The Gardeners’ Club

Riches (The Silent Dead) shifts gears from gritty crime fiction to cozy mystery with this charming whodunit starring middle-aged widow Gillian Swanley, one of seven “senior lackeys” for England’s Chislehurst Green Insurance. Though Gillian hates her job, she can’t afford to quit, as she must provide for her neurodivergent son and cranky, fault-finding mother. Gillian’s therapist suggests she try gardening as a way of channeling her anxiety, which leads her to the Bromley Botanists, a ragtag group of home gardeners who are gearing up for the annual Golden Trowel competition—the most prestigious local prize in community gardening. As the crew ramps up their efforts, they decide to spy on their competitors. Their first stop is the home of Dotty Gloucester, member of the rival Southwark Secateurs and former presenter of BBC Radio’s The Lady Gardeners’ Hour. The group’s recon mission turns dangerous when they find Dotty dead in her garden shed, leading them to wonder if this year’s Golden Trowel might have deadlier stakes than usual. Riches nicely balances the focus between Gillian’s self-actualization and the Bromley Botanists’ investigation of Dotty’s death. The result is a diverting, feel-good puzzler. Agent: Caspian Dennis, Abner Stein. (Mar.)