Slugfest, Rosemary Harris, Minotaur, $24.99.
Every reading experience is enhanced by the reader’s own memory. A place or situation similar to something you’ve experienced yourself only makes a book more resonant. That was the case for me with Rosemary Harris’ new book, Slugfest, featuring her gardener character, Paula Holliday. One of my most indelible memories of my grandfather (with whom I spent very little time) is both of his very beautiful garden and the experience, once, of being in his garden as he demonstrated how he sliced slugs in half with his penknife. I had rarely seen him so happy or satisfied. In this novel, set at a fictitious flower show, one of the displays advertises “Slugfest”, a surefire way to keep slugs out of the garden. This, apparently, is gardening nirvana.
The other familiar aspect of the book is the flower show. As a former exhibitor at art fairs (and as a child being dragged to dog shows by a mother who showed them) the “show” circuit isn’t that different whether it’s dogs, flowers or paintings. There’s a loose community, jealousy, rivalry and grudging admiration. The first year I did art fairs I did lots of trading with other artists, also newbies. The ones who had been around for awhile wanted the cash, they had enough art. The flower show atmosphere doesn’t seem all that different, though they do get to be inside (most art fairs are outdoor affairs). Harris uses it as a perfect springboard to tell her story.
I can hardly think of a more appropriate setting for a cozy mystery as it comes complete with a new, yet familiar, setting and a hoard of new characters for Paula to interact with. Though I missed her best friend Lucy, Paula is staying in her apartment and borrowing her clothes, and one particular red dress becomes extremely relevant to the plot. (Lucy happily shows up toward the end of the book). The flower show is having some troubles, naturally - it’s in a smaller, older convention center and the series of mishaps are quickly labeled by the exhibitors the “Javitz Curse”, the Javitz being the newer, swankier convention center where some of the exhibitors would like the show to move. The mishaps aren’t huge - some ripped up flowers, a power outage, some beheaded garden gnomes - but they’re capped by a big one, and the general atmosphere is one of uneasiness.
The uneasiness is intensified when a couple of bodies begin to turn up, one of them belonging to a mysterious fellow who collided with Paula trying to get into the show and who had entrusted her with his bag. When Paula sees his distinctive coat on another exhibitor, she tries not to jump to conclusions, but it’s difficult.
Harris has a very light hand and a breezy and funny way of telling a story, and Paula has become one of my favorite characters in the cozy universe. Her plots are starting to have that kind of effortless feel that only real pros have. She makes her light confection look easy; but construction is never simple, and I’m sure writing this book wasn’t a simple affair. It’s still a pleasure for the reader, however, and you’ll have as much fondness for some of the denizens of the flower show as I did when I finished the book, even the “tumbled stone king.” The added pleasure is the humor that’s a real integrated part of the plot - some times Harris’ endings have some of the elements of a french bedroom farce, but that’s all to the benefit of the story. No worries - and no slugs - Paula’s here to save the day.
To browse more reviews, use the navigation links at the top of the page.