Books

Moon Spinners

From Publishers Weekly, March 29, 2010:

Moon Spinners: A Seaside Knitters Mystery Sally Goldenbaum. Obsidian, $23.95 (320p) ISBN 978-0-451-22988-5

In Goldenbaum's delightful third knitting mystery (after 2009's Patterns in the Sand), Izzy Chambers, proprietor of the Seaside Knitting Studio, and assorted knitting group friends gather for dinner at the Sea Harbor Yacht Club in Sea Harbor, Mass., to celebrate fund-raising efforts for the new community center and park. Special thanks are due two local construction companies, Santos and Delaney, which have been working together despite the uneasy relationship between the two families. The sudden appearance of drunken Julianne Santos, who threatens her brother, Alphonso, with a beer bottle, interrupts the dinner. Gracie, Julianne's daughter and the estranged wife of Joey Delaney, wishes she, Gracie, could disappear like Alice down the rabbit hole. Later that night, Alphonso's aloof, beautiful Argentinean wife drives her Ferrari off a cliff. Tampered brakes signal murder. Well-drawn characters and an intriguing plot lift this well above the average cozy. (May)

Patterns in the Sand

Patterns in the Sand: A Seaside Knitters Mystery Sally Goldenbaum. NAL/Obsidian mysteries. ISBN-10: 045122471X ISBN-13: 978-0451224712

The summer art scene of idyllic Sea Harbor, Mass., a small fictional town on Cape Ann, provides the backdrop for Goldenbaum's engaging second knitting cozy (after 2008's Death by Cashmere). When Izzy Chambers finds fiber artist Willow Adams lying in the display window of her Seaside Knitting Studio, she thinks Willow is dead, but Willow, whom she invited to do a demonstration at her shop after meeting the waiflike young woman a year earlier in Boston, is merely asleep. When someone fatally poisons Aidan Peabody, a popular Canary Cove artist, Willow becomes a suspect after the authorities learn she's Aidan's sole beneficiary. Other suspects include a frustrated art teacher, a greedy developer and a gallery owner who was jealous of Aidan's influence with Canary Cove's arts council. Goldenbaum weaves a tight plot as Izzy as her knitting friends attempt to untangle another puzzler without dropping a stitch. (May)
–Publishers Weekly

Death by Cashmere

The first in the Seaside Knitters mystery series introduces four women who have taught me lots about knitting, about friendship, and about life in a small seaside village on Cape Ann, Massachusetts. Nell, Izzy, Cass, and Birdie range in age from early 30s to around 80, but their friendship knows no boundaries, especially those of age. “Fiddlesticks,” Birdie would say.

Nell Endicott's niece, Izzy Chambers, raises some eyebrows when she rents the apartment above her knitting shop to Angie Archer, whose reputation for loose behavior and a quick temper has made her unpopular with many locals. But could any of them have wanted her dead? Angie’s body is discovered drowned in the harbor, her long red hair tangled like seaweed in a lobster trap.

An official investigation rules the death an accident. There are speculations of too many whiskey sours, a slippery wharf, a dark night… But Izzy and the Seaside Knitters smell something fishy. When several strange incidents occur above the shop, the women decide to take matters into their own hands. But before long, their small-town sense of security is frayed, and the threat of more violence hangs over this tightly knit community.

Murders on Elderberry Road (Queen Bees Quilt Mystery #1)

Po Paltrow, writer, quilter, and nurturer of the Queen Bees quilting group, is on her morning jogging through the streets of Crestwood, KS, a small university town, when a cat's meow draws her to the back door of one of Elderberry Road's quaint stores, Selma Parker's quilt shop. There she finds the body of Owen Hill--best department chair Canterbury College ever had. And so begins the first adventure of the Queen Bees, eight spirited quilters united in friendship--with a surprising talent for sleuthing.

A Murder of Taste (Queen Bees Quilt Mystery #2)

In this exciting sequel to Murders on Elderberry Road, Po leads the Queen Bees on another delightful journey of rich recipes, beautiful quilts—and multiple murders. When the spouse of their friend Piccaso--the charming owner of an Elderberry Road restaurant--is found dead, the quilters join together to comfort their friend—and to uncover secrets that have simmered in their neighborhood for many years.

Murder on a Starry Night (Queen Bees Quilt Mystery #3)

When Ollie Harrington, son of a prominent Crestwood, KS, family dies a sudden death, the town is saddened. Ollie was a loner and a bit odd, but gentle and likable. But his death soon proves mysterious--a fatal mix of astronomy, academics, a beautiful mansion, and a family torn apart. The Queen Bees are soon drawn into the mix, using their sleuthing skills to prove some friends and neighbors innocent--and another guilty—of a horrible crime.

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