
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I was excited to start this book and had it on my wishlist for awhile. I finally got the chance to get it and within the first twenty pages I was happy that I got it for free.
Abby Knight is a meddler and an annoying one at that. She is to put it simply, TSTL. Going into dangerous situations with no back up, no training and paying no attention to her personal safety Abby is the type of character that should be dead but due to luck is not. That in and of itself is not the issue, lots of cozies are...more
Abby Knight is a meddler and an annoying one at that. She is to put it simply, TSTL. Going into dangerous situations with no back up, no training and paying no attention to her personal safety Abby is the type of character that should be dead but due to luck is not. That in and of itself is not the issue, lots of cozies are...more
Ever since I joined CozyMystery I've been trying new authors. The genre really appeals to me and every month we're supposed to read and discuss a book. This month it was my choice and I decided on an author I had never tried.
So maybe Abby’s life isn’t the bed of roses she was hoping it would be. She adores her little flower shop, BLOOMERS, but a new low-cost competitor is killing her profits—and a black SUV just rammed her vintage Corvette in a bold hit-and-run. Determined to track down the driv...more
So maybe Abby’s life isn’t the bed of roses she was hoping it would be. She adores her little flower shop, BLOOMERS, but a new low-cost competitor is killing her profits—and a black SUV just rammed her vintage Corvette in a bold hit-and-run. Determined to track down the driv...more
4 likes · like · see review
Abby Knight is an intelligent, engaging character that is wrapped in spark & humor. She is a welcome addition to the amateur sleuth genre.
The mystery genre is saturated w/ writers chomping @ the bit to find their place in a market that many enter but few remain.
Where standouts are few & far between. Trust me. I am a cozy mystery aficionado.
I am picky when it comes to my mysteries. Downright critical actually but Abby Knight shines!
Mum's the Word kicks off the first of the Flower Shop Mys...more
The mystery genre is saturated w/ writers chomping @ the bit to find their place in a market that many enter but few remain.
Where standouts are few & far between. Trust me. I am a cozy mystery aficionado.
I am picky when it comes to my mysteries. Downright critical actually but Abby Knight shines!
Mum's the Word kicks off the first of the Flower Shop Mys...more
This is the first book in The Flower Shop Mystery Series, and I was turned on to these books by the "Mystery Book Talk" group on Ravelry (a knitting/crocheting site). It's your basic cosy, starring Abby, a law school dropout-turned-florist. She owns Bloomers, a local flower shop, competing with a new, larger discount flower shop who has just moved into the neighbourhood. She isn't a trained detective or PI, although her friends accuse her of being a chronic meddler.
This story starts out with her...more
This story starts out with her...more
Mum's the Word. Kate Collins. 2004. Signet Mystery. 293 pages. ISBN 0-451-21350-5.
Kate Collins' Mum's the Word is a cozy flower-shop mystery featuring Abby Knight, law school dropout and owner of Bloomers flower shop. Abby's canary-yellow vintage Corvette is the victim of a hit-and-run outside her flower shop, which is then found out to be a link to a local murder happening around the same time. Abby teams up with bar-owner and hottie Marco Salvare, who is also a former cop, to solve the mystery...more
Kate Collins' Mum's the Word is a cozy flower-shop mystery featuring Abby Knight, law school dropout and owner of Bloomers flower shop. Abby's canary-yellow vintage Corvette is the victim of a hit-and-run outside her flower shop, which is then found out to be a link to a local murder happening around the same time. Abby teams up with bar-owner and hottie Marco Salvare, who is also a former cop, to solve the mystery...more
Unsure of what to do with her life after dropping out of law school, Abby Knight opened up a flower shop. She loves her work, but business is slow and money is tight, so she's not thrilled when she sees someone hit her vintage Corvette and then takes off. When a murdered body is discovered not far away, Abby thinks the person that hit her car was the murderer. She's working with a hunky ex-cop to solve the murder, as well as helping a friend escape her abusive husband and soon someone is trying...more
This is the first in the flower shop cozy mystery series. I love cozy mysteries. When life is stressful that is the stuff I want to read. And this takes place in Indiana, my home state. (I'm assuming the fictional New Chapel is actually fictionalized Valpo.)
Sometimes the first in a series can be clunky because not only is there some murder to be solved, but also characters must in established. I felt this plot was a little rushed because of that. We find out Abby is busy body because the main ma...more
Sometimes the first in a series can be clunky because not only is there some murder to be solved, but also characters must in established. I felt this plot was a little rushed because of that. We find out Abby is busy body because the main ma...more
Goodreads Description- I don't mean to meddle, honest! But can I help it if my nose for injustice is as keen as my green thumb? Now I, Abby Knight, law school dropout, am the proud new owner of Bloomers, my hometown flower shop. I'm devoted to making my business grow, but I'm no shrinking violet if someone needs my help to right a wrong -- even if that person is already dead....
So maybe Abby's life isn't the bed of roses she was hoping it would be. She adores her job, but a new low-cost competi...more
So maybe Abby's life isn't the bed of roses she was hoping it would be. She adores her job, but a new low-cost competi...more
Sigh. I’m having trouble relating to these silly women who are forever obsessed with their looks and have neither self confidence nor self respect. What woman would blush at having her nose tweaked at the third meeting or have her anger at a wrongful parking ticket simply melt away on being called cute by some fellow she hardly knows.
“I’m small and busty—a terrible combination for any female who has ever had aspirations of being taken seriously.” So the author is making the point that women need...more
“I’m small and busty—a terrible combination for any female who has ever had aspirations of being taken seriously.” So the author is making the point that women need...more
Abby Knight owns Bloomers, a flower shop in her hometown of Indiana. Due to her brief venture into law school before dropping out, people like to come to Abby for advice and Abby, who has a strong nose for injustice thanks to her ex-cop father, just can't say no when it comes to helping people.
I wasn't expecting to like this book as much as I did but it had everything necessary for a great cozy mystery: an engaging mystery that kept me interested and guessing right until the end, a set of quirky...more
I wasn't expecting to like this book as much as I did but it had everything necessary for a great cozy mystery: an engaging mystery that kept me interested and guessing right until the end, a set of quirky...more
I originally got this book for the February theme read in the Cozy Mysteries Book Club. I enjoyed this book a lot more than I expected to. I say that because I had read other reviews not so flattering. Admittedly, Abby does go a little overboard with her snooping but that wasn't my problem with the beginning of the book. I guess I'm too old to appreciate that a handsome man she really didn't know basically told her to butt out of a situation, but told her she had a "pert little nose" and she was...more
This is the first book in A Flower Shop Mystery series by Kate Collins. I discovered this series through the Cozy Mystery Group here on Goodreads. Ms. Collins was the Featured Cozy Author for January 2012 and I thought I would read this book to see if I'd be interested in reading more of the books in this series. (Not that I need another series right now...)
The story involves drugs, flowers, bad clay art, abusing husbands, corrupt cops, stuck up country club snobs, and more. It was a bit of a wh...more
The story involves drugs, flowers, bad clay art, abusing husbands, corrupt cops, stuck up country club snobs, and more. It was a bit of a wh...more
The first in the Flower Shop mystery series.
I thought this was a really good start-up book for a series. I often feel like you have to get past the first book to really enjoy a series - as the first book has to acquaint you with the main character - their friends - the townspeople - the victim of the crime...... Once that is out of the way the books can get more focused on plot rather than all the set up. So when I read a first book in a series and enjoy it - I know I will be hooked.
I thought...more
I thought this was a really good start-up book for a series. I often feel like you have to get past the first book to really enjoy a series - as the first book has to acquaint you with the main character - their friends - the townspeople - the victim of the crime...... Once that is out of the way the books can get more focused on plot rather than all the set up. So when I read a first book in a series and enjoy it - I know I will be hooked.
I thought...more
Would not really want to endure another. Though I did not dread reading. Still did not really thrill thinking I had it too read. Skipped last couple of chapters and some paragraphs. Marco supporting Abbey saying, do not get involved, and go for it, back and forth made me dislike him, no matter the looks. Book was humorous, but not funny like Diane Mott Davidson. Why did the protagonist always show herself to perps. constantly so they would catch her? when she knew they were there ahead of time?...more
Abby Knigiht may have flunked out of law school and her fiance may have dropped her shortly after, but now she is doing what she loves She has opened a flower shop, owns her dream car and gets to meddle in others business as much as she like. When a young boy is murdered, Abby relizes she may have witnessed something important.
I don't know. Something about this book just did not do it for me.. Abby really does meddle and seems to be just too nosy. I know that is a characteristic of most cozy my...more
I don't know. Something about this book just did not do it for me.. Abby really does meddle and seems to be just too nosy. I know that is a characteristic of most cozy my...more
Jul 08, 2012
Frances
added it
Love the cozy mysteries......that's what I've bee reading for the last six months. I didn't know about these until someone in a bookstore recommended them to me. I have loved every one. Here are some of the authors:
Kate Collins - flower shop mysteries
Donna Andrews - bird mysteries
Laura Childs - tea shop mysteries (my favorites), Cackleberry Club, Scrapbooking mysteries
Joanne Fluke - bakery mysteries (these come with recipes)
Lorna Barrett - bookstore mysteries
Susan Wittig Albert - China Baylee's...more
Kate Collins - flower shop mysteries
Donna Andrews - bird mysteries
Laura Childs - tea shop mysteries (my favorites), Cackleberry Club, Scrapbooking mysteries
Joanne Fluke - bakery mysteries (these come with recipes)
Lorna Barrett - bookstore mysteries
Susan Wittig Albert - China Baylee's...more
This book, Mum's the Word, is the first in the "Flower Shop" mystery series. Its cover has flattering blurbs written by the authors of the "Dead-End Job" mystery series, and the "Bad Hair Day" mystery series.
It just makes you think...I should write a mystery series like these too! I'll be rich! I just need a good gimmick, something that I know a lot about. I know! I'll write about a Goodreads book reviewer, who solves mysteries by finding clues in other people's book reviews. Now I just need a...more
It just makes you think...I should write a mystery series like these too! I'll be rich! I just need a good gimmick, something that I know a lot about. I know! I'll write about a Goodreads book reviewer, who solves mysteries by finding clues in other people's book reviews. Now I just need a...more
This is the first of many Flower Shop Mystery books. I have read #3 and #9. They are fun mystery books that can be read out of order if your library only has a few of them, like mine.
The main character, Abby says her first love is her flower shop, Bloomers, but her behavior says otherwise. She is always sniffing out clues to murders that happen in the small town near Chicago where she lives.
I enjoy the character Marco, the owner of Down the Hatch, who Abby has a crush on. He follows her on sta...more
The main character, Abby says her first love is her flower shop, Bloomers, but her behavior says otherwise. She is always sniffing out clues to murders that happen in the small town near Chicago where she lives.
I enjoy the character Marco, the owner of Down the Hatch, who Abby has a crush on. He follows her on sta...more
Aug 25, 2012
Alyssa (The Shady Glade)
marked it as did-not-finish
Well, I gave it a good 100 pages, but I think I'm setting this one down for now. After all that time the mystery just hadn't grabbed me yet, and I didn't really feel like Abby's threats were all that threatening. Plus, I hadn't really connected with Abby as a main character yet, which is kind of important for a book written in first person. There was a little too much salivating over Marco and his "animal magnetism" and not so much focus on the shop and/or the mystery.
Perhaps I will pick it up...more
Perhaps I will pick it up...more
Read a few of the later books before this one. Abby Knight is impulsive, is nosy, is reckless and thinks she has the right and duty to meddle in anything and everything. Pretty much, in this book, she is one of those TSTL cozy heroines. While she keeps her meddlesome habits and recklessness in the later books, but I don't remember her being as stupid and almost criminally reckless as she is in this book, the first in the series.
I had a bit harder time reading this than the later ones; maybe bec...more
I had a bit harder time reading this than the later ones; maybe bec...more
"Mum's the Word" is the first in the Flower Shop Mysteries by Kate Collins.
Had I read this book first (before I read "Slay It With Flowers") I am not sure if I would have continued with the series. But as it was, by accident, I read them in the wrong order.
"Mum's the Word" is oooooookay but to me, nothing special.
In the second book, "Slay It With Flowers", I found the characters endearing and the story, albeit light, still enjoyable. In this first outing however, I found the main character, Abb...more
Had I read this book first (before I read "Slay It With Flowers") I am not sure if I would have continued with the series. But as it was, by accident, I read them in the wrong order.
"Mum's the Word" is oooooookay but to me, nothing special.
In the second book, "Slay It With Flowers", I found the characters endearing and the story, albeit light, still enjoyable. In this first outing however, I found the main character, Abb...more
I'm almost done with the "Daytime Mystery" series and the "Crimes of Fashion" series so I'm looking for a new one to start. We'll see if this one cuts the mustard.
After finishing this the jury is still out. It was a fast read with mostly likeable characters. However, the main character is either naive beyond belief or it's just too easy for me to tell where the author is going which kind of takes some of the fun out of it. Most of the other books in the series are pretty highly rated so I'll pro...more
After finishing this the jury is still out. It was a fast read with mostly likeable characters. However, the main character is either naive beyond belief or it's just too easy for me to tell where the author is going which kind of takes some of the fun out of it. Most of the other books in the series are pretty highly rated so I'll pro...more
This was a new series that I started due to recommendations from the Cozy Mysteries book club. It was a pleasant surprise and I really enjoyed the story. The book revolves around Abby Knight, who owns a flower shop and is an incessant busybody. A hit and run causes her to start investigating a recent murder in the area and the story goes from there. She meets hunky Marco(who reminds me of Morelli in the Stephanie Plum series) and together they get into lots of adventures. This is the first book...more
Well, this is a cozy mystery. Full of the cliches known to this genre. I like the main character, Abby Knight, well enough. She's the standard "quirky, spunky, stubborn independent woman". There's also the standard male interest. Oh sure he fills the role of white knight to save the damsel but he's armor is black and looks dangerous. Yeah, standard fair. Abby is stupid often though, just running into things while missing obvious clues. It was terribly frustrating that for at least half of the bo...more
This book had some flaws, but it wasn't bad. The main character was your typical idiot female "sleuth." She may have some decent instincts and some relatively good ideas, but she screws all that up by being a complete and utter moron where common sense is concerned. She rushes headlong into things, wandering into dangerous situations by herself repeatedly. She does at least always make a token phone call when she does her stupid trips, though she never gets anyone and leaves a string of voice ma...more
Abby Knight dropped out of law school and decided to focus on her passions which lead to her opening her flower shop Bloomers. She didn't count on the low cost competition opening out by the highway, or getting her vintage Corvette damaged in a hit-and-run. Now with the help of ex-cop Marco Salvare, Abby is determined to track down the culprit. But Abby doesn't expect to stumble onto a world of menacing phone calls, police corruption and least of all a murder.
This is one of those books that had...more
This is one of those books that had...more
I was delighted and a bit surprised at how much I enjoyed the first book of the Flower Shop Mystery series. I picked it up because I am writing my own book about a flower shop, and I think Mum's the Word sets an excellent example, especially in the character of Abby Knight, who is realistically clever but short-sighted, brave but awkward. I think the chemistry she has with hot-and-quietly-confident Marco Salvare jumps off the page--and the occasional moments they share make you anxious for more....more
I was slightly surprised at how good this book was. In general it's a fun, goofy, light mystery. If you enjoy mysteries yet don't want something too deep than this is perfect for you. To be honest I liked it so much that I'm curious to check out the sequels. A small warning to guys though: this book does tend to err on the side of Chick-Lit, so if you don't like that, you probably won't like this.
One thing Collins did was try to steer clear of unintentional cliches. Of course when you do hit the...more
One thing Collins did was try to steer clear of unintentional cliches. Of course when you do hit the...more
If you are looking for a good quick read that will leave you feeling amused and really glad your hair is not persnickety and that you are not a "failed" law student- these are the books to read. Each one is just adorable, and it makes one feel good. I know I do. They are mysteries with murder, but not the obtrusive, "I may never leave my house again" murders, but think of Jessica Fletcher murders and then add some witty dialogue and a couple of hot guys and you have this series.
This series was recommended to me by my fellow cozy readers, but I have to say, this one didn't do much for me (the books get much much better as the series progresses). I found Abby to be a bit over the top, and everyone keeps calling her a meddler and nosy. It was really off-putting to me. The mystery was good, with a lot of suspects.
Luckily my fellow readers assured me each book is better than the last, and I'm glad I stuck with the series.
Luckily my fellow readers assured me each book is better than the last, and I'm glad I stuck with the series.
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Indiana native and former teacher Kate Collins is the author of the national best-selling Flower Shop Mysteries, featuring feisty florist Abby Knight and the zany crew at Bloomers. Her books have made the New York Times Best-seller's list, Barnes & Noble mass bestsellers lists, the Independent Booksellers lists, and are available in large print editions in the U.S. and the UK.
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Feb 13, 2012 01:23pm
Photobucket. I happened to have this one in my account.
Feb 14, 2012 06:12am