The Trail of the Wild Rose (English Garden Mysteries) - Hardcover

The hunt for an ancient Chinese rose turns deadly in this latest English Garden Mystery featuring Dr. Lawrence Kingston.

A plant-hunting expedition haunted by tragedy leads to a perilous trail of greed, larceny, and deceit. Has Peter Mayhew, the man who plunged to his death on a mountain in China, come back to life? Which of the expedition members is hiding an explosive secret? Why are some being targeted for murder?

Once again, Dr. Lawrence Kingston—retired professor of botany and reluctant sleuth—finds himself at the center of a baffling case like none he has ever encountered. Following an ambiguous trail with only scant clues, he must find the hidden meaning dormant in a cache of valuable Chinese antiquities, shadow a ruthless assailant through London’s teeming Underground, and travel the length and breadth of Britain, from a hospital ward in Oxford and an anonymous rendezvous in a Hampshire garden, to a remote farm in Dorset and the mystical Cornish coast—even to the mountains of Wales—in his search for the truth. Even the most likely suspects are becoming victims themselves, and the stakes rise exponentially as each lead comes to a dead end...literally.

Racing to save the lives of the remaining plant hunters and not become a victim himself, Kingston discovers the extreme lengths to which desperate men will go for riches, recognition, and the thrill of the hunt. Clever and chilling, The Trail of the Wild Rose effortlessly combines Anthony Eglin’s horticultural knowledge and literary skills to create an innovative and riveting new mystery.

English-born ANTHONY EGLIN spent many years in advertising before defecting to indulge in his passion for gardening. In 1995 he started the Larkspur Company, coproducing a series of bestselling garden videotapes. The same year, he won Garden Design magazine’s Gold Trowel Award for Best Rose Garden. Author of the internationally popular garden mysteries The Blue Rose, which won France’s prestigious Prix Arsène Lupin for mystery novel of the year, and The Lost Gardens, he is a member of the American Rose Society. Anthony lives with his wife, Suzie, and tabby cat, Pyewacket, in Sonoma, California. Please visit his Web site at www.anthonyeglin.com