Cathy C. (cathyskye) -
Helpful Score: 2
This first Craft Fair Knitters mystery opens strong. The historic barn and the small-town Pennsylvania setting are used well, and I liked how the author brought crafts into the story without overdoing it. The story flowed well and kept my interest-- primarily because of the main character. I liked recent widow Lia, her outlook on life, and her behavior toward others. I liked her daughter, Hayley, who gives her mother palpitations by quitting her job, and my liking for the young woman persisted even after she did something completely bone-headed. Good gravy, I even liked Daphne the cat, and I'm a dog person!
Yes, A Wicked Yarn is set up so enticingly that I'll be taking a look at the next book in the series when it comes along, even though two things bothered me a bit.
One was how easy it was to deduce whodunit. One line of dialogue did it for me. Oh well. I read a lot of mysteries. The second thing concerned the traffic flow at the craft fair post-murder. In A Wicked Yarn, things grind to a halt with scarcely anyone coming in to shop. In the vast majority of the mysteries I've read-- and from my own personal observations-- when a murder occurs, it seems to be human nature for folks to come running to check out the murder site. Business should have boomed. Or so I thought. But if it did, Lia would not have had that extra time to investigate, would she?
Casting those two items aside, if you'd like to learn a little about craft fairs and alpacas, if you'd like to spend some time with a friendly, interesting main character while she finds a killer, then A Wicked Yarn should be your cup of tea. Milk or lemon?
(Review copy courtesy of the publisher and Net Galley)
Yes, A Wicked Yarn is set up so enticingly that I'll be taking a look at the next book in the series when it comes along, even though two things bothered me a bit.
One was how easy it was to deduce whodunit. One line of dialogue did it for me. Oh well. I read a lot of mysteries. The second thing concerned the traffic flow at the craft fair post-murder. In A Wicked Yarn, things grind to a halt with scarcely anyone coming in to shop. In the vast majority of the mysteries I've read-- and from my own personal observations-- when a murder occurs, it seems to be human nature for folks to come running to check out the murder site. Business should have boomed. Or so I thought. But if it did, Lia would not have had that extra time to investigate, would she?
Casting those two items aside, if you'd like to learn a little about craft fairs and alpacas, if you'd like to spend some time with a friendly, interesting main character while she finds a killer, then A Wicked Yarn should be your cup of tea. Milk or lemon?
(Review copy courtesy of the publisher and Net Galley)
Brenda H. (booksinvt) -
Helpful Score: 2
A Wicked Yarn is the debut of the A Craft Fair Knitters Mystery series set in the small town of Crandalsburg, Pennsylvania and featuring Lia Geiger, a recent widow and avid knitter. It's Mother's Day weekend and Lia is looking forward to a busy day manning her booth at the local craft fair.
A day filled with happy customers and a beautiful array of crafts hits a low when two gentleman enter the barn and cause a stir. The men are overheard bragging they are going to purchase the property and tear down the barn, effectively putting an end to the local attraction. The next morning, Lia arrives early to set up her booth and discovers her friend and fair manager, Belinda leaning over the body of a dead man. It's one of the men from the day before and it turns out to be Belinda's ex-husband, Darren Peebles.
Feeling a need to clear her friend's name and save the craft fair, Lia sets out with the help of her daughter, Hayley and the Ninth Street Knitters, her group of fellow knitters. Plenty of suspects come to the surface thanks to Lia's needling, including Darren's business partner and also one of the craft vendors.
A well crafted plot with interesting characters, a touching mother/daughter dynamic, a close knit group of friends and a delightful furry ragdoll named Daphne. This is a great start to a new series and if you haven't already done so I suggest taking a look at the author's other series, Pickled and Preserved written as Mary Ellen Hughes.
A day filled with happy customers and a beautiful array of crafts hits a low when two gentleman enter the barn and cause a stir. The men are overheard bragging they are going to purchase the property and tear down the barn, effectively putting an end to the local attraction. The next morning, Lia arrives early to set up her booth and discovers her friend and fair manager, Belinda leaning over the body of a dead man. It's one of the men from the day before and it turns out to be Belinda's ex-husband, Darren Peebles.
Feeling a need to clear her friend's name and save the craft fair, Lia sets out with the help of her daughter, Hayley and the Ninth Street Knitters, her group of fellow knitters. Plenty of suspects come to the surface thanks to Lia's needling, including Darren's business partner and also one of the craft vendors.
A well crafted plot with interesting characters, a touching mother/daughter dynamic, a close knit group of friends and a delightful furry ragdoll named Daphne. This is a great start to a new series and if you haven't already done so I suggest taking a look at the author's other series, Pickled and Preserved written as Mary Ellen Hughes.
