Terra Cotta Theft

Succulent Sleuth #0.5

by Iris March

A prequel to The Broken Bridge: A Succulent Sleuth Cozy Mystery.
A new teen employee. Stolen cash. And a garden center full of suspects.

Meet Molly Green, the main character in The Succulent Sleuth Series, years in the past when she was a teen working at her grandparents’ garden center. When cash goes missing from the register, Molly works with Grandpa Will to catch the thief.

Genres: Short Stories

36 pages, ebook

Published December 1, 2022

Reviews

[Clare O'Beara]

This is a nice, cosy, short mystery novella, with amiable characters and some life lessons. We see the central character is a teen girl working at her grandparents' garden centre. Can she cope with difficult customers, pesky young staff, an awkward register and the sudden discovery of a crime?

Much fun, good for YA readers and adults. Just right for a lunch break.
This is an unbiased review.

[Gail]

Short and sweet prequel.

[Karen Siddall]

Unique introduction to the series' characters as children.

When money from the register at Patty's Plant Place suddenly goes missing, how will Grandpa Will discover who the thief is among those present in the store? This is the tricky question Will Flores faces when the stack of twenties disappears, and there are plenty of suspects, both employees and customers, to consider and rule out.

The Terra Cotta Theft is a prequel to author Iris March's fun and satisfying Succulent Sleuth Cozy Mystery series, featuring Will's granddaughters, Molly, May, and Shannon (the twins' cousin), and their families and friends. This story introduces the main characters as children, other characters who will become recurring faces in later books, and the business that will eventually become theirs.

A short story, the plot sets up the series' background and establishes close family relationships and long-held ties with their customers and neighboring business owners. There is a cozy, comfortable hometown-family feel right away, and I was easily drawn into the story. The characters are regular people, engaging and familiar, with no one over the top. My interest was immediately piqued by the prospect of reading about their further adventures as adults.

I recommend TERRA COTTA THEFT to readers of cozy mysteries, especially fans of the SUCCULENT SLEUTH series. Readers can obtain their own copy of the story by signing up for the author's newsletter on her website.

[Cheryl]

This was a quick short story. The main character is Molly. Molly works at her grandparents plant nursery. Two guys from school are at the shop. One should be working and one is with his family. Molly suddenly realizes a lot of money is missing from the register. Which one of the boys did it ? Can grandpa figure it out ?

[Ingrid Gail]

3.5 stars rounded up to 4.
It's a short cozy story around a theft in which we get to know Molly, the FMC.

I felt it was written for a younger public than I am, but it is nice enough in itself and a fast read.
I'm curious to see how book two will go, I must admit I do hope for a bit more mature FMC in that one.

[Lorraine O'Connor]

Short Story, well written, nice plot but I was pretty sure who did it fairly quickly. The characters are likeable, a very loving family who run a plant nursery. Their granddaughter helps grandpa solve the mystery of who stole the money from the cash register. I was torn between giving it 3 or 4 stars. It's a nice story so I went with 4.

[Chili Diane Evance]

Nice little prequel to introduce you to the characters in the Succulent Sleuth mysteries.

[Nancy Gerards]

A short and sweet story
Ideal for waiting at the busstop or a short commute
It toke me about 45 minutes from start to finish
No swearing , no violence , just a clean story

[Meg Bradley]

Such a great story. Easy to read and keeps you wanting more. I even bought it for gifts for friends after I read it!! Highly recommend.

[Karin]

Who stole the money and how??? I never knew there were so many different buttons to punch!!! I enjoyed this story and recommended the book.

[Liza]

It's a short prequel - 3 chapters.

There really isn't enough time to develop the story and the characters.

It was enjoyable enough but...

[Lizz Taylor]

This was a very short introduction story of a series set in a garden center. It was the first book I read by this author. It was an enjoyable short read.

[Juliet Minerva Swift]

This was cute and sweet, not much happened and the sleuth is the grandpa?
But I like the writing and I see some promise, so I would like to continue the series.

[Sara]

Good short mystery. Likable characters and makes me want to read more in the series.

[Rick Farlee]

If you’re in middle school, then you might find this interesting?

[Mum]

It was a cute story. A very quick read. No murders!

[G. Lynne]

Enjoyed this little prequel and will be looking into more books by Iris March soon.

[Sandra Brown]

A very short prequel to introduce a main character of future novels. Well written and I'd say more aimed at a younger reader.

[Barbara]

A short but sweet parable about respect. Enjoyed reading it. Recommend reading.

[Jean]

A good beginning to a series. It was a little on the short side, however I think the series is promising . I will definitely try another book in the series.

[Elizabeth]

I absolutely loved it! An excellent short story! This is a must read series! I can’t wait for the next book!

[Megan Olds]

Cute. And I like the realistic writing. And yes! The secret shoppers!

[Karin Tillotson]

Who stole the money and why??? To help his family??? I enjoyed this story and recommended the book.