I fully admit that a large reason for why I read the book that came before this one, The Spellshop (reviewed here), was because the cover was so gorgeous. This second one, set in this same world, has an equally gorgeous cover, but I can safely say that my choice to read this time was because of the enjoyment I had with the first book. And equally safe to say, I loved this even more than the first.
Terlu Perna enjoyed her job at the Great Library in the capital city of Alyssium, but because she was missing her family and so lonely, she broke the law and created a magically sentient spider plant. She did know she would be in trouble if she was found out. She didn't expect the punishment to be so severe. After a speedy trial she's sentenced to be turned into a wooden statue and displayed as a warning to others. And thus she exists for a number of years until one day she comes back to herself, alone in a snowy woods. She's starving and freezing and stumbles through the snow to the nearest light. That lights is coming from the first of what turns out to be one of hundreds of magical greenhouses. There she finds the grumpy gardener Yarrow.
Since the wizard who created the greenhouses died Yarrow has been caring for them on his own. He loves each and every greenhouse and plant, but something is going wrong. The greenhouses are failing and Yarrow is losing ground (and his beloved plants). He sent word to the capital pleading with them to send wizard-ly help. But what he got instead was a researcher who is terrified of performing even the simplest of magical spells for fear of a worse punishment than before. As she sees the damage wrought by a failed greenhouse, Terlu decides to help, come what may. So with the help of the wizard's notes and a talking rose Terlu gets to work.
As you might guess from the cover and description, this one, like The Spellshop, falls squarely in the cozy fantasy category. But what made this a stronger entry for me was the somewhat higher stakes, the time and space given to Yarrow and Terlu's growing relationship, and a cast of well-developed (if plant-based) side characters. This was a perfect read for a cold winter's eve.