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Black Rose (In the Garden #2)

3.99 of 5 stars 3.99 · rating details · 19,136 ratings · 418 reviews

A Harper has always lived at Harper House, the centuries-old mansion just outside of Memphis. And for as long as anyone alive remembers, the ghostly Harper Bride has walked the halls, singing lullabies at night...

At forty-seven, Rosalind Harper is a woman whose experiences have made her strong enough to bend without breaking--and weather any storm. A widow with three grown...more

Paperback, First Edition, 384 pages

Published May 31st 2005 by Penguin USA (first published January 1st 2005)

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Aug 23, 2012 Jacob Proffitt rated it 3 of 5 stars

Shelves: romance, steamy

I was interested to see that the romantic couple in this one were both in their late 40s. Are people with adult children allowed to start relationships?

I liked both Roz and Mitch very much and their romance was a fun one to experience. You could see how they came together from a need for companionship but with a stability of having secure family relationships as well. This gave them space to parse their desires and the opportunity to act from a place of strength from already having healthy, esta...more

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Mar 17, 2011 willaful rated it 2 of 5 stars

Shelves: bye

The main characters in this story are mature adults -- late forties -- and Roberts gives them a very mature, adult romance. This is great in principle, but wound up being kind of dull in practice. I didn't care much for the high-class heroine, which didn't help. (And is it some kind of rule that the second books of her trilogies must have all character relationships be annoyingly happy and perfect? It was the same with Bed of Roses.) The rest of the story was okay; I liked it enough to continue...more

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Feb 18, 2009 Sonja rated it 4 of 5 stars · review of another edition

I liked this book better than the previous one in the series, Blue Dahlia. I think it's mostly because the hero and heroine got more stage time than the hero and heroine in the first book did. I was glad that Roz got her share of the spotlight.

Another reason I liked this one better was because of the villains. Blue Dahlia didn't have much in the way of villains-- mostly just the promise of evil to come. In this book, the connecting evil in all three books (a ghost) gets way, way scarier. I read...more

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Mar 18, 2013 Vânia Nunes rated it 5 of 5 stars

A procura pela verdadeira história da fantasma, de nome Amélia, que mora na mansão Harper há anos, continua.
O historiador Mitchell Carnegie foi contratado por Roz, Rosalind Harper, a, de forma profissional, descobrir quem era aquela mulher que adorava crianças, e cantava para niná-las, e não confiava nos homens.

Enquanto isso, Roz se vê enrolada com as armações do ex-marido que quer prejudicá-la de todas as formas; Stella e Logan preparam-se para o casamento; e Lily começa a andar.
O andar de uma...more

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Dec 18, 2012 Kara Jorges rated it 4 of 5 stars

The second installment of the In the Garden trilogy is easily the best of the bunch. This book picks up where “Blue Dahlia” left off, in terms of the mystery of the Harper Bride, a ghost who haunts historic Harper House near Memphis Tennessee, and the personal lives of the living characters, as well. In “Blue Dahlia,” Roz Harper, fortysomething mistress of Harper House, hired Mitch Carnegie to do some family research in order to find the identity of the Harper Bride. Mitch and Roz were attracted...more The second installment of the In the Garden trilogy is easily the best of the bunch. This book picks up where “Blue Dahlia” left off, in terms of the mystery of the Harper Bride, a ghost who haunts historic Harper House near Memphis Tennessee, and the personal lives of the living characters, as well. In “Blue Dahlia,” Roz Harper, fortysomething mistress of Harper House, hired Mitch Carnegie to do some family research in order to find the identity of the Harper Bride. Mitch and Roz were attracted to one another, but didn’t get to spend much time together until Mitch came to Harper House to work full time on the Harper genealogy. It doesn’t take Mitch long to start pursuing Roz romantically, and along with that, the Harper Bride makes her displeasure with the turn of events known. Her behavior escalates from singing children to sleep to messing up Roz’s room and tearing up her clothes when she seems to be falling for Mitch. Roz has other problems, too, as her ex-husband from her brief and disastrous second marriage comes back to town and starts messing with her, as well, taking out credit cards in her name, attempting to cancel her country club membership, and other equally juvenile attempts to get under her skin. Through it all, I could find nothing but admiration for Roz’s character. She is a mature, intelligent woman with her feet firmly planted on the ground, and while things upset her, nothing really riles her. She kicks butt wherever it’s needed, both literally and figuratively, then dusts off her hands and walks away like it’s no big deal. Even when things do get to her, she prefers to be alone to deal with them. She is easily my favorite Nora Roberts heroine in a long time.

Through Mitch’s research, and the things that happen to Roz as she falls in love with him, the group at Harper House learns more about the identity and circumstances of the Harper Bride, but there are still parts of the mystery yet to be solved by the book’s conclusion. Standing alone, this book would do well. As the second installment of a trilogy, it sucked me right back in, and had me hurrying to pick up the next installment to see what would happen next. Fortunately, I just happened to have Red Lily ready and waiting!
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Dec 12, 2012 Judy Collins rated it 2 of 5 stars

In the Garden (#2) series –set in Memphis, TN - listened to book on audio and the narrator was too southern and country for me which was annoying. The book in itself was ok; however, not as good as some of Nora’s newer books.

Rosalind Harper, a 47 strong woman and queen Bof the mansion and owner of In the Garden, a nursery and thriving business. Newlywed Stella and new mother Haley live in the home, her stylish gay assistant, and her son in the guesthouse with some back stabbing southern women a...more

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Sep 23, 2012 Krissy rated it 4 of 5 stars

Book two of the In the Garden trilogy. In this story we meet Roz & Mitch who fall in love while working over a genealogical project. They're in search of the Harper Bride Ghost who has been haunting Roz's family home for generations.

I was slightly surprised to see Roz take the lead heroine for book two. With Nora's trilogies you get a certain formula to them. The first heroine (in this trilogy Stella) goes through some sort of transformation and finds herself. The second heroine holds a toug...more

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Mar 26, 2011 Tracy rated it 4 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: paranormal-romance

Over one hundred years ago, a young woman on the brink of insanity...or just beyond it...disappeared without a trace. Her ghost haunts the house and grounds of the Harper household and has for as long as anyone alive can remember. Most who have seen or heard her speak of the care she shows to the children of the house, singing lullabies to the young and offering a comforting presence to young mothers. But there is a darkness, too, and when lullabies become edged in madness and comfort turns to t...more Over one hundred years ago, a young woman on the brink of insanity...or just beyond it...disappeared without a trace. Her ghost haunts the house and grounds of the Harper household and has for as long as anyone alive can remember. Most who have seen or heard her speak of the care she shows to the children of the house, singing lullabies to the young and offering a comforting presence to young mothers. But there is a darkness, too, and when lullabies become edged in madness and comfort turns to terror, a group of family and friends must ban together to find out who their ghost is, where she is, if they have any hope of surviving her wrath.

Rosalind Harper is a strong, independent, mature woman. She lost a husband young, made a mistake with a second marriage, but has lived a life of class and poise, correcting mistakes and building her life from tragedy. She may be the mistress of Harper House, but her focus is her family and her business, the In the Garden nursery. Since the events of Blue Dahlia, Roz, along with friends Stella and Hayley and their respective loves and children, have had to put the search for the identity of the Harper Bride on hold. Genealogy expert Dr. Mitchell Carnagie was unavailable until a previous engagement was concluded.

When Roz's path crosses Mitch's again during a wild spurt of Christmas shopping, more than talk of ghosts gets stirred up. Mitch's project is finished and he's ready to start the search for Amelia full time, and Roz realizes that the sexy doctor might just be the balm to that niggling bit of loneliness that tugs at her heart. What she doesn't realize is that her resident ghost has no love of men, and as the relationship between her and Mitch heats up, Amelia turns her viscous will into keeping them apart.

Some of my favorite romance reading of all time has been various Roberts' trilogies. I love how she weaves interesting and sympathetic characters who are easy to fall for into an overall arc that spans three books, while maintaining a level of storytelling that supports each book individually. She truly is a master at that impressive feat.

I'm particularly fond of lead character Roz Harper, a woman of advancing age, within spitting distance of fifty, with concerns and attentions suited to her age and her milieu. She's got an ex-husband who's a rake and a snake, and she's forced to deal with him, though it goes against her grain to do so in the manner in which it is forced. She doesn't break under pressure of ghost or male ego, and holds close to her heart those she considers friends and family. As a character, she's the epitome of grace and cool southern charm...with just enough fiery temper to keep her from being too Stepford.

While I am known for having a fondness for damaged characters who rise above their personal demons to wage battle against the forces of darkness, I admit I found Roz's well-balanced, independent nature both an admirable and welcome change. She's got a steel spine with pleasant touches of softness for contrast and depth, and she approaches problems with a keen mind and determination. I couldn't help but like her. And respect her. Mitch was a charming counterpoint. A man who is aware of his demons and admits to his past mistakes as he takes responsibility for them. He's a good man, honest and hard working, with the confidence to appreciate a woman of strength without the games and machinations so often seen in younger couples.

Their relationship sparks and simmers, developing slowly but sweetly along with the plot threads of the Harper Bride, who shows her nasty side in all its freaky glory more than once, and the ex-husband, who's a sleaze of the first order. There are ancillary plot threads of extended family that also add to the mix. Together, the plot develops with solid pacing and depth, each aspect complementing the other and building off each other nicely.

Knowing that this was the second book in the trilogy helped assuage the impatience to get the answers to Amelia's past, and Roberts takes time to provide glimpses of her history and add some truly atmospheric creepiness to her haunting ways. As a result, Amelia is just as well rounded...if definitely unbalanced...a character as the living members of the book.

My only complaint...well...not really a complaint, more as a dissatisfied observation, with this book in particular and the series as a whole is that the characters all seem a little too perfect, a little lacking in flaws and insecurities and peccadilloes. They all make noises about their hang ups - Roz's temper and stubbornness, Mitch's tendency to be messy and forgetful, etc., but in the end, they're all just a little too perfect, always doing the right thing at the right time in the right way. It's a little disconcerting. And not always the easiest thing to relate to. I think that's why, despite the fact that I liked the book quite a lot, I never actually connected to it on a personal level, and why, though I admired Roz and had quite a lot of affection for Mitch, I was never completely invested in their relationship or the continuing saga of the Harper Bride. Not enough to be rabidly enthusiastic of it, anyway.

I liked it, though. Quite a bit. And anyone who enjoys romance mixed with haunted houses and a centuries-old mystery and a lot of horticulture will probably enjoy it, too.

~*~*~*~
Reviewed for One Good Book Deserves Another. (less)

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Jan 04, 2010 KindleKay rated it 4 of 5 stars

Shelves: kindle-read, 2010

2010 is zipping along for me! Only January 4, and I am on my second review already. I have just finished Black Rose by Nora Roberts, the second of her "In the Garden" trilogy, and I must say that I am getting quite sucked into this ghostly romance!

As I predicted, this second book explores another of our 3 generation women, this time it is the stately, yet beautiful Rosalind, known as Roz to her extended family and friends. In book 1 Roz hires a geneologist to research her family history and disc...more

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Jan 04, 2012 Kacie rated it 4 of 5 stars

I enjoyed this book although I expected for the story of Roz to be saved for last since she seemed to be the matriarch of this makeshift family. Things I liked: 1) I found Roz to be admirable and relatable. I appreciated the way she shot straight from the hip and tried to control her emotions and situations. Roz seemed to be in touch with who she was and knew her boundaries. I always appreciate this trait in a character/person. 2) The love story between Roz and Mitch was sweet. At first I percei...more

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May 06, 2013 Darlene rated it 4 of 5 stars

This is the second book in the Garden Trilogy. I really enjoyed this book as well as the first one. The story picks up with the focus on finding out who the Harper Bride is that haunts the Harper House. She makes more of a presence in this book in more ways then one. She usually shows herself to the women of the house, even though the men have seen her too. She sings to the children while they are sleeping, never harming them. She doesn't like the presence of outside men in the house. She makes...more This is the second book in the Garden Trilogy. I really enjoyed this book as well as the first one. The story picks up with the focus on finding out who the Harper Bride is that haunts the Harper House. She makes more of a presence in this book in more ways then one. She usually shows herself to the women of the house, even though the men have seen her too. She sings to the children while they are sleeping, never harming them. She doesn't like the presence of outside men in the house. She makes it known by throwing tantrums such as slamming doors, making books fly off shelves. When Roz, the lady of the house, becomes romantically involved with man she hired to find out who the Harper Bride is, who we discovered her first name in the first book to be Amelia. She doesn't take kindly to this new love interest and "attacks" Roz to show her disapproval. She even tried to drown Roz one night while she was in the tub. She is able to enter a persons mind, controlling certain thoughts and shows Roz pieces of the puzzle as to what may have happened to her. Roz finally gets a hold of journals and such that were taken from the house years before by a cousin and discovers that she is actually the great granddaughter of Amelia. During all this, Roz is also having to deal with her ex-husbands doings of him using her name to purchase expensive things, run up a credit card, and even trashing her business while she is attending the wedding of Stella and Logan. She happened upon him in the middle of trashing it when she ran back to the house for something. This after she encountered him at a doings at the country club where she managed to get him to confess to her all the things he had done and about the current girlfriend he was with and how he is using her and other things. He didn't know that the girlfriend and another lady and come out of the ladies room and overheard everything he had said and he blamed Roz for everything that happened to him that night so he decided to trash her business to get even. He had the pleasure of encountering the Harper Bride ghost as he was attacking Roz. She came to Roz's rescue and protected her from him. She only stopped when Roz acknowledged that she was her great grandmother and asked her stop. After all this, Roz managed to finally accept that she loved Mitch who she had hired to dig into the family history and they ended up getting married.
Reading these two books, they make you feel like you are there, part of the family and everything that is going on. I really enjoyed reading about Amelia and when she makes her presence known. I wish there was just a little more information about her and the era she lived in that lead her to be the way she was. It was concluded that she had bore a son of Roz's great grandfather because his wife couldn't-all she had bore were girls, not a son to be the heir of the Harper House. Amelia's son from him was born, he came and took the child away and she was told that she had given birth a girl that was stillborn, even though she knew she had a son and had heard him cry. She wouldn't give up the fact she had a son and wanted him back. She was told she would be sent away and compensated so she could start a new life. She refused this and went to the Harper House to get her son back when she encountered the lady of the house. This is where it basically leaves off in this book. It is an interesting read about how families kept journals and such back in the day that recorded everything about all members of the family. Both books were page turners and I found myself wondering what would come next. Even when I wasn't reading them, I was still wondering about the story line and how they would finally discover who Amelia was and why she is haunting the house. I have started the third book-Red Lily and so far it is just as good. Will be sad when finished, but can't wait to see how it all ends.(less)

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Feb 19, 2013 Connie N. rated it 5 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: gardening, romance, paranormal-ghosts, feel-good

Nora Roberts has captured my interest right from the first page, as she so often does. This is the 2nd in her "In the Garden" trilogy, and it picked right up where the first one ended, keeping me on the edge of my seat throughout. Roz Harper is a strong and capable head-of-household, but she has a softer side, which we see as she falls in love with historian/geneologist Mitch Carnegie. I'm not really a paranormal fan, but there's just enough excitement with the ghostly Amelia to make the search...more

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Jan 06, 2012 Becca Evans rated it 4 of 5 stars

I found this book just as easy to read as the last. Although I have felt more split about Roz than I did about Stella. I understood Stella a little better I think. Roz has been an interesting character. She has been through so much in her life and has faced a lot of problems and sadness. She lost her husband at a young age with three sons to care for. She married a man who cheated, lied, and stole from her. She has fought to get to where she is and created the life she has with her own sweat and...more

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Dec 17, 2010 Kathy rated it 3 of 5 stars

Shelves: romance, ghost

Rosalind and Mitch... Rosalind, the current matriarch of Harper House - a pre Civil War plantation, 47 years old - who has surrounded herself with widow and now bride Stella & her two sons; Hayley, distant cousin, pregnant/birthed a baby girl; her son, Harper, who loves plants and Harper house as much as she does; and David, grew up with her sons, gay, her current housekeeper and babysitter for the young ones; and Amelia, the Harper ghost...

Mitch - geneologist, writer, college age son signed...more Rosalind and Mitch... Rosalind, the current matriarch of Harper House - a pre Civil War plantation, 47 years old - who has surrounded herself with widow and now bride Stella & her two sons; Hayley, distant cousin, pregnant/birthed a baby girl; her son, Harper, who loves plants and Harper house as much as she does; and David, grew up with her sons, gay, her current housekeeper and babysitter for the young ones; and Amelia, the Harper ghost...

Mitch - geneologist, writer, college age son signed to play professional basketball... hired to write Harper House geneology, with the incentive of a book if he finds interesting scandals, and to determine how Amelia fits in the family...

As Ros & Mitch fall in love - a very mature, and lovely love - Amelia gets angrier and crazier... she holds Ros underwater in the bath, she throws things around, she keeps warning Ros that no man can be trusted...

And Ros gets to graciously deal with her scuzzy con exhusband - one she was married to shortly, more because of lonliness than not... she divorced him when she caught him in their bed with another woman... he's back, spreading laws about her, and harassing her - like buying a picture called The Bitch - as her 'agent' and charging it to her; writing a letter to the countryclub withdrawing her membership with compliants of not liking thier new racial mix... when she takes advantage of getting him to confess his 'sins' when his current conned girlfriend is standing behind him, thus ruining his chances, he goes to her garden business with a bat, breaking pots & windows... and when he attacks Rox Amelia comes to her defense, almost killing him.

Ros gets to help another woman, distant cousin, who finds herself under the thumb of a nasty aunt as she gets journals back of her grandmother and great grandmother...the journals tell of how her great grandfather took his mistresses' infant son, and required her great grandmother to pretend to be pregnant and then to raise it as her own...

Stella and Logan get married at the end of the story...

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Aug 15, 2011 Marguerite Long rated it 4 of 5 stars

OK... I LOVED, LOVED, LOVED this book.... so much better than the first in the series (Blue Dahlia)
The ONLY reason I gave it 4 stars instead of 5 was because of the Memphis stuff. If Nora Roberts has EVER been to Memphis I would be surprised... cause she surely didn't do ANY TYPE OF research about the city. I understand the whole having to get permission for using certain names and such and the legalities of that type of thing in writing a book... but COME ON!!! At least get some of this stuff r...more

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Sep 09, 2010 Amber rated it 4 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Black Rose is the second book from In The Garden trilogy and is just as good as the first! This time around we get to know Roz a little better. Of course we still see our favorite characters from the first, but this book is geared towards Roz. We start to uncover more secrets about “The Harper Bride” whom we now know is a woman named Amelia. Roz searches out for a Dr. Mitchell Carnagie to help her uncover her family secrets and ties to this mystery ghost. Amelia already doesn’t approve of Stella...more

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Jan 30, 2013 Julie rated it 5 of 5 stars

I purchased the trilogy as a set. Blue Dalhia, Black Rose, Red Lily. With my Kindle I prefer all three at once; as I know I will read them anyway. For me Nora Roberts is comfort food. Macaroni and cheese, roast beef, using a recipe you have used for many years. Occasionally you change it up a little for various reasons. Certainly three women who become close as sisters is pretty regular stuff for Nora. Substitute three men again brothers or close enough as friends to consider themselves brothers...more

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Aug 07, 2011 Barbara ★ rated it 4 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: read-2011, set-in-usa-tennessee, romance-usa, paranormal-ghosts

Roz Harper has hired genealogist Mitchell Carnegie to research Amelia, the ghost haunting Harper House. Amelia is getting progressively more violent which is troublesome because there are now children in the house. Mitch is instantly attracted to Roz and Roz is oblivious. The courtship is sweet and very romantic. Of course, ex-husband Bryce Clerk causes trouble left and right but surprisingly Roz handles him beautifully.

This one focuses alot on the gardening aspect of the series In The Garden s...more

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Jan 08, 2013 Alicia rated it 3 of 5 stars

The ghost is quite intriguing, and so is the romance between Roz and Mr Carnegie.
However, I don't think it was a really good ghost story. There wasn't enough thrills or build up to keep me entertained with this ghost. In fact,Amelia's appearances got a little annoying. I wanted build up action, to feel the chills but couldn't quite get into it.

Rozalind and Carnegie have a good, mature relationship but a little boring. I like more spice and passion in a realtionship. Roz does have a strong person...more

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Jan 04, 2013 Meg rated it 5 of 5 stars

Shelves: 2013, romance

Usually when I read series I usually end up disliking the sequels. I am happy that that did not happen. In fact it was the opposite for me because I ended up loving this series.

When the first book ended, it had ended weird but the 2nd and 3rd book made up for that. I loved the plot, the characters, the friendship and the paranormal twist. I honestly liked all the main characters and couples, which for me is quite rare.

I think in this series I loved the 2nd book the most because Roz was my favor...more

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Feb 18, 2011 Bridget rated it 3 of 5 stars

I am not going to review every Nora Roberts book that I have read in the past because she is quite prolific and it would get redundant and I honestly cannot remember all the plots. I think someone finds someone else attractive but at least one cannot admit it so there is sexual tension, then lots of sex, and then they live happily ever after? Sometimes there is some magic , a family legacy, or a mystery. Certainly not great works of literature (however still 100% better than “the grapes of wrath...more

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Sep 03, 2012 Jeanne rated it 4 of 5 stars

When it comes to romantic plots, Black Rose and Red Lily are even more original and audacious than Stella's story, and for this reason I like them both better than the first book. The former describes the path that leads to forty-plus-year-old Roz Harper's third marriage to a slightly eccentric, divorced scholar.

Black Rose is simply the only romance I've read so far which features a mature woman with such an impressive past, including grown children. And where the author truly masters her craft,...more

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Nov 04, 2011 Kathy Anne rated it 5 of 5 stars

Shelves: nora-roberts, ghosts

The second In the Garden trilogy book.The ghost is showing more of her true insane self as she was before she died and he took her baby from her.She is still singing to the little ones in the nurseries tho she has attacked a couple of adults in a serious way.The owner of the house she truely loves, and after trying to kill her she writes,"I`m sorry in the steam",because the owner has become seriously involved with a man,and she hates men...
Still I have to wonder why the adults don`t remove their...more

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Mar 17, 2012 Maria rated it 4 of 5 stars

Shelves: in-2012

I was expecting Hayley to be the second book, but apparently not.

I see a lot of Mac from the Three Sisters Trilogy in Mitch, what with the slightly off-base scholar who's so absorbed he forgets a great deal of things. A bit annoying, since I wouldn't be able to stick with the guy properly if he was like that, but he's a good guy. I wasn't expecting to hear the reason he was divorced as the reason. I was expecting something more like Logan's divorce, but this reason's really good. And it adds de...more

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Nov 25, 2011 Leah rated it 2 of 5 stars

Shelves: gardening, love-story, southern

This book is the 2nd of the 3 book "In The Garden" series. This book was not as good as the first (not that the 1st one blew me away). I felt like it drug out the story too long.

Black Rose picks up where Blue Dahlia left off, but the main character makes a switch to Rosalind Harper (aka Roz). She's middle aged owner of Harper House and the nursery/flower store called In The Garden. She was widowed young with 3 young boys to raise, a very large family home/estate to upkeep, and a love and talent...more

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Jul 13, 2011 Tracy Walters rated it 4 of 5 stars · review of another edition

This is the 2nd book in the Nora Roberts "In The Garden" series....I loved the 1st book......this book was a bit slow at first and I wasn't sure I was going to enjoy it as much as the first.....but by the end I was pleased with how it turned out....Roz Harper ROCKS!!! She is one amazing strong-willed woman and it made me want to be more like her.....classy and independent and loving.....the world she has made at Harper House has made me often wish that there was such a place and that I could be...more

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Apr 18, 2012 Chanelle rated it 4 of 5 stars

Shelves: nora-roberts-i-have-read, fave-character-s, reviewed-2012

The second installment in the "In The Garden" Trilogy features the sexy and no-nonsense Rosalind Harper, who deals with life's challenges head on. The owner of her own gardening business and mistress of Harper House, Roz makes a serious romantic connection with Dr. Mitchell Carnegie, the genealogist hired to trace the Harper Bride.

This couple is older than the other two couples as they are both in their 40s, but their personalities (a direct result of the challenges that they have faced and over...more

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Apr 23, 2013 Darcy rated it 3 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: 2013, audio-book, listened-to-at-work, romance, ghosts

Once again the big appeal for me was the odd family that has been built, especially the friendship between the 3 women. I loved seeing the two younger women tease and support Roz, even nudge her towards her romance with Mitch. Mitch was perfect for Roz, as he let Roz be herself. Harper’s come to Jesus talk with Mitch about Roz had me laughing. I thought that Roz handled herself really well in regards to her ex, especially when she outed what a bastard he was.

I really liked how everyone is gettin...more

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Nov 10, 2010 Tammy Walton Grant rated it 3 of 5 stars

Shelves: 2010-november, romance-contemporary

2.5 stars - is it just me, or are all of Nora Robert's stories starting to sound the same?

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Jul 15, 2009 Tessa rated it 4 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: books-read-in-2009

After reading several comments about this book I wasn't really looking forward to it, most people didn't really care for Roz and therefore didn't care for her book. While reading Blue Dahlia Roz wasn't really a character I was that interested in, so I also wasn't really that interested in her story. However I don't like skipping books in series, and I wanted to know more about the ghost, so I read the book. The more of the book I read the more I started to like Roz, so I really did enjoy it. Alt...more

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J.D. Robb
Sarah Hardesty

Eleanor Marie Robertson was born on October 10, 1950 in Silver Spring, Maryland, USA. She was the youngest of the five children, also the only girl, of a marriage with Irish ancestors. Her family were avid readers, so books were always important in her life. She attended a Catholic school and credits the nuns with instilling in her a sense of discipline. During her sophomore year in high school, she transferred to a local public school, where she met Ronald Aufdem-Brinke, her future first husband.

In Augusy 17, 1968, as soon as she had graduated from High School, Eleanor married, against her parents' wishes. The marriage settled in Keedysville, Maryland. Her husband worked at his father's sheet-metal business before joining her parents in their lighting company. While, she worked briefly as a legal secretary. "I could type fast but couldn't spell, I was the worst legal secretary ever," she says now. After their sons, Dan and Jason, were born she stayed home. Calling this her "Earth Mother" years, she spent much of her time doing crafts, including ceramics and sewing her children's clothes. The marriage ended separating, and they obtained the divorce in January 1985.

In February 1979, a blizzard in forced her hand to try another creative outlet. She was snowed in with a three and six year old with no kindergarten respite in sight and a dwindling supply of chocolate. During the now famous blizzard, she pulled out a pencil and notebook and began to write down one of those stories. It was there that a career was born. Several manuscripts and rejections later, her first book, Irish Thoroughbred, was published by Silhouette in 1981 as Nora Roberts, a shortened form of her birth name Eleanor Marie Robertson, because she assumed that all authors had pen names.

Eleanor wrote under the pseudonym Jill March a story for a magazine titled "Melodies of Love".

Eleanor met her second husband, Bruce Wilder, when she hired him to build bookshelves. They were married in July 1985. Her husband owns and operates a bookstore in Boonsboro, Maryland called "Turn the Page Books". Since that time, they've expanded their home, traveled the world.

In 1992, she decided adopted other pseudonym so to publish a futuristic-suspense novels, she first decided to use the pseudonym D.J. MacGregor, but she discovered that this pseudonym was used by another author. In 1995, her first "In Death" serial novel was published under the pseudonym J.D. Robb, the initials "J.D." were taken from her sons, Jason and Dan, while "Robb" is a shortened form of Roberts.

Eleanor has also been known as Sara Hardesty, because when the "Born In" series was released in U.K. it carried that name instead of Nora Roberts. She has since changed publishers.

Eleanor has been plagiarized by another best-selling romance writer, Janet Dailey. The practice came to light after a reader read Nora Roberts' "Sweet Revenge" and Janet Dailey's "Notorious" back-to-back; she noticed several similarities and posted the comparable passages on the Internet. Calling the plagiarism "mind rape," Eleanor sued Janet Daily. In 1997, Janet, admitted to repeatedly plagiarizing from Nora Roberts' work, and that both "Aspen Gold" and "Notorious" lifted heavily from Nora Roberts's work. Both of those novels were pulled from print after Janet's admission. She acknowledged the plagiarism and blamed it on a psychological disorder. In a settlement, Janet paid Eleanor an undisclosed sum, which Eleanor donated to the Literacy Volunteers of America.

A founding member of the Romance Writers of America (R.W.A.), she was the first inductee in the organization's Hall of Fame. She also is a member of several writers groups and has won countless awards from her colleagues and the (less)

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“That woman doesn't have the sense God gave a retarded flea.” — 177 people liked it

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