Following a personal tragedy, florist Persimmon 'Simmy' Brown has moved to the beautiful region of the Lake District to be nearer her charismatic parents. Things are going well, with her latest flower arrangements praised and Simmy content to lose herself in her work. But the peace she has found is shattered when, at the wedding of a millionaire's daughter, the bride's brother is found brutally murdered in the lake. As the florist of the wedding and one of the last people to talk to Mark B...

'Rebecca Tope does what she does best: she gathers a cast of lively characters and a few red herrings (or not, as the case may be), and weaves them all into a nicely tangled plot against the glorious background of the Lakes' Mystery PeopleFollowing a personal tragedy, florist Persimmon 'Simmy' Brown has moved to the beautiful Lake District to be nearer her parents. Things are going well and Simmy is content to lose herself in her work until she finds hers...

A wartime life, told in her own words. In November 1939, with the war just two months old, Wendy Scorer married Hugh Farthing — a handsome young RAF pilot more than six years her junior — in a hasty white wedding at her parents’ house in Bowdon. Two years later, Hugh would be shot down by the Japanese somewhere over Singapore, missing presumed dead, leaving Wendy a widow at twenty-eight.Drawing on Wendy’s gloriously frank diaries and a vast cache of family letters ...

Florist Simmy Brown is juggling life with a demanding newborn baby when visitors arrive in the Lake District with questions about a long-forgotten mystery. Thea Slocombe and her brother Damien are searching for the truth about their greatgrandfather, John Armstrong, who vanished without a trace in 1931. He left behind his family and a medal awarded for an act of bravery few now remember. As dormant rumours of murder begin to surface, Simmy's investigative instincts are reawakened. With a r...

A huge funeral for Windermere's popular resident, Barbara Dodge, is taking place and florist Persimmon 'Simmy' Brown and her new assistant, Bonnie Lawson are busy compiling wreaths in preparation. There's word of a series of sinister dognappings occurring in nearby Troutbeck and whilst taking a walk up Wansfell Pike, Simmy and her father, Russell, stumble on a dog, strangled to death - it's not long before Simmy reluctantly finds herself caught up in a murder investigation .

Persimmon 'Simmy' Brown is adjusting to life in Windermere, running her florist shop and trying to put her tragic past behind her. But just when Simmy thinks her life is quietly coming together at last, it begins to unravel at the seams. All thanks to the delivery of a bouquet of flowers with mysterious message attached.

'As Rebecca Tope tells it, every rural idyll is blighted by underlying menace. Such is her writing skill, I'm inclined to believe her' Daily MailWith the approach of autumn, a heavily pregnant Simmy Brown is anticipating the imminent arrival of her new child and juggling the move of her florist business to Keswick. A bouquet order to be delivered to the beautiful but remote Eskdale is an awkward addition to Simmy's to-do list. There she encounters three ge...

The story of a legendary saint from the Dark Ages, as told by his mother. The young Cuthman is instructed by God to take his crippled mother with him on a pilgrimage across southern England. He fashions a wooden cart for her, and together they spend some months on the rough and bumpy roads, meeting many adventures along the way. Cuthman is kept prisoner by a community of rapacious women, at one point. Further on, they are joined by a young boy, Hal, who later becomes of great importance to...

Valentine's Day is approaching, a busy time for Lake District florist Simmy Brown, and she has a number of anonymous orders to deliver. But the orders and their apparently innocuous messages cause great distress. When one of the recipients goes missing, Simmy must face the possibility that evil intent is at play.

For humankind, 2020 was an unexpected bully. It took advantage of human limits and weaknesses, boxing us up, driving us crazy, killing us softly, and pushing us beyond the expected limits. No year is without its troubles but 2020 opened a newer kind of pain, a newer sense of loss, an unprecedented disruption of plans. This year however is not without its collateral beauty.Epictetus, an ancient philosopher taught that, in the end, what happens to mankind does not matter, what matter...

Following a personal tragedy, florist Persimmon "Simmy" Brown has moved to the beautiful Lake District region to be closer to her charismatic parents. Things are going well, and Simmy is happy to lose herself in her work. But the peace she has found is shattered when, at the wedding of a millionaire's daughter, the bride's brother is found brutally murdered in the lake.As the wedding florist and one of the last people to talk to Mark Baxter alive, Simmy gradually becomes involved w...

A collection of 15 stories exploring how unexplored affections and missed opportunities often resonate more strongly in the face of loss. The anthology, with contributions by some of the finest emerging voices in the literary scene, offers perspectives on love, life, and the enduring human spirit. It delves into the intricacies of relationships and the universal experiences that bind us all.Reading through this book, you will find yourself drawn into stories that touch the soul, ev...