Reviews

Crewel Yule by Monica Ferris

crackedchelle's review against another edition

lighthearted mysterious medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Strong character development? No
• Loveable characters? No
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated

4.0

Melissa Hughes narrated the audiobook I borrowed, and I enjoyed her use of different voices and accents for the different characters.

willac's review against another edition

4.0

This is a re-read for me, which is unusual, but I have been getting back into needlework after a long hiatus, and this book filled two of my favorite cozy criteria--Christmas and needlework. Like most cozies, you have to suspend your disbelief--in this case, that the owner of a needlework shop would be sought out by the police because she is so good at solving murders--but it's a pretty good series, and I have enjoyed most of them. This one is set in a hotel, which is one of my favorite settings.

aspygirlsmom_1995's review against another edition

lighthearted mysterious fast-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? No
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.0

mullinstreetzoo's review against another edition

Not bad to pass the time.

rebeccasreadingrambles's review against another edition

4.0

I really enjoyed this mystery. It's only the second one I've read in this series, but I liked this one A LOT better than the other one. Now I want to go back and actually read from the beginning. I like the main characters (Betsy, Jill, and Godwin) of course, but also really liked the surrounding characters here too. The suspects were all a little crazy and definitely seemed capable of killing someone. However, I was surprised by the actual culprit. I can see where

Spoiler

she just had a moment of uber-craziness where she was so mad she probably didn't even think about what she was doing and just flung her over the rail. I am surprised she kept it together for the next couple of days.

I also really liked the setting of a crafting/needlework market.

leighryks's review against another edition

Crewel Yule (Needlecraft Mysteries) by Monica Ferris (2005)

kimveach's review against another edition

3.0

This one took a little while to get into - was somewhat out of sequence which was distracting. Once it got to the actual murder investigation I liked it.

shelley_pearson's review against another edition

2.0

I picked this up because it's Christmasy, and I liked that it took place in a town that completely shuts down with snow, like my own town was doing while I was reading. But how could I forget my issues with Monica Ferris's ableism? I forgot that in the last book of hers that I read, there was a character with a chronic illness, and everyone felt sooo bad for her husband for having to deal with that. And then this one had a couple of characters in wheelchairs, and the wheelchairs were such issues! All these comments like "well there's obviously no way someone who uses a wheelchair could own a business on their own!" And comments from the disabled characters about people assuming they weren't mentally capable, but does the author do much better?

And then of course one of the wheelchair users was the murderer! Why was I even surprised?

lbmaddux's review against another edition

3.0

Knowing my affinity for cheesy mysteries, it will be no surprise to anyone that I enjoy this series. Although the mysteries aren’t difficult to figure out, the characters are likable & not “perfect”. And, it has a crafty theme. Each book in the series includes a needlework pattern.

writerlibrarian's review against another edition

3.0

We find our intrepid heroes in Nashville in December during a freaky snow storm at a retailer Market. A nice little "huis-clos" where the murderer can't escape. The cameos by real life designers, artists and retailers are fun and made part of the plot. I especially like the Frank Bielec cameo (from Trading Spaces fame). These little needle mysteries are just fun to read.