Monica Ferris

As much a fan as I am of Peter Tremayne's Sister Fidelma series, I think it has met its match with Frazer's Sister Frevisse. Frazer's sense for character development is obvious at the outset, and she manages to create a colorful cast of characters who are not caricatures. Pious Thomasine becomes a murder suspect when her aunt Lady Ermentrude--who I pictured like the Red Queen from Alice and Wonderland--succumbs to her own "strange and sudden death" (that's from the back cover, so I'm not show more counting it as a spoiler!). There is also Dame Claire, the herbalist and someone who deserves a large bit of credit, as does the entire convent of St. Frideswide, and their leader Domina Edith. One of the contrasts with Tremayne's series is that Sister Frevisse, while a major player, is not the only player. Granted, given the fifteenth-century setting and the Benedictine context, Frazer has less to explain than Tremayne with his seventh-century tensions between the Roman and Irish churches. Those who like fast-moving plots may be a bit frustrated here, but Frazer does an artful job of making everything matter! Take your time with this one--enjoy each and every character as they are all important here and there. Quite a great first book in the series--I'll be reading the rest! show less

Regular readers of the Crewel World series know that store owner and amateur sleuth Betsy Devonshire is a dedicated water aerobics participant. While her regular pool is closed for repairs, Betsy is able to join a class that meets in the therapy pool of an assisted living center. When the drowned body of a young woman is found in the pool one morning, Betsy gets involved at the request of one of the Monday Bunch group members. Her nephew works security at Watered Silk, and he is in danger of show more being accused of the murder as well as of losing his job because of the unauthorized entry to the pool on his watch.

The plot isn’t as tight as some of the other books in the series. Betsy doesn’t seem to spend as much time in the shop; just long enough for random customers to offer important bits of information. Betsy also ends up with two different “clients” from the Monday Bunch as suspicion moves away from Bershada’s nephew to a relative of other Monday Bunch members. This strains credulity just a bit too much. I was surprised that Lars agreed to participate in Betsy’s stakeout of the three main suspects. He’s a police officer and I would think that he could get in trouble doing this without official sanction. show less

Betsy Devonshire, owner of Crewel World needleshop, has invited Hailey Brent to demonstrate her methods of fiber dyeing using natural vegetable dyes. Not long after the demonstration, Hailey is murdered in her basement workshop. Suspicion has fallen on Marge Schultz, Hailey's neighbor, who owns a local gardening center. An exchange during the dyeing demonstration revealed some bad blood between them – enough to put Marge at the top of the police's list of suspects. Marge asks Betsy to look show more into Hailey's murder, knowing that Betsy has successfully proved the innocence of several individuals who were falsely accused of murder.

Once again, Betsy's knowledge of the materials of her trade (needlecraft) helps her to spot clues that the police don't see as such. Betsy puts to good use what she learned about dyeing from Hailey's workshop and from one of Hailey's colleagues. All of the clues and information that Betsy gathered kept pointing to Marge as the killer. As the end of the book approached without any other viable suspects, I decided that this must be the equivalent of a case where Matlock's client was really guilty of murder. The supporting cast is part of the charm of this series, and for the most part Ferris makes good use of them in this series entry. The thread about Godwin's lover Rafael's foray into coin dealing doesn't tie in well to the rest of the book. Unless Ferris is setting the stage for the plot of a future novel, it would have been better to leave this part out. show less

In the second book in the Betsy Devonshire Needlecraft Mysteries, Betsy is drawn into another investigation when a skeleton is found on an old ferry boat dredged from the lake. One of her new friends is implicated as the skeleton was accompanied by a piece of lace that is extremely difficult to make. Indeed, so difficult that Betsy's friend is one of the few people left who know how to make it. As a reader, I appreciated that the author has obviously done her research well enough to impart show more some techniques and history of this almost-lost art.
Betsy and her friends are wonderful characters, and very genuinely believable as residents of Excelsior, MN, a town with which I am quite familiar. I can't wait to read more about them. show less