Most Helpful Customer Reviews
40 of 44 people found the following review helpful:
3.0 out of 5 stars
Writing too many novels perhaps?, June 1, 2003
This review is from: Keepsake Crimes (A Scrapbooking Mystery) (Mass Market Paperback)
Cozy mysteries are great. They're light and quick and enjoyable. However, when the word "mystery" is attatched to the "cozy" bit the author really should follow through. Childs' budding new series has many of the same characteristics as her Tea Shop Mystery series. The setting is strong and definite. She knows the area(s) she's dealing with and seems to delight in describing them to the reader. There are numerous quirky secondary characters that are loyal and supportive and always there at the right times. But there is also the same repetition, the same breeziness, the same lame inner dialogue that makes you go a little crazy because, really, I think we're all just a little more intelligent than that. And then there's the "mystery" part. Right. There really is no mystery. There is a crime, granted. But it's either too easily solved (with little detection work on the part of the protagonist) or just not all that interesting. In other words, you don't care much either way. And the crime and resolution in *Keepsake Crimes* is almost silly. It's very obvious that it's a new series start and it seems like Laura Childs' is more concerned with her character interaction than her crime. It's not that this novel was bad or unreadable, but even those of us who like the occasional "cozy mystery" needs a little mystery there.
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13 of 13 people found the following review helpful:
3.0 out of 5 stars
Good Style, but, November 4, 2003
This review is from: Keepsake Crimes (A Scrapbooking Mystery) (Mass Market Paperback)
I like the Tea Shop books and was looking forward to a new series. I love New Orleans; a series set there could be so intriguing, and Carmela is a spunky, clever heroine. There is a "but." There was too much detail on scrapbooking for a reader not interested in that hobby. Also, I didn't really care who committed the murder. The supporting characters, except for Ava, blended together and weren't particularly likable. Carmela was also too forgiving for my taste. I thought that her support of a husband who had deserted her made her seem weak. The series needs a strong male character, and I'm hoping it won't be that husband! I will read the next book in the series, if there is one, for I like Laura Child's writing style. This just wasn't one of her better efforts.
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19 of 21 people found the following review helpful:
3.0 out of 5 stars
I like the idea of this book, but it didn't engage me, November 30, 2003
By A Customer
This review is from: Keepsake Crimes (A Scrapbooking Mystery) (Mass Market Paperback)
I'm an avid scrapbooker, and a fan of Laura Child's tea shop mysteries - I've read them all. The tea shop books are cozy and fun - and you quickly come to idetify with and like at least 5 of the recurring characters without having to make a list to keep straight who they are. I was anxious to read the new series. For me, there was just way too much information about New Orleans and mardi gras. I just wasn't that interested in all that detail. Also, I really didn't come to care much about the characters in this book, other than Carmella and Ava. There's no strong male character, as in her tea shop books. Ms. Child's mentions many different characters on several occasions, but we're never given enough information on them to allow us to know them or to know why or how they may be connected to the story. As for the scrapbooking aspect, I really could have used more intersting tips and techniques. There were a couple unique ideas wound into the story, but many things mentioned would be old hat to serious scrapbookers. Normally, I finish the tea shop books in a day or so. They're so fun and cozy that I can't put them down. This one took me a while to read because I just couldn't get interested in it due to the excessive detail on New Orleans. However, I like the tea shop mysteries enough that I will give this new serious another try. I'll pick up the next book and see if things improve.
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