A small town florist isn’t looking for love, but a handsome stranger with a killer smile just walked through her door during the holidays. Too bad she’s already helping the ghost who’s ahead of him in line solve a murder… her own.
It’s up to Audra Bloom to solve the closed case while avoiding both the killer and the ghost’s lethal psychic drain, otherwise she will be pushing up daisies herself before New Year’s Eve. Someone wants the secrets of the past to stay buried, but now State Trooper, Jackson Creed, is helping Audra dig closer to the truth.
Will the couple cut through the brambles of hometown secrets and solve the specter’s mystery before the killer strikes again?
I’m so excited to share this cover reveal with you today and can’t wait to share Audra’s world with you all! This is a slow burn, fade-to-black romance, told in 1st person POV. The series follows a flower shop owner and her shenanigans as a medium honing her abilities. In other words, she talks to ghosts and now that they know that, they are all coming to her for help. Think Ghost Whisperer meets Practical Magic, but in a village flower shop.
Roses Are Dead will be available starting September 26, 2026, and stay tuned for more on this new release by checking out the Book page here: https://dahenneman.com/roses-are-dead-a-house-of-bloom-supernatural-cozy-mystery-book-1/ or you can head to my Universal Book Link and head to the store of your choice by clicking here: https://books2read.com/House-Of-Bloom-Roses-Are-Dead
Now that the cover has been revealed, I invite you to read a little about the inspiration for the series below in my “Dear Reader” letter!
Hello Beautiful!
Thank you for your interest in Roses Are Dead! This book is very near and dear to my heart as you will learn as the series goes on. This particular book takes us further back than my cover reveal announcement for Shifters In New York. I mentioned in that post that we had to go back to the beginning, but that was the beginning of my writing journey, at least after I got serious about it. I would say for the purposes of this post, the beginning is more like when I committed to embracing my creativity and tried to earn a living from it.
It goes back to Carousel Floral and Gifts, which came after Match Made In Heaven, my first attempt at a side hustle where I made silk designs and custom bridal veils out of my home in the wee hours in and around my full-time job. It was hard work doing the craft show circuit, so when I decided to make the leap to a brick and mortar building, it was somewhat a relief, but at the same time way more stressful. Match Made In Heaven wasn’t in my life long, but gave me a good base for what became a 10 year career in the floral business.
I had my 2nd child in 1999, and while on maternity leave I happened across a flowershop in my hometown with a “For Sale” sign in the window. I distinctly remember saying “it would be fun to own a flower shop” and the rest is history. By the beginning of Thanksgiving week my Mom and I were the new owners, and on Thanksgiving Day one of the designers who worked for me lost her house in a fire.
Bonnie continued to work for us and was there from the beginning through the bittersweet end. As it turns out we helped each other through some of the most challenging points in our lives. I didn’t know it then, but Bonnie would stay with me long past the closing of Carousel Floral and Gifts at the end of 2009.
My debut, Sea Of Dreams, includes a nod to her. Bonnie was a quilter and always told me in her own words to take it one day at a time, which always helped to get me back on track on a bad day. She was a good friend to my Mom as well, a stand-in grandmother to my kids (as well as some of my younger employees) and we all became pretty close.
Her eulogy was one of the hardest I had to give and even though I had already closed my store, her death was a reminder that there was no going back and that you should never assume you have all the time in the world to chase your dreams. At the time, her death was hard to take, but now I realize she played a key role in the story of my life and embracing this new chapter. For that I will be forever grateful to her. Her quote is on the first page of Chapter 35, page 221 in the print version, in the 3rd paragraph, and I made her Brooke’s therapist, which in many ways wasn’t a stretch. She was always a great listener.
House of Bloom
I based the fictional House Of Bloom on my shop right down to the vent in the floor that led to the old oil furnace ducts and the cat who would travel through them, Kitty Killmouskie. She was a hoot! We had construction on the sidewalk in the front of our shop, and I was worried that she was going to get run over by the crew, or stuck in the concrete so brought her in. I have to think that was her plan all along since she never left after that. After we closed the store she lived at my mom’s before passing away years later. She was a gray angora tabby and a very sweet soul.
Unlike Audra, I didn’t talk to ghosts, although I would imagine they are there since the building is super old and has seen some stuff in its day. I will be doing some research on it but do know that at one point is was a Pharmacy since the shelves in the basement were labeled for drugs and gift store type items. Someone once said it was a soda shop, but I have yet to confirm that. What I do know was that it lost its 3rd floor during a fire and by the time I rented space from the owner it was down to 2 stories. I also know some weird stuff happened late at night and like Audra, I never stayed past midnight.
We did a fair amount of work to it and my sister-in-law was (and is) my graphic designer so made me a wonderful logo I love to this day. My current logo is somewhat of a nod to it if in no other way than the colors.
I loved my store and carried some wonderful gifts that I still use to this day. It was when I started using essential oils, found WoodWick and Crystal Journey Candles, and even tried my hand at carrying plush through Ganz. We cleaned up the lobby, brightened the space over time, and made creative designs always with a personal touch. Oh… and we LOVED our glitter spray! It pretty much went on everything, lol.
My memories are fading as it has been over 16 years since we closed our doors after Christmas 2009, but I hope to share the essence of the shop that started me on this epic creative journey with you as I tell Audra and Jackson’s story over time. I have more adventures planned for them and am committing to a total of 4 books for now, but time will tell if you love them as much as I do. I hope for my sake you do, because I have a lot to share about my 10 years as a flower shop owner.
Did I mention I was the Official Florist of Hell? (MI)
Well we at least made deliveries there a few times a week so I gave myself the title. Hell is about 2 miles from where my shop was, and will be playing a part in the series as will a lot of local landmarks. I hope to incorporate more Michigan locations and lore in future stories as I always get ideas when I travel and Audra’s floral business would be a perfect way to express them. She is an amazing designer and will travel for special clients! Imagine… a wedding in Traverse City or on Mackinac Island! Woot!
I’m always amazed how things become clear in retrospect. I can finally say I’m through the hardest part of closing such a big chapter in my life and can now look back on my experience as a good one. There are no regrets, I am where I’m supposed to be. All I know is the Universe knew better than me what I needed while I made the transition, and now she is at it again helping me through the next one. I know better now than to question the process.
If you like small town shenanigans, witchy vibes, flowershop lingo, cozy mysteries, with a little bit of romance and a lot of heart, then please consider giving Roses Are Dead a read! To get notifications for its release be sure to follow me on Amazon or Goodreads! You can find the links below for the reader sites or head to my website follow page here: https://dahenneman.com/about-da-henneman/how-about-a-follow/
Amazon Author Page: https://www.amazon.com/stores/author/B01BREUVTW
Goodreads: https://www.goodreads.com/dahenneman
BookBub: https://www.bookbub.com/profile/d-a-henneman
Happy Reading!
Let me know what you think of this cover reveal! I’m so excited to share this story with you later this month! And for anyone interested in checking out any of my other stories, my universal book links will take you anywhere you would like to go! In the meantime, happy reading and Embrace the Journey!
As always, thank you for joining me on mine. XO
