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Victorian Mansion Flower Shop Mysteries #20
Absent Without Leaf
Florist Kaylee Bleu and her friends in the Petal Pushers garden club are branching out from their usual activities to host a spring break camp for schoolchildren on Washington's Orcas Island. They've got an entire week of fun events planned -- but the camp won't get off the ground if they can't get permission for their first field trip, a visit to the oldest tree on the island.
Kaylee eventually tracks down the estate's new owner, U.S. Navy Admiral Robert Newton, but the admiral isn't all she finds in that neck of the woods -- an old friend of hers, NSA agent Phil Haynes, has been called in to handle the fallout from a prowler at the Newtons' mansion the previous evening. Although the trespasser's identity is at the root of Phil's concerns, Kaylee is more worried about why the Newtons' neighbor, Tabitha, has vanished without a trace.
Despite warnings from Phil to bow out of the investigation, Kaylee won't rest until she determines what happened to Tabitha. Did the woman leave town of her own accord, or was she forced? And was her departure innocent, or was it connected to rotting limbs in her family tree?
As if the situation wasn't already confusing enough, Kaylee also finds herself entwined by matters of the heart. She admits that she had a crush on Phil twenty years ago ... but will his reappearance in her life reignite those feelings or prompt her to go out on a more uncertain limb with handsome handyman Reese Holt?
Without clear answers to any of her questions, Kaylee gets the sense that she's barking up the wrong tree. She's intent on finding Tabitha once and for all, but if she sticks to her pursuit of the truth, a villain hidden in plain sight might just chop her down to size -- permanently.
Kaylee eventually tracks down the estate's new owner, U.S. Navy Admiral Robert Newton, but the admiral isn't all she finds in that neck of the woods -- an old friend of hers, NSA agent Phil Haynes, has been called in to handle the fallout from a prowler at the Newtons' mansion the previous evening. Although the trespasser's identity is at the root of Phil's concerns, Kaylee is more worried about why the Newtons' neighbor, Tabitha, has vanished without a trace.
Despite warnings from Phil to bow out of the investigation, Kaylee won't rest until she determines what happened to Tabitha. Did the woman leave town of her own accord, or was she forced? And was her departure innocent, or was it connected to rotting limbs in her family tree?
As if the situation wasn't already confusing enough, Kaylee also finds herself entwined by matters of the heart. She admits that she had a crush on Phil twenty years ago ... but will his reappearance in her life reignite those feelings or prompt her to go out on a more uncertain limb with handsome handyman Reese Holt?
Without clear answers to any of her questions, Kaylee gets the sense that she's barking up the wrong tree. She's intent on finding Tabitha once and for all, but if she sticks to her pursuit of the truth, a villain hidden in plain sight might just chop her down to size -- permanently.
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About the author
Sandra Orchard
45 books282 followersSandra leaps off the garden trails of her herbal-researcher-turned-amateur-sleuth (Port Aster Secrets) series, to the museum corridors of her plucky FBI art crime agent Serena Jones, in A Fool and His Monet.
When not plotting crimes, Sandra plays make-believe with her grandchildren or hikes with her hubby along the escarpment, near their home in Niagara, Canada.
Her novels have garnered numerous awards, including the National Readers' Choice Award, a Holt Medallion Award of Merit, an RT Book Reviews Reviewers' Choice Award, the Daphne DuMaurier Award of Excellence and five national Canadian Awards.
Learn more about Sandra’s books and fun bonus features at www.sandraorchard.com
When not plotting crimes, Sandra plays make-believe with her grandchildren or hikes with her hubby along the escarpment, near their home in Niagara, Canada.
Her novels have garnered numerous awards, including the National Readers' Choice Award, a Holt Medallion Award of Merit, an RT Book Reviews Reviewers' Choice Award, the Daphne DuMaurier Award of Excellence and five national Canadian Awards.
Learn more about Sandra’s books and fun bonus features at www.sandraorchard.com
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Displaying 1 - 2 of 2 reviews
December 3, 2022
Nice quick read.
October 18, 2023
Absent Without Leaf continues the mystery adventures of florist Kaylee Bleu on Washington's state Orca Island. With the help of her Pedal Pushers Garden Cllub friends, Kaylee investigates the break in at the US Naval Admiral's estate. She's neither a police woman or even a private detective, but she's amateur sleuth. Kaylee keeps being warned to let the authorities do their job. AWL
Kaylee faces many obstacles. Can she trust her best friend's bother, now an NSA agent? Are government secrets involved? Are there spys? The old adage of writing: What? Who? When? and Why? keeps Kaylee searching to hunt down the truth.
Absent Without Leaf is a good read for traveling, or for nights at home, and for a change of pace.
Kaylee faces many obstacles. Can she trust her best friend's bother, now an NSA agent? Are government secrets involved? Are there spys? The old adage of writing: What? Who? When? and Why? keeps Kaylee searching to hunt down the truth.
Absent Without Leaf is a good read for traveling, or for nights at home, and for a change of pace.
Displaying 1 - 2 of 2 reviews