The Gardener’s Plot by Deborah J. Benoit is an engaging gardening mystery. I found myself drawn into the story. I like the main character, Maggie Walker who is passionate about gardening. I do not know where she gets all her energy. I appreciate that the author took the time to develop the main character as well as a couple of other major characters. There were a number of secondary characters. It was a challenge to keep them all straight in the beginning. The world building was well done. I like the small-town atmosphere. As with any small town, gossip flows faster than butter on a hot stack of pancakes. The mystery was entertaining and well plotted. There were some twists and turns along the way to the reveal. There was a good wrap up at the end, so I was not left with any lingering questions. I enjoyed the gardening information. It was presented in an easy-to-understand manner, and you do not need to be a gardener to enjoy it. I picked up some helpful tips. The Gardener’s Plot is a fun whodunit with tilling soil, a contentious cousin, a badgering developer, a new community garden, a boot in a plot, a missing Bloom, troublesome letters, and a fresh start.

This was an enjoyable read - the definition of a cozy mystery. Easy to read, set in a cute town with relatable characters. Could easily see this plot in an hour tv show. While this may not be a book that sticks with me for a long time, I’d happily read more in the series or pass this along as a gift for a reader in the family.

Thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for the ARC.

As a mystery lover and a gardener, this debut novel was the perfect read. I mean, how many mysteries mention heuchera (aka coral bells) and a tomato variety called Mortgage Lifter (I looked it up, it’s real).
Set in the Berkshires, Maggie Walker’s moved into her grandmother’s home where she grew up in. She loves gardening and is asked to help the organizer of the new community garden but becomes a suspect when a body is found in one of the plots. With the aid of her best friend,Sally, Maggie sets out to determine who the real murderer is.
Here's hoping Ms. Benoit has another mystery for Maggie to solve and maybe along the way, give me another tomato to try.

The gardeners plot is a cozy mystery reminiscent of a miss maple with its small town feel. A body is discovered in a community garden during its grand opening in a small town. The body turns out to be the town realtor but who would want him dead? Soon, another body turns up in the woods. Two nurses in this quaint town sends the townies into a spiral. At its center is Maggie’, a divorce moving into her grandmas home and an outsider to the town dynamics. Maggie becomes a suspect for the body in the garden and is pulled into the mystery against her better judgement. What follows is a fun, light mystery about family, town, and community.

The plot is well done but I do agree with some earlier reviews that the characters seem stock and generic.

A fun read nonetheless-mindless and comforting (meant as a compliment)! All mystery fans and fans of cozies should check this out!

Thanks to the publisher for providing this arc in exchange for an honest review.

This took me a little while to get into. The narrator was a little.. bland? I felt like I didn’t get a feel for her throughout the story, or like the relationships she had in the book were more than surface.

But the mystery itself was well plotted (pun intended) and wraps up nicely.

This sort of feels like a cozy mystery, but with higher stakes, I’d say.

The Gardener’s Plot by Deborah J Benoit is a mystery. Maggie (Margaret) Walker has moved into her Gramma’s house after her divorce, well during her divorce and the death of her still-husband. The house had been part of the estate that had been left to several grandchildren but after it had been appraised, she found she had the money and so she bought it. Everything had been fine until her cousin started harassing her about wanting more money. She couldn’t quite figure him out. She called her and sent her letters. Now he was at her front door. Why? Also there was a realtor wanting to buy it. Again she refused. Maggie had volunteered to help around town, most especially helping Violet Bloom with opening the town’s first community garden. The opening was tomorrow and they were just going over a few last minute details. The woman was nothing if not well-organized.

The next morning arrived and Maggie was at the front gate to the garden. People were anxious to get started. But, no Maggie. Odd, but after waiting a few minutes Maggie opened the gates so she could let everyone in. Before long, one of the biggest complainers called her over. There was a boot in his supposedly prepared plot. Maggie gave it a yank, and found it was attached to a foot. She had someone all the police who discovered that the foot was attached to a body: a dead one. It was Carl Henderson, the pesky realtor. The police shut down the garden to investigate and Maggie left. Within a day or two, Maggie’s neighbor and friend, Sally, found a body in the woods while walking her dog. Actually the dog found it. It turned out to be Violet Bloom. Two murders, Sam, her “friend” was investigating officer, and Maggie was a suspect. What a good book. Easy to read, good characters, a decent mystery, and a lovely, pleasant ambiance. Highly recommend.

I was invited to read The Gardener’s Plot by St Martin’s Press. All thoughts and opinions are mine. #Netgalley #StMartinsPress #DeborahJBenoit #TheGardenersPlot

The Gardener’s Plot is Deborah Benoit’s debut cozy mystery set in the Berkshires. While the main character is female, this story will appeal to readers of all genders and especially to fans of the Hallmark Channel, HGTV, and PBS.
Maggie Walker has moved to Marlowe, Massachusetts, a picturesque town in the Berkshires, to live in her late grandmother’s home. She is looking for a fresh start after experiencing some personal tragedies. She is a master gardener, so she volunteers to help Violet Bloom set up a community garden. On Opening Day, Violet leaves a note saying that she’s running late so Maggie reluctantly starts without her. Then another gardener finds a boot (with a body attached) buried in one of the plots. Naturally the police suspect that Violet is the killer, but Maggie doesn’t believe it.
While Maggie is trying to find her missing friend Violet, she’s also dealing with a land developer who wants to buy her grandmother’s house and a cousin who feels short-changed. There’s the whole small-town gossip thing going on, and Maggie’s natural curiosity about Violet and the dead body in the garden isn’t good.
The Gardener’s Plot is an excellent story, with engaging characters and a well-paced, excellently plotted mystery. My only criticism is that there were so many side characters that it was difficult to keep up with them. All of the gardening tips were an added bonus to this wonderful story. The Gardener’s Plot is definitely a story that can be enjoyed by all readers.

I received an Advance Review Copy (ARC) from NetGalley and St. Martin’s Press for free, and I am leaving this review voluntarily.

I really enjoyed this novel. It grabbed me from the beginning. I was annoyed along with Maggie at Cousin Simon. I was worried about Violet, and I was grateful for Sally. I felt anger at Chief Whitacker (how do you not know that your wife is leaking information?!), and exasperation with Detective Quinn. Though I admit that I want to follow these characters and their lives.

After many mysteries where the ending was so anticlimactic, I was happy for this one. The reasoning made sense, and the suspects were plentiful.

Overall, I rate this novel 5 out of 5 stars.

The Gardener’s Plot is an award-winning debut novel by Deborah Benoit. A cozy mystery set in a tiny town in the Berkshires, the novel features Maggie Walker, a master gardener who is also the assistant of the town’s new community garden. On the day the garden is supposed to open, Maggie discovers a body planted facedown in one of the plots, and Maggie’s friend, the director of the garden, is missing.

The novel does not read as a first novel. It is a quick and easy read with a strong female main character. The author has also done a good job describing the small town community and the various people who live there. Although the novel is perfect for gardeners who like cozy mysteries, it is not too garden heavy for those of us with brown thumbs. The novel is also well-plotted with twists and turns, although the mystery was easy to solve. I look forward to the second mystery in this series. 3.5 (rounded up to 4 stars).

Thanks to St Martin’s Press/Minotaur Books and NetGalley for providing me with a complimentary advanced copy of book.

When Maggie volunteers to help Violet with the community garden, she thought this would be the perfect way to integrate herself back in the community where she spent a lot of time when she was younger. Little did she know that a dead body that turns up in one of the plots, would again change her world. Now, with the disappearance of Violet, things are getting a little shakier. Maggie decides that the police are not working fast enough, so she decides to handle things on her own, with the help of her best friend. It is when the sleuthing begins, things begin to get a little shaky again. Thanks to Ms. Benoit, Minotaur Books, and NetGalley, for the opportunity to read and review this book. I really enjoyed this cozy little mystery. Well done for a debut!

I found this to be a fun cozy mystery with interesting characters. I've not read anything by this author previously and liked the style of the writing. It was well paced and an easy read. The characters were fun and typical of a small town where everyone knows each other. There were a few suspects and it wasn't unexpected who was the murderer. It was more the reason that was unknown. I would read more by this author in the future. I received an advance copy from NetGalley and am voluntarily leaving a review.

I was drawn to this cozy mystery by its title. Being an amateur gardener, I can't deny that a book entitled "The Gardener's Plot" and a pretty cover won me over.

What I found was an easy reading cozy mystery, set in a cozy small town, where a few murders pop up quickly like the tulips in springtime. But like any gardener knows, not all flowers grow at the same rate. Which sort of made the slooooooowzy cozy pace of the book that followed those early blooms not unexpected but a bit frustrating.

This book enjoyed a publish date of November 5, 2024. I'm grateful for the opportunity to have an advanced copy of this novel in exchange for my thoughts on the finished book.

The Gardener's Plot is a mystery set in the Berkshires, and not surprisingly it features garden plots, shared by a community of characters in the small town of Marlowe. I read this book during a stressful week, and it was one of those mysteries that felt kind of hygge. There was murder of course, but nothing too violent or dark. Sometimes, that is just what you need.

Maggie Walker has moved back to her hometown, and as she is a master gardener, she has volunteered to assist Violet Bloom in the opening of a community garden. But on the day of the grand opening ceremony, Violet is nowhere to be found. Then a body is discovered in one of the plots.

I read that this may be the beginning of a series, and it had that feel. We learn just enough about Maggie's backstory to be intriguing, but not enough to totally fill out her character. One is left with the feel that there is more to learn about Maggie. The town is populated with quirky characters, and I really liked Maggie's sidekick, Sally.

The mystery was not too hard to figure out, but it was fun getting to the solution. If there are more installments to this series, I will definitely check them out.

Thank you to NetGalley, Deborah J. Benoit, and St. Martin's Publishing Group for allowing me to read this ARC in exchange for an honest review.

Maggie has just bought her late grandmother's house in the berkshires. She is assisting in the community garden on opening day a body is found.

I found this mystery kind of dry and had no heart. This is a debut and I had a hard time connecting with the many characters. This book just didn't work for me.

Thank you NetGalley and Minotaur Books for the opportunity to read "The Gardener's Plot" in exchange for my honest review.

This was my first book by Ms. Benoit and I thoroughly enjoyed it from the first page to the last. We meet Maggie Walker in Marlowe, Massachusetts. She has inherited her grandmother's house and lives next to her best-friend Sally Kendall and her family.

Carl Henderson wants to buy up plots and houses to build a condo project and has been upsetting various residents with his plans. If that wasn't enough Maggie's cousin Simon wants his share of their grandmother's estate and wants the house, which is rightfully Maggie's. Simon is quite possibly the most annoying character ever created. He spends most of the story whining about wanting what is rightfully his but he never, ever visited their grandmother when she was alive.

Maggie and Violet have a Community Garden project where they are supposed to meet for the grand opening. When Violet is nowhere to be found Maggie lets the eager planters in and they find a body in one of the tilled plots.

When Maggie and Sally feel that Police Chief Sam Whitaker and Detective Matt Quinn are not doing enough to find Violet, they take matters into their own hands. What follows is another body and a disappearance. Dreyfuss the dog is the hero of the story as he provides vital clues.

These characters would make a wonderful series, they are well crafted and interesting. I would love to read more about them.

Classic cozy mystery with theme related murder and lots of red herrings that will keep your mind off your own troubles. Maggie is a likable character with good friends and some frenemies leftover from growing up under her grandmother’s care in the town of Marlowe, to which she has returned to rebuild her life. The pacing is inconsistent at times, but generally fast-paced and a quick read. I enjoyed my time in the town enough to visit again when / should there be a second entry in the series as there’s lots of room for Maggie and the other characters to grow and reveal to us.

Thank you to Netgalley, St. Martin’s Press, and the author for early access to this book.

Title: The Gardener's Plot
Author: Deborah J. Benoit
Genre: Cozy Mystery
Rating: 3.50
Pub Date: November 5, 2024

I received complimentary eARC and ALC copies from Minotaur Books, a division of St. Martin's Press and Dreamscape Media via NetGalley in exchange for an honest review. Opinions expressed in this review are completely my own. #Gifted

T H R E E • W O R D S

Light • Cozy • Pleasant

📖 S Y N O P S I S

After life threw Maggie Walker a few curveballs, she’s happy to be back in the small, Berkshires town where she spent so much time as a child. Marlowe holds many memories for her, and now it also offers a fresh start. Maggie has always loved gardening, so it’s only natural to sign on to help Violet Bloom set up a community garden.

When opening day arrives, Violet is nowhere to be found, and the gardeners are restless. Things go from bad to worse when Maggie finds a boot buried in one of the plots... and there’s a body attached to it. Suddenly, the police are looking for a killer and they keep asking questions about Violet. Maggie doesn’t believe her friend could do this, and she’s going to dig up the dirt needed to prove it.

💭 T H O U G H T S

As an avid gardener, the cover and title of The Gardener's Plot made this an easy add to my 2024 anticipated releases list. I don't read too many cozies, yet I was in need of a light palette cleanser after several fairly dense reads, and this one was the perfect fit.

Told through Maggie's voice as she tries to solve what really happened for a body to turn up in the community garden plot, the plot moves along with a consistent pace with clues being offered up at just the right time. From the start, it's easy to see Maggie has the personality for amateur sleuthing. While there are hints at a romantic relationships, to me it wasn't at all believable and would have been best left out of the plot altogether.

I really loved the idea of the community garden being the center of the plot. The idea was different and not like any cozy I've read before. It was also enjoyable to get some background and helpful tips on successful gardening. I wish a little more of the story had actually taken place at the garden.

The audio, narrated by Patricia Santomasso, was simple and made for easy listening. Her voice is clear and she manages to use different intonations to distinguish when different characters are speaking/thinking.

The Gardener's Plot had many of the makings of your typical cozy mystery, yet it could have easily been shorter and been just as effective. Deborah delivers a solid debut, and while I could see it being turned into a series, I think it would be better left as a standalone. I'd be curious to see what she does write next.

📚 R E A D • I F • Y O U • L I K E
• cozy mysteries
• gardening
• female sleuths

⚠️ CW: murder, death, gun violence

What a cute garden themed cozy mystery! Along with the mystery it was actually pretty informative about plants as well, which I loved! As someone who loves gardening and plants, I loved the combination of cathartic gardening with a juicy murder mystery! The story flows very well and the characters are loveable. :)

The story follows the lead, Maggie, who is just trying to leave her old life behind for a simpler one. When, of course, her new “simpler” life is anything but that. After finding a body in the new community gardening plot and her friend missing, she can’t keep from uncovering the truth. Uncovering the truth may prove to get her into some thorny situations. (lol)

The story was nice and I loved it for exactly what it was: a cozy mystery. There were no great twists or crazy revelations. I enjoyed the details about gardening, tea making, gossiping, baking, and all the other tid bits that come with living a more quiet life. Would recommend to those who also like this sort of reading. :)
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ʏᴏᴜʟʟ ʟɪᴋᴇ ᴛʜɪꜱ ɪꜰ ʏᴏᴜ ʟɪᴋᴇ:
•cozy mystery
•plants/gardening
•small town feel
•murder mystery

This is a fun cozy mystery, perfect for either spring or fall reading. It’s set in the Berkshires and revolves around a murder in a community garden. It’s a debut novel and looks like a standalone at this point, but definitely has series potential. I'll certainly look forward to more by the author!

I originally had this on my kindle, but I was able to also get the audiobook version and then I tore through it! Loved the story, the characters and really hope there will be more books in this series.

The narrator was Patricia Santomasso and she was enjoyable to listen to, I really liked that the characters weren't all 20 somethings.

I would like to thank Netgalley, St. Martin's Press and Dreamscape Media for allowing me to read/listen to this story.

I recommend this story to all that love a good cozy mystery.