{"id":113919,"date":"2026-02-12T00:00:00","date_gmt":"2026-02-12T00:00:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/archwaybookshop.co.uk\/?post_type=product&p=113919"},"modified":"2026-03-01T14:22:58","modified_gmt":"2026-03-01T14:22:58","slug":"a-thorn-in-the-rose","status":"publish","type":"product","link":"https:\/\/archwaybookshop.co.uk\/product\/9781835013342","title":{"rendered":"A Thorn in the Rose"},"content":{"rendered":"

Secrets bloom where the roses die – and Mel Greenway is digging up the truth.<\/strong><\/p>\n

In post-war Britain, Avonby estate is a crumbling relic hiding deadly secrets. Lady Melinda ‘Mel’ Greenway, a former army mechanic and the family’s poor relation, seeks solace in its overgrown gardens – until she unearths a body beneath the roses.<\/p>\n

The discovery drags Mel into a tangled web of lies, resentments, and buried truths, forcing her to clash with Inspector Derrin Bradley, her wartime lover turned investigator. As Derrin digs into the dark web of secrets entangling Avonby’s privileged residents and its resentful staff, Mel is determined to solve the mystery herself. As sparks fly and old wounds resurface, Mel’s relentless pursuit of the truth puts her at odds with both her family and Derrin, while making her a target for a killer desperate to keep the past buried.<\/p>\n

A tale of resilience, forbidden romance, and suspense, A Thorn in the Rose<\/em> is a richly atmospheric mystery that will keep you guessing until the very last page.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Former army mechanic Mel Greenway uncovers a body in the gardens of the decaying Avonby estate, dragging her into a web of secrets, lies, and old resentments. As tensions rise with Inspector Derrin Bradley-her former lover turned investigator-Mel races to solve the mystery before a killer silences her for good.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","template":"","meta":[],"product_brand":[],"product_cat":[40],"product_tag":[26842,27028,26815,26899,26896,531],"class_list":{"0":"post-113919","1":"product","2":"type-product","3":"status-publish","5":"product_cat-undefined","6":"product_tag-adventure-fiction","7":"product_tag-classic-crime-fiction","8":"product_tag-crime-mystery-police-procedural","9":"product_tag-crime-mystery-women-sleuths","10":"product_tag-fiction-general-literary","11":"product_tag-historical-mysteries","12":"pa_book_author-lee-howe-samantha","13":"pa_cover-paperback","14":"pa_dewey-823-92-edition23","15":"pa_edition-paperback-original","16":"pa_imprint-no-exit-press","17":"pa_language-english","18":"pa_pages-8694","19":"pa_publisher-no-exit-press","20":"pa_readership-general-trade-code-k","22":"first","23":"instock","24":"taxable","25":"shipping-taxable","26":"purchasable","27":"product-type-simple"},"yoast_head":"\nA Thorn in the Rose<\/title>\n<meta name=\"description\" content=\"Secrets bloom where the roses die - and Mel Greenway is digging up the truth.In post-war Britain, Avonby estate is a crumbling relic hiding deadly secrets. Lady Melinda 'Mel' Greenway, a former army mechanic and the family's poor relation, seeks solace in its overgrown gardens - until she unearths a body beneath the roses.The discovery drags Mel into a tangled web of lies, resentments, and buried truths, forcing her to clash with Inspector Derrin Bradley, her wartime lover turned investigator. As Derrin digs into the dark web of secrets entangling Avonby's privileged residents and its resentful staff, Mel is determined to solve the mystery herself. As sparks fly and old wounds resurface, Mel's relentless pursuit of the truth puts her at odds with both her family and Derrin, while making her a target for a killer desperate to keep the past buried.A tale of resilience, forbidden romance, and suspense, A Thorn in the Rose is a richly atmospheric mystery that will keep you guessing until the very last page.\" \/>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/archwaybookshop.co.uk\/product\/9781835013342\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_GB\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"A Thorn in the Rose\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"Secrets bloom where the roses die - and Mel Greenway is digging up the truth.In post-war Britain, Avonby estate is a crumbling relic hiding deadly secrets. Lady Melinda 'Mel' Greenway, a former army mechanic and the family's poor relation, seeks solace in its overgrown gardens - until she unearths a body beneath the roses.The discovery drags Mel into a tangled web of lies, resentments, and buried truths, forcing her to clash with Inspector Derrin Bradley, her wartime lover turned investigator. As Derrin digs into the dark web of secrets entangling Avonby's privileged residents and its resentful staff, Mel is determined to solve the mystery herself. As sparks fly and old wounds resurface, Mel's relentless pursuit of the truth puts her at odds with both her family and Derrin, while making her a target for a killer desperate to keep the past buried.A tale of resilience, forbidden romance, and suspense, A Thorn in the Rose is a richly atmospheric mystery that will keep you guessing until the very last page.\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:url\" content=\"https:\/\/archwaybookshop.co.uk\/product\/9781835013342\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:site_name\" content=\"Archway Bookshop\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:publisher\" content=\"https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/ArchwayBookshop\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:modified_time\" content=\"2026-03-01T14:22:58+00:00\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:image\" content=\"https:\/\/archwaybookshop.co.uk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/11\/cropped-logo_512-1.png\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:width\" content=\"512\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:height\" content=\"512\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:type\" content=\"image\/png\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:card\" content=\"summary_large_image\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:site\" content=\"@Archwaybookshop\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:label1\" content=\"Estimated reading time\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data1\" content=\"1 minute\" \/>\n<script type=\"application\/ld+json\" class=\"yoast-schema-graph\">{\"@context\":\"https:\/\/schema.org\",\"@graph\":[{\"@type\":\"WebPage\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/archwaybookshop.co.uk\/product\/9781835013342\/\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/archwaybookshop.co.uk\/product\/9781835013342\/\",\"name\":\"A Thorn in the Rose\",\"isPartOf\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/archwaybookshop.co.uk\/#website\"},\"datePublished\":\"2026-02-12T00:00:00+00:00\",\"dateModified\":\"2026-03-01T14:22:58+00:00\",\"description\":\"Secrets bloom where the roses die - and Mel Greenway is digging up the truth.In post-war Britain, Avonby estate is a crumbling relic hiding deadly secrets. 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