Gardening Can Be Murder: How Poisonous Poppies, Sinister Shovels, and Grim Gardens Have Inspired Mystery Writers

Gardening Can Be Murder: How Poisonous Poppies, Sinister Shovels, and Grim Gardens Have Inspired Mystery Writers - Hardcover

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Gardening Can Be Murder: How Poisonous Poppies, Sinister Shovels, and Grim Gardens Have Inspired Mystery Writers
  • Gardening Can Be Murder: How Poisonous Poppies, Sinister Shovels, and Grim Gardens Have Inspired Mystery Writers
Gardening Can Be Murder: How Poisonous Poppies, Sinister Shovels, and Grim Gardens Have Inspired Mystery Writers - Hardcover

Gardening Can Be Murder: How Poisonous Poppies, Sinister Shovels, and Grim Gardens Have Inspired Mystery Writers - Hardcover

by Marta McDowell
$29.00
$29.00

Book Overview

by Marta McDowell (Author)

"This book is dangerous. A veritable cornucopia of crime fiction and gardening lore, it faces the reader with multiple temptations--books to seek out, plants to obtain, garden tours to book." --Vicki Lane, author of the Elizabeth Goodweather Appalachian Mysteries

"Belongs on the shelf of every Agatha Christie fan--and every gardener who enjoys a little mischief and mayhem." ―Amy Stewart, author of Wicked Plants

With their deadly plants, razor-sharp shears, shady corners, and ready-made burial sites, gardens make an ideal scene for the perfect murder. In Gardening Can Be Murder Marta McDowell, a writer and gardener with a near-encyclopedic knowledge of the genre, illuminates the many ways in which our greatest mystery writers, from Edgar Allen Poe to authors on today's bestseller lists, have found inspiration in the sinister side of gardens.

From the cozy to the hardboiled, the literary to the pulp, and the classic to the contemporary, this book explores the mystery genre's many surprising horticultural connections. Meet plant-obsessed detectives and spooky groundskeeper suspects, witness toxic teas served in foul play, and tour the gardens--both real and imagined--that have been the settings for fiction's ghastliest misdeeds. McDowell also introduces us to today's top writers who consider gardening integral to their craft, assuring that horticultural themes will remain a staple of the genre for countless twisting plots to come.

Author Biography

Marta McDowell lives, gardens, and writes in Chatham, New Jersey. She consults for public gardens and private clients, writes and lectures on gardening topics, and teaches landscape history and horticulture at the New York Botanical Garden, where she studied landscape design. Her particular interest is in authors and their gardens, the connection between the pen and the trowel.

Number of Pages: 216
Dimensions: 0.9 x 8.1 x 6.8 IN
Illustrated: Yes
Publication Date: September 05, 2023
ISBN9781643261126
Author Marta McDowell
PublisherTimber Press (OR)
GenreHobbies & interests and Literature
FormatHardcover
PublishedSeptember 2023
LanguageENG- English
Pages216
Weight1.0 lb
Target AudienceAdults
Print SizeStandard Print

Related Subjects

Gardening Literary Criticism Nature Nonfiction

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More by Marta McDowell

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About Marta McDowell

Marta McDowell's writing has appeared in The New York Times, Woman's Day, Country Gardening, and elsewhere. Her previous books include Beatrix Potter's Gardening Life, All the Presidents' Gardens, The World of Laura Ingalls Wilder, Emily Dickinson's Gardening Life, Unearthing The Secret Garden, and Gardening Can Be Murder. She consults for public gardens and private clients, writes and lectures on gardening topics, and teaches landscape history and horticulture at the New York Botanical Garden, where she studied landscape design. She lives, writes, and gardens in Chatham, New Jersey.

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