Monday, March 9, 2009

Patterns in the Sand-Sally Goldenbaum

Patterns in the Sand
Sally Goldenbaum
Obsidian, May 2009, $ $23.95
ISBN: 0451227034

Sea Harbor, Massachusetts is a place where people from all fields of art live and work. The village has its own artists’ colony and the serenity has enabled many residents to get their creative juices flowing. Late at night fiber artist Willow Adams comes to town with no place to sleep. She breaks into the Seaside Knitters Studio falling asleep at the window facing the street.

The police arrive, but the store’s owner Izzy Chambers refuses to file any charges. Willow tells her and Seaside Knitters Nell, Cass and Birdie that she came to see them to discuss her fiber art. She also wants to meet her biological father Aiden Peabody who allegedly deserted her mother before she was born. However before father and daughter meet, Aiden is found dead, a poison victim. As the main benefactor of Aiden’s will as well as desertion issues, she is the prime suspect of the police. However, the Seaside Knitters club members think otherwise and encouraging one another they plan to prove she is innocent by finding the real killer one stitch at a time.

The second Seaside Knitters amateur sleuth tale (see DEATH BY CASHMERE) is an exciting tight knit whodunit that emphasizes life in a small Massachusetts town in which art is the focus of the community. Told by Nell, the ambience of the art colonies and the tension of the investigation make for a fine one sitting read. Similar in tone and location to Anne Canadeo’s WHILE MY PRETTY ONE KNITS, Sally Goldenbaum entertains with this strong thriller the knitting mystery crowd; who have a high quality bar set by Monica Ferris’ Minnesota Crewel World and Maggie Sefton’s Colorado House of Lambspun.

Harriet Klausner

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