After reading a couple of other books by Susan Wittig Albert (A Wilder Rose, Loving Eleanor and The General's Women) was I curious about her works. So, I was thrilled when I the chance to read The Darling Dahlias and the Unlucky Clover, book seven in The Darling Dahlias series.

As a new reader to this series can I conclude that I besotted in this series. Yes, utterly charmed and in need of the previous books. From the very first page was I intrigued by the story and engrossed in the mystery of one the missing man, a member of the Lucky Four Clover quartet. To be honest, I would have read this book without the mystery, I was so charmed by all the characters, their lives in the little town during the depression with bootleggers and a struggling telephone system. And then we have The Darling Dahlias, the garden club, the heart of this book and their digging into the mystery of the missing man and what happened to him.

I found that Susan Wittig Albert has really captured the 30s. The book is atmospheric and the characters are, despite being new to me, easy to remember and I found myself quite enjoying their everyday plight with money and relationship problems. The 30s is such a fascinating period and it's interesting to read about ordinary people's lives in a little town during the depression. Of course, with the addition of some mysterious events. ( )

Very enjoyable listen. Does a great job of creating the life in the south during the depression. The idea of ballistics and matching a bullet to a gun is a new theory. There are a lot of questions left unanswered for the next book. ( )

It looks like the music has ended for Darling's favorite barbershop quartet, the Lucky Four Clovers - just days before the Dixie Regional Barbershop Competition when a car accident kills one of the singers.

This cozy mystery took place in Darling Alabama and was a little too cutesy for my taste with references to “Darling” this and that. But there was a decent murder mystery and investigation that involved the help of some of the members of the ladies garden club, the “dahlias”. ( )

I absolutely love the Darling Dahlias, and I am glad that Susan decided to add this book to her lovely series. I had heard that she was considering stopping the series. I look forward to more of the Dahlias, and with the way this book ended, I think I can rest easy on that score. The most wonderful thing about this series is the sense of time and place that Ms. Albert puts into every book in the series. We learn about the 1930's southern states and the culture and norms of that time. We learn about Pie dinners, the role that radio played with the people, the barbershop quartets, and even about the business of making moonshine. All built around the wonderful Dahlias. The murder mysteries are always secondary in these books. It's about immersing the reader in the time and the era that the author has created. Love the Dahlias, and loved this book about an accident on Spook Road (don't you love that name?) that may have not been an accident. And we get 1930's recipes to boot! Thank you Susan for giving us the present of the Dahlia's. I look forward to reading more about the Dahlias. ( )

It's 1934 in the small town of Darling, Alabama and economically things are starting to look a bit better. The Darling Dahlias Garden Club members have a strong sense of community and support for each other and work hard for their town. But some things have gone wrong that may not be easy to fix: the Lucky Four Clovers may have to drop out of the Dixie Regional Barbershop Competition, the telephone system and some businesses in Darling are in dire need of repairs and the limited partner who refuses to chip in any money is missing.

The Darling Dahlias and the Unlucky Clover is the seventh book in the Darling Dahlias series, but the first one I have read. Having read any or all of those books prior to this one would have given me some insight into and backstory on some of the main characters but this story is complete as a stand-alone. The characters and the setting are described in sufficient detail that you don't feel you have missed any significant plot points. The Dahlias are strong women with multiple roles in their lives. There are detailed descriptions of the time and the setting and the food and life in general, from telephones to shopping to dating to making moonshine. It's a trip down memory lane, a glimpse into a world much different - maybe simpler, maybe not - than today's world of fast cars and fast food and social media all around us.

For those that have read previous books in the series I imagine this story moved the lives of the main characters along, and the ending left things open to anticipate the next book. Thanks for NetGalley for providing an ARC of The Darling Dahlias and the Unlucky Clover. ( )