I’ll admit to being shallow, it was the cover of Natural Thorn Killer that grabbed me.  It really stood out from the other mysteries on the shelf at Barnes and Noble.  The second thing of interest to me is the setting, Portland, Oregon, my birthplace.  And the third thing, it didn’t really need a third, were the Swedish touches.  I’ve been taking Swedish on Duolingo and loved seeing the Swedish words included in the text.

Britta returns to her Aunt’s home and floral design studio and wine shop after a bad marriage.  There is a bad guy developer looking to buy up the character filled neighborhood and replace it with new higher-end buildings.  He ends up murdered right in the flower shop, dropping Britta into the middle of the investigation.  There is a lot going on in this first book of the series besides the murder investigation and a good-sized cast of characters that make up the community.  I enjoyed this first in a new cozy series and will read more in the series.

Busy Body is the next book for me in the Agatha Raisin series.  In this one, a PITA Health and Safety officer meets an untimely demise.  The chief suspect hires Agatha’s agency to clear her name.  Meanwhile Agatha takes on a new detective, Simon, who partners up with Toni to help solve the case.  Agatha’s team ends up putting themselves in danger to solve the crime.  Appearances from series regulars, Charles, James, and Roy Silver add fun to the story.  A fun installment in the series.

I have started back on the Hannah Swensen series by Joanne Fluke.  I checked in with my Fictfact account and picked up where I left off with Peach Cobbler Murder.  I really am glad that I’ve picked up this series again.  In this book, Hannah has competition in the form of a new bakery in town cutting into her business.  When the competitor ends up dead, Hannah needs to clear her name and jumps into the investigation.  Along with the murder investigation, there are romance story lines for Hannah and her mother.  Enjoyable cozy mystery with a great setting and familiar characters.