Pamela Paterson and her Knit and Nibble club must clear the name of one of their knitters when he’s accused of murdering the mayor . . . The trees in Arborville, New Jersey, have started sporting sweaters. Part of the trend of public knitting art? Not exactly. An anonymous activist has been wrapping trunks in yarn to cover red X’s that mark certain trees for removal by the town so they don’t … the town so they don’t interfere with power lines. When the town’s mayor—who supports cutting down the trees—is murdered, Pamela wonders if the tree hugger committed homicide to prevent arborcide. A knitter is arrested, but it’s one of Knit and Nibble’s own—the harmless Roland DeCamp, who was seen arguing with the mayor. Pamela is sure the police are barking up the wrong tree. With the help of her reporter friend Bettina, she branches off on her own investigation to root out the real killer . . .
Knitting tips and delicious recipe included!
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Dollycas’s Thoughts
The Knit and Nibblers are back and trying to figure out who is wrapping tree trunks in knit scarves to cover up the red x’s designated the trees to be destroyed to protect the power lines above. The town’s mayor supports the project and when he is murdered Pamela wonders if the tree hugger is responsible. But the police arrest fellow knitter Rolland DeCamp because he was witnessed arguing with the mayor. Pamela and Bettina cast on a wider net of suspects and do their best to knit together the clues to purl the right culprit behind bars.
We follow Pamela through her daily life as she works from home as an editor for “Fiber Craft Magazine,” and does a little sleuthing on the side with friend, neighbor, and yarn and nibbler Bettina. Bettina is very pushy trying to get Pamela to date another neighbor but Pamela keeps putting her off. She is just not interested. I am surprised it hasn’t caused more strain in their friendship. It seems that issue has wrapped in this installment and that makes me very happy.
I do enjoy Ms. Ehrhart’s descriptive writing style. She tells the story in a way that brings the reader right into each scene, from her home office with her working on such interesting sounding articles, to the items being knit and the food being eaten. I love the camaraderie between the characters and the way they support each other. The conversations are realistic and you can tell they truly care about each other.
The mystery is on the light side and I did figure it out early in the story but all the drama and daily life kept me entertained right up to the final word. These are characters I love visiting and am looking forward to the next book.
A Fatal Yarn is a great addition to this series. Fix yourself something to nibble on and enjoy.
Pamela and Bettina are an amazing duo. I hope I find a friendship like that some day. The bond of the knit and knibble group is great, even tho they are different they always go to bat for each other. The story is realistic. I can see this actually happening in a small town. It’s never a dull moment with Pamela. I absolutely love that she works from home. Obviously the book would not be the same if she worked in an office. It gives her more freedom. With the current situation going on in the world now, it’s cool to see. (Even tho it’s not because of covid in the book) It is fun that the book has Easter involved. It’s not a holiday written about too often so thats fun too.. As always,, I can’t wait to see what happens next!
Arborville’s trees have all been wrapped in knitted sweaters. They all seem to be hiding the fact that all of the trees have been marked for being taken down. When the pro-cutting-down-trees mayor is found dead and a fellow Knit & Nibble member is arrested, Pamela and her best friend Bettina are determined to find the real killer.
This was a fun addition to the series. I loved seeing all of the members of Knit & Nibble join together to help one of their members. I’m loving Pamela and Bettina. I’m not happy about what is going on with Richard but I guess at least something is settled, right? I’m really loving these characters and I’m excited to see what’s next.
very interesting and excellent characters!
Very disappointing. It doesn’t have any of the freshness of the earlier books. Roland is an interesting and quirky character who is accused of murder, but he hardly appears in the book. There is entirely too much focus on “wedding china” and other food related items (the characters are always shopping or eating) and not enough focus on knitting or the murders. Then suddenly it ended.
This was top-notch! I love cozy mysteries and combined with crafters they’re the best read!
Although I don’t knit, I wanted to join Pamela and Bettina at the Knit and Nibble meetings!
The lengthy descriptions of EVERYTHING the characters wore and ate (including the place settings) about did me in. I skipped more than I read.
just a fun book
A Fatal Yarn by Peggy Ehrhart has Pamela Paterson surprised to see trees sporting knitted creations in Arborville, New Jersey. It seems someone is trying to save trees that are scheduled to be cut down with the mayor’s approval. Then the mayor is found dead in his kitchen and Roland DeCamp, a Knit & Nibble member, is arrested for the crime. Pamela and Bettina team up to clear Roland and find the true killer. A Fatal Yarn is the 5th A Knit and Nibble Mystery and it can be read on its own. I like the characters in the story and the descriptions of the yarn plus their knitting projects. I did find the endless details of how they make coffee and cook or bake various items to be tiring. Every single time that Pamela made coffee, it is described in detail. Pamela’s daily routine is also written about (articles she edited, what she wore, what she ate and drank). The focus of A Fatal Yarn is on the people and their lives instead of the mystery. The mystery is straightforward with a dead guy, a few suspects, and misdirection. Identifying the killer was a snap. I wish the mystery had been as interesting as the knitted wraps around the trees. If you prefer your cozy mysteries to have more cozy than mystery, than A Fatal Yarn is right up your alley. A Fatal Yarn is a lighthearted tale with trembling trees, nifty knitted creations, copious quantities of coffee, tasty treats, and a murdered mayor.
This is the kind of cozy I find perfect on a cold, rainy day. I can barely manage knit one, purl two but that doesn’t stop me from wanting to spend some of my reading time with the lovely group of knitters that comprise the Knit & Nibble group. I bet they could get me to at least knit a nice scarf. Solving the occasional crime would be a nice addition. This time, in book #5, something is very odd outside on a tree. Somebody is putting sweaters on trees. Why would a tree need a sweater? Well, there is a group of tree huggers in town trying to stop the mayor et al from cutting them down and the sweaters cover up the red X’s marking each doomed tree. Would one of them be upset enough with local plans to murder the mayor? When the police turn their investigation in the direction of a member of the Knit and Nibble group, Being absolutely certain that their friend Rolland DeCamp had nothing to do with the crime, Pamela and her friend Bettina set out to find the real killer and try not to become the killer’s next target.
A nice cast of characters, a good puzzle and crafts plus a yummy recipe at the end makes for a satisfying mystery.
Meet Bettina and Pamela. Best friends, neighbours, and by happenstance partners in sleuthing. When Mayor Diefenbach is murdered and their friend Roland arrested, the ladies know they can’t leave it up to Detective Clayborn. While Roland may be the easy suspect, they believe he’s not the right one. They have a hunch, but a hunch won’t be enough to get Clayborn off Roland’s case!
Ehrhart has crafted an excellent tale, that moves quickly along, grabbing your interest with truly likeable characters, and firmly keeps it till the very last page. This is my first meeting of the Knit & Nibble club, I’ll definitely be joining them again.
[Many thanks to NetGalley / Kensington, and the author for the opportunity to read an Advance Reader Copy of this book. The opinions expressed in this review are entirely my own.]