The Fifth Petal by Brunonia Barry is a mix of supernatural and crime novel. It combines the death of a teenager and a cold case involving four beautiful women and a young girl. The town points fingers at the local crazy woman Rose while the chief of police is certain she is innocent. In order to prove it, he needs to solve the 25 year old case, stirring up both the recent past and the old, old past. Add in plenty of witchcraft, small town intrigue, smuggling, romance and something supernatural (or not) and you have all the ingredients for a good book.
When I picked The Fifth Petal, I had no idea it was actually a sequel. While this doesn't affect the main plot much (once in a while there were a few references I couldn't quite understand), it is also responsible for the book's main fault: bloat. There are several subplots (or partial plots) that may interest readers of the first book but, to me, seemed to come out of nowhere and go nowhere. This slows down the read and kept me in a half confused state, trying to tie the pieces together.
So, bottom line, an enjoyable book, despite its flaws.
I received a copy from the editor in return for a fair and unbiased review.
