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theavidreaderandbibliophile's review
3.0
Murder, She Knit by Peggy Ehrhart is the first story in A Knit and Nibble Mystery series. Pamela Patterson is a widow who lives in Arborville, New Jersey. Pamela is associate editor of Fiber Craft magazine and is the founder of the Knit and Nibble knitting club. On her way to the co-op grocery store, Pamela runs into Amy Morgan who has just moved to town. Pamela has not seen Amy in five years. She invites Amy to the Knit and Nibble meeting that will be held at her house. Unfortunately, Amy fails to show up for the meeting. After everyone has departed, Pamela finds Amy dead in the bushes with a metal knitting needle sticking out of her chest. Pamela notices that Amy’s knitting bag is missing. Who killed Amy and why? Pamela believes that the police do not always ask the right questions and decides to conduct her own investigation. While walking home from the market, Pamela finds a woman dead behind Amy’s apartment building. Are the two deaths connected? Pamela and her friend, Bettina set out to unravel the clues and hook the killer in Murder, She Knit.
Murder, She Knit is a cute cozy mystery. The book is nicely written and, for the most part, has good pacing. I do wish that the author had taken the time to establish the characters. I would have liked more detail on Pamela and the town. I liked the knitting theme and the beautiful yarn descriptions. The author mentions a knitting harness that allows knitters to knit with one hand (I am looking that one up). The mystery is straightforward. There is some misdirection and the author provided good clues that will aid readers in solving the crime. I kept hoping for more action (anything besides questioning and speculation). Pamela’s method of questioning leaves a lot to be desired. The police are in the periphery in the book (practically nonexistent). I felt that many of the scenes felt contrived (farfetched). The members of the knitting group attend the funeral of a woman they had never met (because she was about to join their group—would you take off work) and she happens to see a man wearing argyle socks that match one’s the victim knitted are just two examples. I also did not understand Pamela talking with a reporter after finding Amy’s body (come on into my kitchen and let’s chat). There is a lot of time spent shopping, knitting, cooking, chatting, and taking care of the stray cat. The series has potential, and I am hoping for improvement in Died in the Wool. My rating for Murder, She Knit is 3 out of 5 stars. There is a recipe for Autumn Apple Cake at the end of the book.
Murder, She Knit is a cute cozy mystery. The book is nicely written and, for the most part, has good pacing. I do wish that the author had taken the time to establish the characters. I would have liked more detail on Pamela and the town. I liked the knitting theme and the beautiful yarn descriptions. The author mentions a knitting harness that allows knitters to knit with one hand (I am looking that one up). The mystery is straightforward. There is some misdirection and the author provided good clues that will aid readers in solving the crime. I kept hoping for more action (anything besides questioning and speculation). Pamela’s method of questioning leaves a lot to be desired. The police are in the periphery in the book (practically nonexistent). I felt that many of the scenes felt contrived (farfetched). The members of the knitting group attend the funeral of a woman they had never met (because she was about to join their group—would you take off work) and she happens to see a man wearing argyle socks that match one’s the victim knitted are just two examples. I also did not understand Pamela talking with a reporter after finding Amy’s body (come on into my kitchen and let’s chat). There is a lot of time spent shopping, knitting, cooking, chatting, and taking care of the stray cat. The series has potential, and I am hoping for improvement in Died in the Wool. My rating for Murder, She Knit is 3 out of 5 stars. There is a recipe for Autumn Apple Cake at the end of the book.
mysticforestcrafts's review against another edition
fast-paced
3.0
Pros:
I really love seeing the work get put into welcoming a feral cat into a family. It is so hard on people to feel like they’re not doing something wrong when stories always have that instant love and trust moment. This is more realistic and lovely.
I appreciate that the knitting has an actual connection to the case. It is tied throughout the story instead of simply a launching point.
Cons:
It’s a me issue, the book is very good but I’m a bit burned out on cozy mysteries being a bit predictable. This is among the better ones, I just need to give myself a longer break between cozies.
I really love seeing the work get put into welcoming a feral cat into a family. It is so hard on people to feel like they’re not doing something wrong when stories always have that instant love and trust moment. This is more realistic and lovely.
I appreciate that the knitting has an actual connection to the case. It is tied throughout the story instead of simply a launching point.
Cons:
It’s a me issue, the book is very good but I’m a bit burned out on cozy mysteries being a bit predictable. This is among the better ones, I just need to give myself a longer break between cozies.
aspygirlsmom_1995's review against another edition
lighthearted
mysterious
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
kateycakee's review against another edition
4.0
A well paced mystery with a strong focus on craft, food, and crime. My three favourite things :)
ngreads's review
3.0
For context, this is not a genre I normally read. I was treating this more as a mix of a palate-cleanser and as a reintroduction to audiobooks, since I wanted to get back into listening to them and this was a nice and short pick that was available at my library.
Anyway, let's get into...
The Good:
- The concept was pretty cute, and though it was a fairly silly plot the story was still entertaining in a cozy way--which was the point, considering the genre. While not my normal cup of tea, I could definitely see the appeal of a cute plot like this. It felt a bit like watching a Lifetime movie--sure, it's not the best thing out there, but it's a pleasant enough diversion.
- As a cat lover myself, I enjoyed the "how to be adopted by a cat" subplot.
- The narrator of the audiobook was pretty good. I liked her narration.
The Not So Good:
- Holy crap. The sheer amount of extraneous, unnecessary details in this book was absolutely INSANE.
EVERY sandwich made. EVERY grocery shopping trip. EVERY meaningless piece of gossip and lawn decor. I didn't mind the knitting details (it's kinda expected, considering the entire thing revolves around a knitting club), but still. By the end I was begging the book to end, and it just kept adding more and more details that felt more useless by the word.
- I swear the characters in this book jump to the wildest conclusions based off minimal evidence. I have a hunch that's par for the course when it comes to cozy mysteries, but yikes. They would glimpse somebody in passing and make the most insane conclusions about who they are, what their lives are like, and what their connection to the murder might be.
- Speaking of conclusions, I gotta admit that the final unveiling of the killer and their motivations felt...lacklustre. Mostly the fact that they confessed everything so easily, and once they were caught they didn't even bother fighting back or trying to claim their innocence. It was a whole lot of "Oh no! I'm caught! I was ready to commit murders, but now that I'm hitting a setback I'll just go quietly to jail! Oh no!" and I wasn't down for that.
Overall:
This was fine. It was a fun and short read that had a bit of a lacklustre ending and way too much description of needless things, but it was an enjoyable enough palate cleanser and return to the world of audiobooks.
Anyway, let's get into...
The Good:
- The concept was pretty cute, and though it was a fairly silly plot the story was still entertaining in a cozy way--which was the point, considering the genre. While not my normal cup of tea, I could definitely see the appeal of a cute plot like this. It felt a bit like watching a Lifetime movie--sure, it's not the best thing out there, but it's a pleasant enough diversion.
- As a cat lover myself, I enjoyed the "how to be adopted by a cat" subplot.
- The narrator of the audiobook was pretty good. I liked her narration.
The Not So Good:
- Holy crap. The sheer amount of extraneous, unnecessary details in this book was absolutely INSANE.
EVERY sandwich made. EVERY grocery shopping trip. EVERY meaningless piece of gossip and lawn decor. I didn't mind the knitting details (it's kinda expected, considering the entire thing revolves around a knitting club), but still. By the end I was begging the book to end, and it just kept adding more and more details that felt more useless by the word.
- I swear the characters in this book jump to the wildest conclusions based off minimal evidence. I have a hunch that's par for the course when it comes to cozy mysteries, but yikes. They would glimpse somebody in passing and make the most insane conclusions about who they are, what their lives are like, and what their connection to the murder might be.
- Speaking of conclusions, I gotta admit that the final unveiling of the killer and their motivations felt...lacklustre. Mostly the fact that they confessed everything so easily, and once they were caught they didn't even bother fighting back or trying to claim their innocence. It was a whole lot of "Oh no! I'm caught! I was ready to commit murders, but now that I'm hitting a setback I'll just go quietly to jail! Oh no!" and I wasn't down for that.
Overall:
This was fine. It was a fun and short read that had a bit of a lacklustre ending and way too much description of needless things, but it was an enjoyable enough palate cleanser and return to the world of audiobooks.
crackingspines37's review
lighthearted
mysterious
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
2.75
mariekew's review against another edition
adventurous
funny
lighthearted
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
3.5
suzireads11's review against another edition
3.0
Cute cozy mystery. Knittng and mystery make a fun read.