Customer Reviews

Crewel World (Needlecraft Mystery)

5 star:		(12)
4 star:		(18)
3 star:		(7)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

Where does a middle-aged woman go when her high-flying lifestyle has crashed and her marriage is over? In the first book in Monica Ferris' needlecraft mystery series, big-city dweller Betsy Devonshire turns to her sister Margot, a widow with a successful needlecraft shop in Excelsior, Minnesota, a friendly small town which Betsy characterizes as "Mayberry-of-the-North."

Working in Margot's shop, Betsy is able to revive her lagging spirits and learn more about the curious world of needlework, a complicated sub-culture with practices, etiquette, and a language all its own. What she doesn't learn until it's too late is that Margot has a dangerous enemy who is willing to kill to achieve an end-and does.

Now, as Margot's grieving heir, Betsy reluctantly takes on not only the responsibility of a small business, but the job of finding out who could have murdered her kind-hearted, popular sister.

As a cozy mystery fan, I am happily content to wait five chapters for the murder to occur, but other readers may not be so patient. Though admittedly taking her time about it, Ferris establishes strong characterizations in these early chapters and evokes such an appealing ambiance about the real-life town of Excelsior that I hope the Chamber of Commerce takes note.

The clues to the perpetrator are subtle, but fairly sprinkled throughout the book and the solution to the mystery, when revealed, is both intriguing and satisfying. Best of all, Betsy Devonshire grows through this poignant and harrowing experience and emerges as a person we like, respect and would want to meet again.

As as avid quilter/needleworker I enjoyed this book tremendously. It was a cozy, light read that I was able to pick up when I was at a frustration point with my current needlework project. I was fairly sure I recognized the killer before the end of the book but for me it was a toss-up between two characters. I would recommend this book for anyone wanting a cozy mystery to help them through creatively restless hours of their own. I'm already eagerly awaiting the next book and I've added Monica Ferris to my list of what I call my favorite "gentle" murder mystery writers.

First off, I reserve "5 starts" for books I consider works of art. This book is not a work of art but is engaging, entertaining, diverting - just generally a good read.

I was home sick today, sinus infection, too headachy to work on anything intensive, so I took this off the shelf. And I couldn't put it down until I was done.

The story describes how Betsy Devonshire, coming off her divorce from "the pig" (a philandering college professor), has chucked it all and headed North to hang out with her sister, Margot, for a while. Margot is a sweet person, beloved of nearly all the townspeople in tiny Excelsior, Minnesota. Margot runs a needlework business - seemingly more for the benefit of her regular customers than for any huge profits.

Then, Margot is killed in a burglary. Or so it seems at first. Betsy is unwilling to accept this and tries to "push" the police to investigate, while trying to keep the shop going.

One of the things that made this book fun were the secondary characters - Godwin, the talented shop assistant (who happens to be gay); Jill, the cop who has a warm heart under her Norwegian ice-princess exterior; Irene, Margot's rival needlepointer, who is creepy, weird, and may be a murderer...and on and on.

Oh yes, there is also Sophie, the store cat.

I enjoyed this one and plan to read the rest of the series.

Yes, I did guess "who dun it" fairly early on. But that didn't spoil the story for me.

The characters are enjoyable. The setting is familiar (I come originally from the Upper Midwest and often get homesick) and is well-described. The needlework angle is a real plus for me (I knit and quilt and have done embroidery and needlepoint in the past).

At a few points in the story, there are "expository notes" that are perhaps a bit jarring. And the story is fairly simple. But this novel is "comfort reading" at its best - fun characters, a pleasant setting, the sense that justice is served in the end.

I could have done much worse with my afternoon than to read this book.

Margot Berglund, owner of Crewel World, a needlecraft shop in Excelsior, Minnesota was having a good day. Her shop was doing well and her older sister Betsy Devonshire was coming to stay with her.

Betsy wasn't having such a good day, driving cross country from California where she had just gone through a divorce from her cheating college professor husband, she was broke and at fifty-five, wasn't too thrilled about having to start over once again.

After arriving, Betsy wasn't sure how long she was going to stay. Was there room? She knew Margot had sold her house after her husband's death, but the small apartment over the shop didn't seem big enough for the two of them.

That problem was soon solved, when one night, Betsy finds the door of the shop open and going in, finds Margot, dead on the floor.

Who would kill Margot, who seemed to be loved by almost everyone in town.

Maybe Joe Mickels, who owns the building Crewel World is located and has been trying to get Margot out for months. Irene Potter, who was jealous of Margot, she wanted to open her own needlecraft shop and was now hoping to take over Crewel World.

Betsy is forced to investigate the crime, when Police Officer Mike Malloy decides it was a robbery gone bad. Would she be able to solve the crime before she ends up as a second victim.

Highlights:

Betsy is a great character. Margot is also a great character and it's surprising that she turns out to be the victim, you almost think she is going to be the main character.

The secondary characters are also very interesting, especially, Jill Cross, the lone female Police Officer and Goodwin - part-time employee of Crewel World. He knows everything about needlework and is also very funny. Irene Potter is a nut, but very entertaining.

I love the needlework information.

Lowlights:

Only problem is the mystery. I figured out who and why very early. I've found this is often true in first couple of books in a new series.

The book is still entertaining enough that you will want to continue with the series.

a light mystery. i picked it up and read it because of my love of needlework. that and reading mysteries are my 2 favorite pasttimes. what a delightful way to spend time. just like the other customers, i too figured out the killer about halfway through the book. but, nonetheless a cute, little entertaining book.

I enjoyed this one very much, so I bought all the others and was not disappointed. I really like the main character, she is real to me. Especially in the last book where she is depressed and having nightmares because of all that she has been through. In so many books the main character goes blithley on, unaffected by what they have witnessed or been entirely too close to. I have yet to do the patterns included in each one because, of course I already am stacked to the rafters with UFO's. In fact reading them made me drag out some of them and deal with them! I wish it was possible to read and stitch at the same time because I couldn't put these books down. It would be great to do like in Gone with the Wind, one reads out loud and everybody else is stitching. Much better than being blasted by the TV.

Picked this up in a needlework shop in Utah. Owner had 'em all on the counter. Read in a few days. The needlework angle was interesting, but the writing was not the best. Lots of choppy editing. An obvious villain - and the murder weapon revealed immediately after its nature was described by police. Hope the writing gets better in subsequent novels, but I doubt I'll be bothering to find out. I'll stick to Charlaine Harris or equivalent.

What a great title for a very engaging debut novel! Further, knowledge of needle work is not a requirement for enjoying this book. There is enough mention of various techniques to keep the enthusiast interested, while not bombarding the not-so-nimble-fingered over the head with unwanted or un-necessary information.

Betsey Devonshire, now in her mid-fifties, has only one sister, Margot Berglund, and like many real-life siblings, each has gone her own way. Both were married and are now widowed, but the multi-married Betsey was used to California's sunny clime, while the more settled Margot thrived in the colder Minneapolis area. Although she didn't really need to work, Margot had established a needlework shop--Crewel World--to occupy her time, and she is content with her life as small businesswoman and community activist.

Betsey feels the need for family, as we all do occasionally, and travels half-way across the US to Minnesota, wondering with every mile if she's made a mistake. But no--there is Margot, warm and welcoming, including a community meeting that very first evening.

Like small towns everywhere, there is a vast assortment of characters to be found in Excelsior, and suddenly, one of them turns into a murderer. The police think Margot was the victim of a random thief; Betsey isn't so sure of that, and cannot let Margot's death go un-avenged. Slowly, thread by thread, she unravels the town's secrets (along with those of her sister and her sister's computer) until she reaches the right conclusion.

This is a case of the journey being as interesting as the destination as Betsey discovers resources within herself she'd never even imagined were there, and learns to trust her own feelings and emotions. The other characters in the book are equally charming or devious, as the story requires them to be. There are other books in the series to follow this one, thank goodness, as I found it to be a thoroughly enjoyable addition to the ranks of cozy mysteries.

When Betsy decides to figure out who murdered her sister - and to take over her sister's needlework store, I knew I was hooked on this book. But what a dilemma - to stitch or to read? The characters are a delight - and not unlike those who inhabit my local needlework hangout; and the "who dun it" is a joy to unravel. I felt I was in the store - and uncovering the clues. I hope there are sequels.

Want to add my praise of Crewel World. As a knitter/cross stitcher, I was drawn to the book. I wasn't disappointed. It was modern, true to the Midwest and small towns. I liked the characters and found Betsy to be an interesting person.... the reader sees Excelsior and needlework through her eyes as she learns to appreciate both. It is also nice to have a protaganist who isn't divorced/widowed with children and involved with the local detective (which seems to be the trend in many of the mysteries lately). Monica Ferris offers a breath of fresh air in mysteries -- MORE! MORE! MORE!