A Killer Stitch

March 5, 2007
When womanizing Derek Cooper, a Fort Collins, Colo., rancher, is killed by a blow to the head near the start of Sefton's entertaining if flawed fourth knitting mystery (after 2006's A Deadly Yarn
), her first in hardcover, for once it looks as if knitter-cum-accountant-cum-sleuth Kelly Flynn, who doesn't know the deceased, won't get involved. But it turns out that one of Kelly's pals is close friends with a prime suspect, Cooper's ex, and Kelly offers her detecting skills in an attempt to track down the real killer. Readers will enjoy visiting with Kelly and her knitting buddies, who, in their carefree way, resemble the cast of Friends
. Unfortunately, awkward dialogue, such as a conversation about whether Kelly is comfortable kissing her boyfriend, strikes a false note. Still, knitting devotees will enjoy this crafty cozy.

April 30, 2007
At the start of bestseller Hamilton’s solid 15th adventure to star vampire hunter Anita Blake, Malcolm, the priggish head of the Church of the Eternal Life (the vampire church), is so desperate for help in dealing with the Harlequin, a troop of vampire enforcers and spies so feared vampires are forbidden to speak its name, he turns to those he considers sinful and corrupt—Anita and her sweetie, Jean-Claude, St. Louis’s Master of the City. The Harlequin may have targeted Anita and the powerful triumvirate she has forged with Jean-Claude and Richard Zeeman (aka Ulfric of the werewolves). According to the rules, the Harlequin must make contact through delivery of a mask—white to indicate they are watching, red for pain, black for death. Anita receives a white mask, but the members of the Harlequin aren’t playing by the rules. Shorter and more tightly structured than the previous entry in the series, Danse Macabre (2006), Hamilton’s latest should prove more satisfying to longtime fans with its straightforward supernatural politics and steamy (but not extreme) sex.

May 1, 2007
When a womanizing Colorado rancher is murdered and a friend of Kelly Flynn's ("A Good Yarn") is suspected, Kelly pokes around and as usual finds danger. As light and fluffy as one of Kelly's balls of yarns, this fourth entry in Sefton's knitting series marks the author's hardcover debut. Readers may enjoy reading the book almost as much as they'll delight in knitting the Cable Knit Scarf (the pattern is provided here). For cozy and knitting fans. Sefton lives in Colorado.

Copyright 2007 Library Journal, LLC Used with permission.