Marilyn S. (libri-diligo) -
Helpful Score: 3
This book is the first in a new series, set in a permanent Renaissance Fair Theme Park in Myrtle Beach, SC. It caught my eye since I am from SC, and so I enjoy reading books set in my area of the country. The book was ok, but I had trouble getting through it. In retrospect, I suspect it was because there were too many quirky characters introduced too quickly with scant descriptions who kept popping up during the main story. Perhaps they will become major players in later books during the series. There were also some errors, as well as stereotyping of the characters that were distracting to me while I was reading. For instance, the protagonist is an assistant professor and a graduate student in history at a major university in SC at the same time. There were other characterization errors like this that bothered me.
Helpful Score: 1
I liked this book. The mystery was good, but I actually liked the Renaissance Faire setting and lifestyle that is explained even more. I wasn't thrilled with the solution to the murder, but it was a enjoyable read nonetheless. I ordered the second in the series just now.
Michelle R. (atammcreation) reviewed Wicked Weaves (Renaissance Faire, Bk 1) on + 41 more book reviews
Wicked Weaves by Joyce Lavene
My rating: 2 of 5 stars
A year-round, permament Renaissance Faire that is more like a real village, what could be a better basis for a new Cozy Mystery series.
It sounds good, but it just never made it for me. You have the VIllage itself, which I never really understood or could get into, the whole idea of people making a living in the village and acting all the time, just didn't get it for me, it just never felt real, it felt contrived.
Jessie is the lead character and I just couldn't believe in her, she seemed scatterbrained and unbelievable. I just could not get into her, she seemed too contrived, too made up not life-like. I just couldn't relate to her.
Mary was the basket weaver that she was working with this summer, and she was of the Gullah tradition, which was never really talked about, there was a few little mentions here and there, and it yet it influenced so much of Mary's life, it should have been explained more than it was.
There were some informational quotes about basket making that were neat, but they were few and far between and even them couldn't keep me interested in the book. In fact, it was all I could do to actually finish the book.
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This book is delightful! A fast read, a good story, lots of Ren-Fair madness.
Cheryl C. (moondance120) reviewed Wicked Weaves (Renaissance Faire, Bk 1) on + 422 more book reviews
"We believe he is dead, faithful squire," Queen Olivia pronounced in grand, dramatic fashion.
WICKED WEAVES is the first book in the Renaissance Faire Mystery series by Joyce and Jim Lavene. The Faire is a year round attraction in Myrtle Beach, SC. History professor, Jessie, has worked at the faire every summer since college. This summer she is working with Mary Shift, a Gullah basket maker. A stranger is found dead in the village with basket weave around his neck. Mary becomes the prime suspect and Jessie steps forward to investigate. Jessie's summer romance with Chase, the village bailiff, adds an ally for both her and Mary.
This is an enjoyable read from the Lavene team. The portrayal of the Renaissance Village and its people is quite accurate. I had the pleasure of working at a festival for a couple of years and it is amazing how into character these folks become. The addition of the Gullah basket weaving is educational. The Gullah traditions are very evident in the low country of South Carolina. Their basket weaving is a long standing tradition. The sweetgrass used to weave the baskets is in short supply so they are quite valuable and often quite expensive.
I always enjoy reading local authors and look forward to reading more in this series. I believe the next book has Jessie working with the glassblower.
WICKED WEAVES is the first book in the Renaissance Faire Mystery series by Joyce and Jim Lavene. The Faire is a year round attraction in Myrtle Beach, SC. History professor, Jessie, has worked at the faire every summer since college. This summer she is working with Mary Shift, a Gullah basket maker. A stranger is found dead in the village with basket weave around his neck. Mary becomes the prime suspect and Jessie steps forward to investigate. Jessie's summer romance with Chase, the village bailiff, adds an ally for both her and Mary.
This is an enjoyable read from the Lavene team. The portrayal of the Renaissance Village and its people is quite accurate. I had the pleasure of working at a festival for a couple of years and it is amazing how into character these folks become. The addition of the Gullah basket weaving is educational. The Gullah traditions are very evident in the low country of South Carolina. Their basket weaving is a long standing tradition. The sweetgrass used to weave the baskets is in short supply so they are quite valuable and often quite expensive.
I always enjoy reading local authors and look forward to reading more in this series. I believe the next book has Jessie working with the glassblower.
Cathy C. (cathyskye) -
First Line: "We believe he is dead, faithful squire," Queen Olivia pronounced in grand, dramatic fashion.
Assistant professor Jessie Morton spends every summer at the Renaissance Faire Village in Myrtle Beach, South Carolina, learning centuries-old crafts and working towards her Ph.D. This summer she's working with master basket weaver, Mary Shift, a woman whose secrets are as well hidden as her talent is amazing. When Mary's estranged husband is found in the village, murdered in broad daylight, suspicion falls upon Mary and shows no signs of shifting. Jessie, however, is convinced that the woman is innocent and is determined to find the real killer.
The setting of this book is marvelous. The Renaissance Faire Village is on an old airfield, and everyone lives by rather arcane rules and regulations. (For crying out loud, don't let Robin Hood and his Merry Men know that you just bought a new toaster oven!) With all the disparate types of people living and working there, it's Gossip Central and reminds me more than a little of a fictional New England village called Peyton Place. I also liked the misdirection in the plot that kept me from realizing the identity of the killer, and although I questioned having a basket shop in a Renaissance village that features Gullah baskets, I really appreciated learning a bit about both that style of basket weaving and the customs of the Gullah people.
I think what is going to make or break this book for readers is their opinion of the main character, Jessie Morton. I found her alternately irritating and endearing. She often bemoans the fact that she's got a shiftless twin brother who can't-- or won't-- hold down a job and is constantly trying to borrow money from her, but her brother isn't the only one who hasn't really grown up.
Jessie's love life occurs only in the summer when she's working at the Renaissance Faire Village, and as I read further and further I began to wonder if there was a male left in the village that she hadn't bedded. Of course there was: the bailiff as a matter of fact, smart and handsome Chase Manhattan. (All the characters in the book were used to the name and had stopped snickering.)
Although Jessie has to be around the age of thirty, she just plain doesn't act like it. When it looks as though Mary is going to be arrested for murdering her husband, Jessie lies and gives Mary an alibi-- then becomes upset when Mary doesn't thank her profusely. This isn't the only time she does this. Jessie is also the sort of sleuth who decides she doesn't like someone and then tries to pin the crime on that person. Since she tends to be a bit emotional, she can have a new suspect every thirty minutes or so. Yes, Jessie can have you talking to yourself, but she has real potential.
Now that the scene is set and Jessie is well and truly introduced, I'm looking forward to seeing what other crimes and misdemeanors occur in this very original-- and entertaining-- setting.
Assistant professor Jessie Morton spends every summer at the Renaissance Faire Village in Myrtle Beach, South Carolina, learning centuries-old crafts and working towards her Ph.D. This summer she's working with master basket weaver, Mary Shift, a woman whose secrets are as well hidden as her talent is amazing. When Mary's estranged husband is found in the village, murdered in broad daylight, suspicion falls upon Mary and shows no signs of shifting. Jessie, however, is convinced that the woman is innocent and is determined to find the real killer.
The setting of this book is marvelous. The Renaissance Faire Village is on an old airfield, and everyone lives by rather arcane rules and regulations. (For crying out loud, don't let Robin Hood and his Merry Men know that you just bought a new toaster oven!) With all the disparate types of people living and working there, it's Gossip Central and reminds me more than a little of a fictional New England village called Peyton Place. I also liked the misdirection in the plot that kept me from realizing the identity of the killer, and although I questioned having a basket shop in a Renaissance village that features Gullah baskets, I really appreciated learning a bit about both that style of basket weaving and the customs of the Gullah people.
I think what is going to make or break this book for readers is their opinion of the main character, Jessie Morton. I found her alternately irritating and endearing. She often bemoans the fact that she's got a shiftless twin brother who can't-- or won't-- hold down a job and is constantly trying to borrow money from her, but her brother isn't the only one who hasn't really grown up.
Jessie's love life occurs only in the summer when she's working at the Renaissance Faire Village, and as I read further and further I began to wonder if there was a male left in the village that she hadn't bedded. Of course there was: the bailiff as a matter of fact, smart and handsome Chase Manhattan. (All the characters in the book were used to the name and had stopped snickering.)
Although Jessie has to be around the age of thirty, she just plain doesn't act like it. When it looks as though Mary is going to be arrested for murdering her husband, Jessie lies and gives Mary an alibi-- then becomes upset when Mary doesn't thank her profusely. This isn't the only time she does this. Jessie is also the sort of sleuth who decides she doesn't like someone and then tries to pin the crime on that person. Since she tends to be a bit emotional, she can have a new suspect every thirty minutes or so. Yes, Jessie can have you talking to yourself, but she has real potential.
Now that the scene is set and Jessie is well and truly introduced, I'm looking forward to seeing what other crimes and misdemeanors occur in this very original-- and entertaining-- setting.
Carol S. (waucondacarol) reviewed Wicked Weaves (Renaissance Faire, Bk 1) on + 319 more book reviews
One of my favorite series. Who would have thought such quirky and funny things could happen at a Renaissance Faire Park? Pirates invade the local tavern, the brotherhood of the bread run the bakery, Merlin is flashing nude under his robes, Robin Hood and His Merry Men steal toaster ovens, fairies flit and flirt, Mother Goose nursery rhyme characters make trouble, The Queen and King and their court and knights rule the Faire, and no end of other slightly weird inhabitants enliven the paying visitors' day. Each book in the series has Jessie Morton apprenticing in a different shop to learn Medieval crafts for her PhD dissertation, in between her romance with the faire's bailiff, Chase Manhattan, and solving murder mysteries.
Linda R. (wolfie123) - , reviewed Wicked Weaves (Renaissance Faire, Bk 1) on + 419 more book reviews
Rather enjoyed this cozy, but there does need to be more character development....An interesting location , a Ren Faire . for the series....I will read the next to see how it progresses....
Review I normally like their mysteries but this one draggggggggggggged. And I figured out who had done it when the character was first introduced. Maybe it's the challenge of reading during the ballot counting phase.
Eh. Good setting, interesting concept. Bad editing, poor character development.
This is a cozy, not great literature, please, authors, try to keep simple plot points straight!
This is a cozy, not great literature, please, authors, try to keep simple plot points straight!
Being set at a renaissance fair, this set itself apart from a lot of the other mysteries. Jessie being the name of the main character and I was all set! (Jessie is my youngest sister's name).
This ended up being disappointing. I really didn't like Jessie and found her to be judgmental and immature. She was "thirty-something" (if my memory is right, she is 32) and an assistant professor, but acted much younger. I couldn't imagine her teaching! The first part of the book was the worst; what came out of her mouth wasn't very thought out or empathetic. It did get better (or I got used to it) as the book went on. This quote sums it up nicely: "I was taking some serious grief over this whole thing, and I wasn't sure why. I'd done all I could to help Mary. It seemed to me she could be a little grateful."
The main male character had an eye-rolling name. Chase Manhattan. "My parents were into banking. You know how it is." Yeah, actually I don't and don't want to. The romance in this was just okay. Again, for people in their thirties I expected more assertiveness.
I doubt I will read this rest.
This ended up being disappointing. I really didn't like Jessie and found her to be judgmental and immature. She was "thirty-something" (if my memory is right, she is 32) and an assistant professor, but acted much younger. I couldn't imagine her teaching! The first part of the book was the worst; what came out of her mouth wasn't very thought out or empathetic. It did get better (or I got used to it) as the book went on. This quote sums it up nicely: "I was taking some serious grief over this whole thing, and I wasn't sure why. I'd done all I could to help Mary. It seemed to me she could be a little grateful."
The main male character had an eye-rolling name. Chase Manhattan. "My parents were into banking. You know how it is." Yeah, actually I don't and don't want to. The romance in this was just okay. Again, for people in their thirties I expected more assertiveness.
I doubt I will read this rest.
