"Nora Roberts at her best"

In Memphis, forty-fives year old Rosalind "Roz" Harper for the most part feels good about life mostly because of the young that has brought her family home Harper House back to life. Her "son" David takes good care of the estate. Her In the Garden's nursery manager Stella Rothchild does likewise although the mother of two young sons will probably leave once she weds her beloved Logan. Finally her beloved employee Hayley Philips has a delightful newborn who makes Roz feel like an indulgent grandmother.

The two flaws in Roz optimistic outlook are the return of her sponge of an ex husband Bryce Clerk doing what he does best trying to live off someone else with Roz his target and the mystery of the Harper Bride ghost. The former is a question of ignoring him though Bryce keeps pushing; the latter is to much a presence to pretend she is not there so Roz hires genealogist Dr. Mitch Carnegie to look into her past. Mitch quickly becomes a ghost believer even as he falls in love with his reluctant client, who ponders a second chance after the failure of her first attempt at marriage.

This paranormal family drama is a Nora that can stand alone but reading the previous novel, BLUE DAHLIA, enhances the experience as the audience will have a taste how far the Harper "extended" family including ghosts has come. The ensemble cast seems genuine and clues to the mystery of the ghost augment the novel. Nora Roberts is at her best with the first two novels of the Garden trilogy leaving readers to anticipate quite a finish to the miniseries.

Harriet Klausner

Reviewed by Harriet Klausner
Posted June 7, 2005

Number-one bestselling author Nora Roberts presents the second novel of her In the Garden trilogy (following Blue Dahlia), as three women must discover the secrets from the past contained within their historic home...

Summary

Three women meet at a crossroads in their lives, each searching for new ways to grow-and find in each other the courage to take chances and embrace the future.

Roz is a woman of independent means who thought love was behind her, but when romance takes her by surprise, she won't allow anything to keep her from her second chance at happiness.

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-five, 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 sons, she survived a disastrous second marriage, and built her In the Garden nursery from the ground up. Through the years, In the Garden has become more than just a thriving business-it is a symbol of hope and independence to Roz, and to the two women she shares it with. Newlywed Stella and new mother Hayley are the sisters of her heart, and together, the three of them are the future of In the Garden.

But now that future is under attack, and Roz knows they can't fight this battle alone. Hired to investigate Roz's Harper ancestors, Dr. Mitchell Carnagie finds himself just as intrigued with Roz herself. And as they begin to unravel the puzzle of the Harper Bride's identity, Roz is shocked to find herself falling for the fascinating genealogist. Now it is a desperate race to discover the truth before the unpredictable apparition lashes out at the one woman who can help her rest in peace...