Published on December 18, 1965, in the Saturday Evening Post,[1] a few months after her death, it won the 1966 Edgar Allan Poe Award for best mystery short story.
Through her conversations with various other townspeople, it is evident that Miss Strangeworth feels a sense of ownership towards the town, never having left it for longer than a day, and has great interest in its residents.
However, Miss Strangeworth is not such a quiet figure in her town; she often writes anonymous poison pen letters to her neighbors, which are rarely based on fact and more on what gossip she has heard during her walks down the streets.
This short story explores themes such as a person's duality (two-facedness) among their peers, the dents that people make upon a community and how they restore them, and the revenge of the wronged.
Others argue that the roses represent Strangeworth's cruelty hidden behind her polished exterior: while sweetly fragrant and beautiful on the outside, a closer look reveals thorns.