Needlecraft Mystery Falls Short

I have read every single one of the Monica Ferris' needlecraft mysteries. This cottage mystery series follows Betsy Devonshire, a plump, middle-aged woman who owns a needlecraft store named "Crewel World" located in Excelsior, Minnesota. Betsy inherited the shop from her sister who was the murder victim in the first book of the series also entitled "Crewel World." Betsy shows a knack for solving murders and mysteries as she also learns the ins and outs of needlework.

Usually these books are fun reads. Being a needleworker myself, I do enjoy reading about some of the ins and outs of the needlecraft business. I can really relate to her descriptions of the products, processes and environment of her shop.

Ferris has a knack for developing some wonderful and memorable characters as well. From "manly" Alice, to her gay operations manager Goddy, and the always efficient and stoic Jill Larson, these characters become old friends.

I suppose that is what made this book a disappointment to me. Someone has stolen a check from the Heart Association. The check was for charity work done by the local EGA (Embroidery Guild of America) chapter. Unfortunately it appears that the Heart Association representative, who happens to be the husband of a needleworker there, has absconded with the check. The wife asks Betsy to investigate, but she can't get up and about because of a broken leg. She has to rely on Goddy to do the work for her.

What makes this book fall short of the mark is the excessive amount of time devoted to one of the suspects, Tony Milan, aka Stoney Durand. Ferris seems off her game here. His development seems trite and uninteresting. Goddy's investigation seems to be the same. It just doesn't work for me. Also the descriptions and voice of Jill's baby seems simplified and silly.

Let's hope Ferris' next endeavor will focus more closely on our old friends at Crewel World and that needlework will figure more prominently in the mystery itself.

Until next time, may your reading be both pleasurable and profitable.

Cork Returns!

The work of William Kent Krueger is among my favorites in the mystery genre. He writes of Corcoran (Cork) O'Connor, a former sheriff who lives near the Iron Lake Reservation in northern Minnesota. Cork, part-Native American himself, often finds himself involved in various mysteries and murders, whether he is serving as the official law enforcement presence or not.

In this book entitled "Thunder Bay", Krueger goes back to a more Native-American dominated storyline. Henry Meloux, one of the recurring characters asks Cork, a newly-licensed private investigator, to find his son. Cork is stunned, and he agrees to do so. Meloux is a Midiwiwin, a Native-American tribal spiritual leader and visionary of sorts. He has to be in his late eighties or nineties. His appearances in the previous books only serve to heighten the interest in the story and his background. After Cork finds the reclusive son in Canada followed by an attempt on Meloux's life by the son's bodyguard, fully one-third of the book is narrated by Meloux in an exploration of his past. Krueger skillfully weaves the story together, and it is just a delight.

The previous book was not one that I liked or even finished. Many of Krueger's books have won Edgar and Anthony awards. I was so disappointed in "Copper River", but "Thunder Bay" is a full redemption.

Until next time, may your reading be both pleasurable and profitable.

Just Take a Pass

After reading Sharon Kay Penman's "Sunne in Splendour" and raving about in here in my blog, I fancied that the recent "The Other Boleyn Girl" might be an equally wonderful historical fiction of the Boleyn family and King Henry VIII's court.

Boy, was I wrong.

This is just not a good book. While I am sure that it might be good, bawdy reading for those unfamiliar with the court and just want an HBO/Cinemax/Showtime version of the period, this was just fiction. I wouldn't even call it historical fiction. There are some portions of it that are just way off base.

I would take a pass on this book. I cannot recommend it.

Until next time, may your reading be both pleasurable and profitable.

Dangerous Mourning Puts Me in Mourning

OK. I'm disappointed. If this is an "Inspector Monk" novel, then why is someone else solving the cases?

I was REALLY excited to read the second of the Inspector Monk novels by Anne Perry. The first novel, "The Face of a Stranger," was wonderful. I had anticipated that our intrepid Inspector Monk would continue his journey through his amnesiac episode and that we would learn more and more about him. Unfortunately, this is not the case.

In a plot line too similar to the second of the Inspector Pitt series, a nurse friend of Monk's takes up residence within the aristocratic household to ferret out information and discern who might have murdered one of the daughters of the household. The story begins to revolve completely around nurse Hester Latterly. And, just as in the first book, one of the family members is the guilty party.

All in all, this book was a bitter let down. I'm hoping for better in the third book, but if that one doesn't knock my socks off, I may have to beg off this series.

Until next time, may your reading be both pleasurable and profitable!