Her Book Self

Besides the strange disappearance of some of her gardening tools, Nina Quinn has a thriving landscaping business with Taken By Surprise (think Extreme Home Makeover: Yard Edition) but the rest of her life is quickly falling apart. She's thrown her cheating husband out of the house; her teenage stepson seems to be involved with some questionable friends; and to top it all off, her best friend's father - the man who taught Nina all about gardening - has died of not-so-natural causes.

Driven to help her friends, while keeping her police detective soon-to-be-ex-husband out of things, Nina shoulders the investigation - and the ongoing search for the missing gardening equipment -  but soon finds herself entangled in more than weeds and thorns. When threats start piling up, Nina finds herself in the crossfire and knows she'd better dig up the truth fast.

Heather Webber does a great job with this fun, cozy mystery. Nina's emotional anguish as a scorned woman and her determination as a businesswoman and amateur sleuth are perfectly balanced with her lively spirit and clever wit. As the title indicates, A Hoe Lot of Trouble is a mystery that will make you laugh even as you sit on the edge of your seat, eager to know what happens next. The ending was a bit of a surprise (and perhaps a tad unlikely) but overall Webber sets the stage for a charming series and readers will be looking for a hoe lot more of Nina Quinn's adventures.