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gabmc's review against another edition
3.0
I enjoyed this cozy mystery set in Amish country. Callie’s aunt Daisy owns a quilt shop in the town of Sipshewana. When Daisy dies, Callie comes to town to finalise her affairs. She meets Deborah Yoder who was a friend of Daisy. Deborah convinces Callie to keep the shop open for a while longer. Soon after Callie comes to town, the editor of the local newspaper is killed, just after an argument with Callie, who immediately becomes a suspect. Thus book is the first in a trilogy and the characters are set up really well, especially some potential love interests for Callie.
wisbeth's review against another edition
4.0
Callie Harper is still getting over the loss of her husband when her Aunt Daisy dies. Daisy owned a quilt store in Shipshewana, an Amish community. Callie comes to wrap up her aunt's affairs only to find herself running her aunt's quilt store until it can be sold. She meets Deborah Yoder, an Amish woman who wants Callie to help sell her quilts in the store to help out two of Deborah's friends who have fallen on hard times. Callie accepts the challenge of selling the quilts while she waits for the store to sell. Some of Callie's decisions concerning the sale of the quilts leads to controversy in the community which attracts the local newspaper editor, who doesn't exactly get the facts straight. When he is murdered, Callie becomes a prime suspect. The journey to solving the murder is quite suspenseful that will keep you guessing.
This is a fun, cozy mystery. Deborah and her friends, Melinda and Esther are the kind of friends a new gal in town like Callie needs. There is even Max, Aunt Daisy's dog who is quite entertaining. Of course there are a few hunky characters who also make the story interesting. I have been to Shipshewana and could easily imagine the quilt shop and the community. I enjoyed this cozy. It is a quick read for a lazy summer day. If you enjoy cozy mysteries or Amish fiction, pick this up. You will enjoy the time you spend with Callie and her friends. This is published by Zondervan but I didn't find it to be preachy at all.
I received this ARC E-book courtesy of Zondervan and Netgalley. This in no way influenced my review.
This is a fun, cozy mystery. Deborah and her friends, Melinda and Esther are the kind of friends a new gal in town like Callie needs. There is even Max, Aunt Daisy's dog who is quite entertaining. Of course there are a few hunky characters who also make the story interesting. I have been to Shipshewana and could easily imagine the quilt shop and the community. I enjoyed this cozy. It is a quick read for a lazy summer day. If you enjoy cozy mysteries or Amish fiction, pick this up. You will enjoy the time you spend with Callie and her friends. This is published by Zondervan but I didn't find it to be preachy at all.
I received this ARC E-book courtesy of Zondervan and Netgalley. This in no way influenced my review.
reneesuz's review against another edition
4.0
Falling to Pieces was definitely a different twist on Amish fiction. Usually the books involve some member of the faith leaving or thinking of leaving and there is a love story but this one had neither but instead is a murder mystery. I enjoyed this 'new' genre and wonder if the second will be more of the first or will I get to learn more about Callie and her life before coming to Shipshewana. Either way I'll be looking forward to the second in this series.
shammons's review against another edition
4.0
First in the three part series by Vanetta Chapman. I've read a couple of other books by this author and really enjoyed them, and this one was no different. Very good cozy mystery, I thoroughly enjoyed it, and am excited that the trilogy is off to a great start with some wonderful characters and writing!
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
pixieauthoress's review against another edition
4.0
GENRE: AMISH MYSTERY
PUBLISHER: ZONDERVAN
PUBLICATION DATE: OCTOBER 1, 2011
RATING: 8 OUT OF 10
Callie Harper had never planned to run a quilt shop, but following the death of her aunt she finds herself moving to Shipshewana, Indiana to look after her aunt’s property. Running the quilt shop is not at all what she intended, and while she’d prefer to simply sell the shop and move on with her life, the Amish women who frequent the shop and depend on it for their income are very persuasive at convincing Callie that she should reopen and take over its management. Deborah Yoder in particular knows how much her friends need the money they make from selling quilts in Daisy’s Quilt Shop. Callie doesn’t plan on getting too close to her new Amish friends, but she soon finds herself relying on Deborah when the owner of the local newspaper is found dead, and Callie the main suspect. Although many people in the town saw Callie arguing with him several times before his death, Deborah knows that Callie isn’t capable of murder. But who is? And is the murderer still in Shipshewana? As more bizarre events begin to occur, Callie and Deborah have more on their minds than selling quilts. Can these two unlikely allies figure out who the murderer is and prove Callie’s innocence?
Vannetta Chapman’s debut novel, A Simple Amish Christmas, was the first book that I ever professionally reviewed, so Vannetta holds a special place in my heart. Having adored her first book, I jumped at the chance to review the first novel in her cozy Amish mystery series. While I’ve read mysteries and thrillers in the past – everything from Agatha Christie to romantic suspense – I’d not previously encountered a cozy mystery, so this was a brand new experience for me. Knitting, baking and quilting are all hobbies that tend to be utilised in cozy mysteries, which makes them fit in quite well with the Amish genre. After all, what is more cozy than snuggling up underneath an Amish quilt?
And this is just what our protagonist, Callie, finds herself doing for the best part of her initial visit to Shipshewana. Having fond memories of her Aunt Daisy but not visited her in a long time, she’s shocked and surprised at her aunt’s death and at inheriting her quilt shop. I found Callie to be a very relatable and sympathetic character, always trying to help those in need, like her new Amish friends, but also getting emotional and upset at wrong-doings, to the extent of dunking a glass of juice over the head of the local newspaper when he refuses to retract n article! Having an Amish and an English protagonist working together to solve the mystery is a nice touch, and while I felt like I could connect with Callie more than Deborah, Deborah was still an interesting character. Like Callie, she had a habit of acting before she’d thought things through and accidentally bringing trouble on herself. Since Shipshewana is quite a different Amish community from the more well-known ones in Pennsylvania and Ohio, readers will likely be intrigued by how closely the Amish and English work together in their daily lives, as shown through Callie and Deborah in the quilt shop. I hope that the subsequent books in the series will also delve deeper into the lives of Esther and Melinda, the other Amish women who contribute quilts to the shop.
As I mentioned, this is my first cozy mystery and I was pleasantly surprised at how quickly I became immersed in Deborah and Callie’s attempts to track down suspects and figure out who was behind the events occurring in their town. There’s one scene near the end of the novel where I simply could not put the book down until I learned the outcome and found out that all the characters were safe and sound! I hadn’t expected quite so much suspense, so having my heart thumping as I urged Callie and Deborah on in their sleuthing was definitely unexpected but very welcome. My only real complaint about the mystery is that the ending was a bit of a letdown. After all the interviewing of suspects and laying traps, the person behind it all wasn’t really related to the main characters. It made me wonder why some of the people Deborah and Callie had been following up had been acting so suspiciously in the first place, but maybe they will feature in other mysteries later in the series. I don’t want to give away anything about the ending, but I’ll just say that I wasn’t entirely satisfied.
After waiting almost a year for the next book from Vannetta Chapman, I can say that Falling to Pieces was definitely worth the wait. While I normally prefer reading Amish romances, this mystery was a fun and compelling read and I’m looking forward to reading more about Callie and Deborah’s sleuthing in A Perfect Square, the next book in the series. If you enjoy Amish books but want something different from the usual tales of courtships and shunnings, then definitely check out Falling to Pieces.
Review title provided courtesy of Zondervan.
PUBLISHER: ZONDERVAN
PUBLICATION DATE: OCTOBER 1, 2011
RATING: 8 OUT OF 10
Callie Harper had never planned to run a quilt shop, but following the death of her aunt she finds herself moving to Shipshewana, Indiana to look after her aunt’s property. Running the quilt shop is not at all what she intended, and while she’d prefer to simply sell the shop and move on with her life, the Amish women who frequent the shop and depend on it for their income are very persuasive at convincing Callie that she should reopen and take over its management. Deborah Yoder in particular knows how much her friends need the money they make from selling quilts in Daisy’s Quilt Shop. Callie doesn’t plan on getting too close to her new Amish friends, but she soon finds herself relying on Deborah when the owner of the local newspaper is found dead, and Callie the main suspect. Although many people in the town saw Callie arguing with him several times before his death, Deborah knows that Callie isn’t capable of murder. But who is? And is the murderer still in Shipshewana? As more bizarre events begin to occur, Callie and Deborah have more on their minds than selling quilts. Can these two unlikely allies figure out who the murderer is and prove Callie’s innocence?
Vannetta Chapman’s debut novel, A Simple Amish Christmas, was the first book that I ever professionally reviewed, so Vannetta holds a special place in my heart. Having adored her first book, I jumped at the chance to review the first novel in her cozy Amish mystery series. While I’ve read mysteries and thrillers in the past – everything from Agatha Christie to romantic suspense – I’d not previously encountered a cozy mystery, so this was a brand new experience for me. Knitting, baking and quilting are all hobbies that tend to be utilised in cozy mysteries, which makes them fit in quite well with the Amish genre. After all, what is more cozy than snuggling up underneath an Amish quilt?
And this is just what our protagonist, Callie, finds herself doing for the best part of her initial visit to Shipshewana. Having fond memories of her Aunt Daisy but not visited her in a long time, she’s shocked and surprised at her aunt’s death and at inheriting her quilt shop. I found Callie to be a very relatable and sympathetic character, always trying to help those in need, like her new Amish friends, but also getting emotional and upset at wrong-doings, to the extent of dunking a glass of juice over the head of the local newspaper when he refuses to retract n article! Having an Amish and an English protagonist working together to solve the mystery is a nice touch, and while I felt like I could connect with Callie more than Deborah, Deborah was still an interesting character. Like Callie, she had a habit of acting before she’d thought things through and accidentally bringing trouble on herself. Since Shipshewana is quite a different Amish community from the more well-known ones in Pennsylvania and Ohio, readers will likely be intrigued by how closely the Amish and English work together in their daily lives, as shown through Callie and Deborah in the quilt shop. I hope that the subsequent books in the series will also delve deeper into the lives of Esther and Melinda, the other Amish women who contribute quilts to the shop.
As I mentioned, this is my first cozy mystery and I was pleasantly surprised at how quickly I became immersed in Deborah and Callie’s attempts to track down suspects and figure out who was behind the events occurring in their town. There’s one scene near the end of the novel where I simply could not put the book down until I learned the outcome and found out that all the characters were safe and sound! I hadn’t expected quite so much suspense, so having my heart thumping as I urged Callie and Deborah on in their sleuthing was definitely unexpected but very welcome. My only real complaint about the mystery is that the ending was a bit of a letdown. After all the interviewing of suspects and laying traps, the person behind it all wasn’t really related to the main characters. It made me wonder why some of the people Deborah and Callie had been following up had been acting so suspiciously in the first place, but maybe they will feature in other mysteries later in the series. I don’t want to give away anything about the ending, but I’ll just say that I wasn’t entirely satisfied.
After waiting almost a year for the next book from Vannetta Chapman, I can say that Falling to Pieces was definitely worth the wait. While I normally prefer reading Amish romances, this mystery was a fun and compelling read and I’m looking forward to reading more about Callie and Deborah’s sleuthing in A Perfect Square, the next book in the series. If you enjoy Amish books but want something different from the usual tales of courtships and shunnings, then definitely check out Falling to Pieces.
Review title provided courtesy of Zondervan.
booksforchristiangirls's review against another edition
3.0
This is a mini ‘Books For Christian Girls’ review. It is not a full content review and will not receive one. These mini-reviews are years old and just for clarity on the rating the book received on Goodreads.
2/5/2015-
“This was a pretty good mystery! It started off a little slow, but ended well. I was very sensitive to a dog getting shot, though, and was thankful the animal was okay.”
*Main Content-
A murder (barely-above-not-detailed); A dog is shot but is okay; Mentions of drinking & a tavern; Mentions of cocaine; Curses are said, but not written; Minor cussing (biddy, shoddy, shut up).
Married couple kisses; Staring & a bit of crushes; Callie gets stared at by a man in certain areas.
2/5/2015-
“This was a pretty good mystery! It started off a little slow, but ended well. I was very sensitive to a dog getting shot, though, and was thankful the animal was okay.”
*Main Content-
A murder (barely-above-not-detailed); A dog is shot but is okay; Mentions of drinking & a tavern; Mentions of cocaine; Curses are said, but not written; Minor cussing (biddy, shoddy, shut up).
Married couple kisses; Staring & a bit of crushes; Callie gets stared at by a man in certain areas.
mtdewdependent47's review against another edition
5.0
I love to read Amish fiction, and this book pleasantly surprised me. I am also a mystery buff, so it was nice to see the two genres blended together. I look forward to reading more in this series.
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