Nina Quinn runs a business called Taken by Surprise. Taken by Surprise is a gardening company that makes over your garden in one day and surprises you with the results. The business is running smoothly and everything seems to be looking up in life for Nina. That is until her ex boyfriend Bobby McKenna asks her to go on a reality dating show called Hitched or Ditched with him. Bobby and Nina were happy together until Bobby got a job offer in Florida. He moved to Florida to take the job and Nina ended their relationship because it was too far a distance to keep the romance going.

Bobby's cousin is a lawyer and needs to find out more about the producer of Hitched or Ditched. Someone is suing the producer for sexual harassment and Bobby's cousin wants to look into the show behind the scenes. He asks Bobby to go on the show as a contestant. Bobby can't think of anyone he'd rather be on the show with and pretend to be engaged to, other than Nina. After all they do still love each other, what better way to get close again?

While contestants on Hitched or Ditched, Nina witnesses several affairs going on that no one knows about. Will Nina keep quiet about all that she sees going on or will she get herself into trouble by investigating?

When someone ends up murdered on the set of the show, there is new trouble for everyone. Who killed this unsuspecting person? Should the contestants worry and fear for their lives now that someone is murdering people and leaving the body to be found on the set of the show?

In the mean time, Nina is raising her teenage stepson and dealing with her confused feelings towards her ex husband, Kevin. With the cameras constantly shooting her, and now her ex boyfriend back in her life, how will Nina cope with everything going on?

TROUBLE IN BLOOM was a light mystery with a touch of romance mixed in. I was excited about the premise of the characters being on a dating show, but was disappointed when there weren't enough descriptions or even action to make me feel like they were on a show. The dating show never seemed to happen besides the cameras following them around. There were a lot of characters to keep track of and at times the writing dragged and was tedious. I would have enjoyed the book more if the author had used this wonderful premise more authentically by maybe doing a little more research on how a dating show works. This would have added to my enjoyment as a reader and made the story more believable.

Book Summary

For a while it seemed landscaper Nina Quinn's life was one big bed of roses. Her garden makeover business, Taken by Surprise, was blooming. Her pesky ex was finally out of the picture, and a hunky new beau, Bobby MacKenna, was in it. But then the weeds started taking over when Bobby accepted a job in another state, nipping their blossoming relationship in the bud. However, he's back in town to appear with Nina on Hitched or Ditched, TV's sleaziest reality romance show, since they promised Bobby's lawyer cousin they'd help him dig up some dirt on the show's producer. Then an uncomfortable situation grows far worse when there's death behind the scenes . . . and it turns out the only reality is murder.

Nina would much rather be installing an indoor garden at the dysfunctional local nursing home than getting her hands dirty in this dangerous business. But if she doesn't uproot a cold-blooded off-camera killer, those invasive weeds may push her six feet under.