Threadbare

Finished February 8

Threadbare by Monica Ferris

This novel is part of the Needlecraft Mystery series. The stories are set around the character Betsy Devonshire and her needlework shop Crewel World on the shores of Lake Minnetonka. 

This novel begins with the discovery of a body in an alley. The body is that of a homeless woman, and although it appears to be one of exposure following unconsciousness, the local police chief thinks that there is something off about it. One of Betsy's customers is related to the woman and is concerned that she is being looked at as a suspect, so she asks Betsy to investigate. When a second homeless woman is found dead, it looks more suspicious, and that woman also has a connection to one of Betsy's customers. 

As Betsy begins to dig into the women's personal lives and pasts, she uncovers some information that may be uncomfortable for her customers. Her investigation also takes her to Fargo, North Dakota, and she stops in at the stitching store Nordic Needle, a real-life store brought into this story briefly. I liked that touch. 

Betsy is a diligent sleuth, trying to follow every loose end. I appreciated seeing the thread of the homeless develop through this story, and the issues that women of low income have when it comes to housing. The characters that were homeless here were treated with respect by the author. 

As always with this series, a pattern is included at the back of the book. In this case, it is a beginner Hardanger pattern.