Stitches in Time (Mass Market Paperback)

by Barbara Michaels (Author) "She cursed the needle, the cloth and the thread, fixing each stitch in place with a word of power..." (more)
Key Phrases: album quilt, gray film, fingernail clippings, Mary Elizabeth, Miss Ora, Christmas Day (more...)

Editorial Reviews

From Publishers Weekly
The latest romantic suspense novel from Michaels (Shattered Silk) is a bizarre story involving a haunted quilt that exerts an evil influence over characters' lives. It stars Cheryl Cardoza and her sister-in-law, Kara, seen previously in Ammie, Come Home and Shattered Silk. Owners of a vintage clothing store in Leesburg, Va., they hire an assistant, Rachel Foley, a graduate student in anthropology at a nearby university, where she is doing a research project on how quilt-making and other women's crafts assume a magical significance in such important cultural rituals as marriage. When Rachel touches a mysterious antique quilt made by a secretly jealous woman for the wedding of a friend who was marrying her ex-lover, she herself becomes the victim of such magic. Under the spell of this quilt, Rachel falls in love with Cheryl's husband and attempts murder. With the help of anthropology professor Adam, a friend of Kara's, the quilt is "mutilated" and its evil forces exorcised. While Michaels has a knack for suspenseful cinematic scenarios and highly detailed descriptions of women's garments, the premise is too outlandish for even the suspension of disbelief, and one tires of countless scenes in which characters creep around in the dark. $150,000 ad/promo; author tour; UK, translation rights, Dominick Abel.
Copyright 1995 Reed Business Information, Inc. --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.

From School Library Journal
YA?Working with Cheryl and her partner, Kara, in their vintage clothing store is a source of pleasure for Rachel; it also helps her with her academic research on women's crafts. When a box of antique quilts is left on the doorstep of their shop by a mysterious stranger, things begin to change. The bridal quilt fascinates Rachel, but it takes control of her actions before she realizes that some heirlooms are crafted from hate rather than love. Besides offering a riveting mystery, Michaels also introduces readers to the interesting business of restoring period clothing.?Katherine Fitch, Lake Braddock Secondary School, Burke, VA
Copyright 1995 Reed Business Information, Inc. --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.

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Product Details

• Mass Market Paperback: 400 pages
• Publisher: HarperTorch (December 9, 1998)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0061044741
• ISBN-13: 978-0061044748
• Product Dimensions: 6.5 x 4.1 x 1.3 inches
• Shipping Weight: 6.4 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 3.5 out of 5 stars See all reviews (24 customer reviews)
• Amazon.com Sales Rank: #175,184 in Books (See Bestsellers in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

6 of 6 people found the following review helpful:

3.0 out of 5 stars A somewhat dissappointing sequel, September 22, 2005

By	G. Brown - See all my reviews (REAL NAME)

This book is actually a sequel to "Shattered Silk," one of my most favorite books by Barbara Michaels. It's set in the POV of a completely new character; a young woman working on her masters degree. The reason I'm dissappointed is that Shattered Silk had to do with a woman overcoming a horrible marriage that completely ruined her self-esteem and then ending up with a new satisfying business while solving a decades old murder case and reuniting with the love of her life. In comparison Stiches in Time ended up being a lame sequel. Michaels uses too many supernatural themes in her later works, and this one is a prime example. The main character in this book, who gets a job in Cheryl and Kara's vintage clothes shop did so because she had a crush on Cheryl's husband. Then a possessed quilt comes along and takes her over and she along with the rest of the crew have to figure out the origins of the quilt and try and save her. It has a happy ending like all of Michael's works, but I struggled to finish it. If you haven't read it yet, read "Shattered Silk." If you like Michael's newer books with her supernatural themes, then read this one, you'll probably like it to.

12 of 15 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars A thorougly enjoyable thriller of a supernatural variety!, June 12, 2000

By	K. L Sadler (Freedom, Pa. USA) - See all my reviews (TOP 500 REVIEWER)    (REAL NAME)

I don't normally read this type of mystery/thriller. I usually go for the Tom Clancy type (and I am a woman) or mysteries revolving around detectives/cops. I read the backface of the book and decided to go for it. I wasn't disappointed. My mother is an avid quilter, and yes, women put a lot of thought, pride, and emotion into the things they make whether it is a quilt, clothing, art, or for that matter books. This book had a great premise, pretty good character development, and considering the story, the people within the story had a good sense of humor. I always enjoy humor within a mystery, and this one definitely made me giggle at times when reading it late at night. Luckily my husband sleeps through everything! I plan on reading more of Ms. Michaels' works in the future and hope they turn out to be as enjoyable as this book was. Karen Sadler, Science Education, University of Pittsburgh

6 of 7 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars I Really Liked This Book!, October 27, 2002

By A Customer

I, for one, really liked this book. This was my first Barbara Michaels book, and I enjoyed it so much, I started reading all of Barbara Michael's books. This book is about Rachel, and it has psychic scary stuff in it. I really enjoy books (and movies) where the scary stuff isn't blood and guts psycho killer stuff. I like the characters, I love the fact that in all her books, she always has a bunch of cats and dogs, and I always feel so comfortable, I could be sitting at the kitchen table with these people, having a conversation and helping to figure out what is going on! And I love that the people in the story do regular things--let the dogs out, keep the cats from going into the shop, opening a can for food, these are regular people, just like me!

I was so intrigued that Pat, the "grumpy old guy" had a similar experience and it had affected him so strongly that he recognized instantly that Rachel was "shadowed", that I went out and did some searching and found the book that deals with him--Amie Come Home.

If you are looking for a pleasurable escape, I recommend this book. I've loaned out my copy 3 times, and 3 times I've ended up going and buying it again because the person that borrowed it from me loved it and asked if they could just keep it.

Enjoy!