ON THE SHELF

'Death in a Desert Garden'

Silver City writer offers up murder mystery with a botanical theme

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Silver City resident Marty Eberhardt has a new book, a botanically themed mystery entitled “Death in a Desert Garden.”

In the book, main character Bea Rivers’ euphoria over her new job at Shandley Gardens is shattered by the death of the Gardens’ founder, Liz Shandley. When the police determine that she was murdered, Bea is drawn into the investigation, while trying desperately to maintain the life of a committed single parent dating a struggling writer.

Every one of the members of the small staff and board are murder suspects. Through the sizzling and beautiful days of a Sonoran Desert summer, someone keeps dropping odd botanical clues. As Bea’s family’s safety is threatened, she discovers just how tangled the relationships at the Gardens really are.

The book can be pre-ordered at bookshop.org and Amazon, and will be available Oct. 5.

Eberhardt is a former botanical garden executive director. She splits her time between Silver Sity and San Diego, according to her website.

 “Death in a Desert Garden” is her first novel. She has published several poems and prose pieces in “The Wilderness House Literary Review,” “The Dragon Poet Review,” “The San Diego Writers INK 2017 Anthology,” “The Twisted Vine Literary Review,” four volumes of  “The Guilded Pen” and “The Silver City Quarterly Review.” She is an enthusiastic resident of Silver City, where she enjoys the flora as well as the fauna, including plenty of wonderful people.

         


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