THE FIRST BOOK IN THE ALL-NEW “MATERIAL WITNESS” MYSTERY SERIES
With her career as a dress designer in shreds, Polyester Monroe is looking forward to a fresh start. But as it all unfolds, the pattern to a new beginning looks a lot like murder.
When Poly Monroe was little, she loved playing in her family’s textile store. But after a fatal family tragedy, Land of A Thousand Fabrics was boarded up and Poly never expected to see the inside again. Now, as inheritor of the long-shuttered shop, she’s ready to restore the family business. However her two new kittens, Pins and Needles, aren’t the ones causing a snag in her plans…
Not everyone wants Poly back in San Ladrón, especially a powerful local developer pressuring her to sell—and leave town fast. But even when the threats turn deadly, she’s not ready to bolt. Because Poly is beginning to suspect that the murder behind the shop is tied to a mystery in her family’s unsettled past that she’s determined to solve…before her own life is left hanging by a thread.
INCLUDES A CRAFT PROJECT
Fabric
stores are like bookstores to me. I can’t walk into one and not come out with a
package. There are no better places to fritter away time! So when the idea of a
cozy mystery series set in a fabric shop came to mind, I knew it was the
perfect way to combine two passions. I imagined an old fabric store like the
one I used to play in, one that had been around since the fifties. What
treasures might be hidden inside: dusty vintage fabrics in a stockroom, new old
stock of buttons, pattern books from decades past, forgotten packages of bias
tape, or thick bolts of polyester double knit? Or maybe a hint of an unsolved
mystery?
SUEDE TO
REST, the first book in the Material Witness Mystery Series, opens with Polyester
Monroe (so named because she was born inside of the store, on a bed of
polyester!) standing in front of the fabric store that she’s inherited. What
should be a simple transaction involving her signature on a couple of documents
gets complicated when Poly decides to go inside and experience the world where
she grew up one last time. She doesn’t expect to feel so connected to the
store, especially since she doesn’t feel nearly that connected to the job she
holds in Los Angeles. She also doesn’t expect to find a dead body in the
parking lot the day after she arrives. It seems Poly has a choice: stay in San Ladrón and learn
the truth about the small town’s secrets, or sign away her ownership of the
store and go back to life as she knows it.
I
sometimes think there is a part of all of us that wants a chance to get away
from our everyday life. Inheriting the fabric store is a wakeup call for Poly.
It throws her life into disarray and makes her think about whether or not her
life is headed the right direction—and question what exactly is the “right”
direction for her. Not that long ago, I
had my own wakeup call and asked myself the same questions. That’s when I
changed career paths and moved from Texas to California (where SUEDE TO REST is
set). The move was scary--especially for someone who likes to plan everything!
I could have stayed where I was, and I could have moved back to Pennsylvania,
where I’m from. Instead, I chose the unknown door number three. The move
brought new opportunities to my life and, while I haven’t had to contend with
any dead bodies, I did think a lot about that somewhat spontaneous decision
when writing Poly’s story. So far, things have worked out pretty well for me.
I wonder
how they’ll turn out for Poly?
The one thing that I loved the most about the story, is the fact that while it's set in southern California (a seemingly non-cozy place...), the author does a tremendous job of capturing a small-town setting in an unlikely place. It was such a pleasant experience!
Overall, it's a wonderful start to a very promising series, and I can't wait for book number 2!
Rating: 5 stars
I received a copy of this book from the publisher in exchange for an honest review. All conclusions reached are my own.
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