Queen of the Flowers by Kerry Greenwood
My rating: 3 of 5 stars
I am a huge fan of all detective series, however, I never got a chance to read any of Ms. Fisher’s books. Therefore this is my very first novel from Ms. Fisher’s Murder Series. Even though this is a #14 book from a series, it gave me a very thorough introduction to the main heroine, Phryne Fisher, her background, and family/friends. And oh boy, there is a lot to keep up with: circus, tea dances, tango competitions, etiquette lessons, flower festival, young love, kidnapping, a missing daughter, family reunion, attempted murder of a young girl… That is one big and entertaining rollercoaster.
Let’s start with a missing Rose Weston. Weston’s family friend requests Ms. Fisher’s services to find the young girl. During the investigation, Phryne realizes that something shady is going on behind the doors of Weston’s residence. After Phryne locates a half-alive body of Rose, she looks more thoroughly into the missing case, that later on discovers quiet unpleasant old and new secrets about Weston family.
The second story of the book involves Phryne’s adoptive daughter, Ruth. It’s a very heartbreaking story of young love, shattered by parent’s disapproval and unfortunate terminal illness. Nevertheless, in books, every tragic story has a happy ending that brings us to a surprising but very sweet family reunion.
As mentioned above, the book was very entertaining, however, there were too many backstories. Although I was very happy to learn about our sassy detective, I felt a bit disappointed that the main story only took place in a second half of the book. However, I was charmed by Ms. Fisher and will definitely read more of her books.
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