The Tender Mercy Of Roses by Anna Michaels ~ review

Synposis from Goodreads:
While the body of rodeo star Pony Jones lies motionless in the northern Alabama woods, her spirit is on a mission to find her killer. Invisible to the eye but not to the sixth sense, the only thing Pony can do is guide the living to the truth.
Her grief-stricken father, Titus, wants nothing more than retribution for his daughter's death, so when former police detective Jo Beth Dawson comes to town, something compels him to seek out her help.


But when Jo Beth and Titus team up to track down Pony's murderer, it turns loose a whirlwind of intense emotion and unexpected encounters. As they uncover more and more clues leading them to the killer, dark family secrets are revealed and the two must search their souls for redemption.

My take on this book:
"The Tender Mercy Of Roses," is a mesmerizing story that takes the reader on a journey into the deep south.

Morning Star was half Cherokee, and planted Cherokee roses to remind herself of that fact. She died the day she gave birth to her daughter Pony Jones, so it was always just Pony and her father Titus. Following in her fathers footsteps, by the age of twenty six Pony had become a record breaking legend of the rodeo circuit. When she is found with her head bashed in, her spirit won't rest until the killer is found.

Jo Beth Dawson had been a police officer for thirteen years, she was one of those people with a tender heart that wanted to keep everyone safe, but when she was unable to save a fourteen year old boy, she couldn't get over it, so by the time she was thirty eight she had lost everything, her job, her family and friends, and resigned herself to trying drown her sorrows in a bottle. When she finds the body of Pony Jones, she feels a spiritual connection and finds herself teaming up with Pony's father Titus to find the killer.

The thing that really stood out for me in this book was that it was told from so many points of views, each character has its own voice, allowing them to come to life, including Pony the murder victim. The author's words paint such a picture I expected to get a scent of Cherokee roses at any minute. I could easily envision Titus standing in his tobacco patch, or grief stricken trying to destroy roses that refused to die. Pony came off as a very strong, no nonsense plain spoken kind of person who often added a bit of wry humor to the story.

 The Native American flavor allows the reader a peek into a world where totems and signs will tell you everything you need to know if you only learn to pay attention and listen, where roses with a message can't be destroyed.

If your a fan of mysteries with a twist, where the twist will draw you into the world of the spiritual realm,that also deals with family secrets and redemption, then you should definitely give this book a try.

rating 4.5/5

I was provided a complimentary copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.

About the author:
Peggy Webb a.k.a. Anna Michaels - Native Mississippian Peggy Webb is the author of more than 65 novels, 200 magazine columns, and 2 screenplays. She consistently appears on the bestseller lists and has garnered many awards, including a Romantic Times Pioneer Award for creating the sub-genre of romantic comedy. Her novel, Driving Me Crazy, was submitted for a Pulitzer. A former adjunct instructor of writing at Mississippi State University, Peggy currently writes comedic mysteries for Kensington, which star Elvis, the basset hound who thinks he’s the reincarnated King of Rock ‘n’ Roll. She also writes literary fiction for Simon & Schuster as Anna Michaels. The Tender Mercy of Roses, her debut novel as Anna, was hailed by Pat Conroy as “an unforgettable story written with astonishing skill and clarity by a truly gifted writer.” Visit Peggy/Anna at her websites: http://www.peggywebb.comand/ http://www.annamichaels.net/ and follow her on Facebook.