Nimble Needle #1
One Sharp Stitch is the first of the Nimble Needle Mysteries by Allie Pleiter. Readers are taken to Gwen Lake, outside of Asheville, North Carolina, with Shelby Phillips. Having just lost her job as well as a possible relationship, Shelby is headed home for a break from her life and to help her mother out at her needlepoint shop, the Nimble Needle. Her parents are finally taking a vacation in their RV. Shelby will only be minding the shop for a month, as she keeps reminding her parents and her perfectionist sister, Jessica. There’s also a trunk show coming up for local vendors, and Shelby will have to work with an old classmate, Kat Katsaros, who now makes needlework scissors — very artsy and expensive needlework scissors. Kat also sharpens blades of all kinds in a van that she happily uses to transport her scissors and crafts.
Things start off awkwardly between Shelby and Kat, as Kat had hoped to be the one taking over the Nimble Needle. They are able to at least speak about the trunk show and it seems things will go smoothly, however, the show is more than ruined when Shelby comes across Kat’s body. Chief Evan Talon and the police rule the death an accident, blaming Kat’s sharpening equipment. That explanation does not sit well with Shelby as something about Kat’s death seems more than an accident. Thanks to Kat’s brother giving her access to Kat’s things and apartment, so that Shelby can still sell some of her scissors, she’s had ample opportunity to do some amateur sleuthing of her own. Being a graphic designer doesn’t really lend well to finding and putting together clues, but luckily, there are plenty of old and new friends in Gwen Lake that can help her put things together. The most important part is to not to tell her Mom, as under no circumstances does Shelby or her sister want to ruin their parent’s trip. That doesn’t stop Shelby and friends from trying to get Kat justice, and the detecting is on.
One Sharp Stitch is a mystery I suggest for readers that enjoy a cozy that focusing on a sleuth that is determined to seek justice, but is also trying to find themselves. Shelby’s life was completely upended and, while she is insistent and determined that her running the Nimble Needle is temporary, it does seem to suit her. She gets along with the long-term customers such as the NYAG, or “not your average grannies,” who meet to needlepoint and gossip and even manage to pull some young men into the shop to give needlepointing a shot. Shelby’s earnest and honest heart will draw readers in and as she tries to do right by Kat. Her own sense of justice drives her forward even as she is unsure exactly how to go about this whole investigation thing. Shelby might not be sure that Gwen Lake is the right fit for her long term, but it really seems to be a place where she fits in well and that needs her. – Carla Schantz