The Cat, the Lady, and the Liar

Finished October 25

The Cat, the Lady and the Liar by Leann Sweeney

This is a book in the Cats in Trouble mystery series. Jillian Hart is a quilter who specializes in quilts for or featuring cats. She is also involved in a local cat rescue in her town of Mercy, South Carolina. She has been asked by the rescue director to discreetly look into the owner of a cat recently found near a highway. The owner is a wealthy woman in the neighbouring town of Woodcrest, Ritaestelle Longworth. When Jillian goes to Ritaestelle's house and talks to her assistant, she finds that things are not right, and when Ritaestelle shows up a Jillian's house later that same day looking for help, Jillian is only too happy to assist. 

Both women are old school polite, following established social protocols for behaviour and expectations. They are also both good hostesses and good women at heart and want to do what's right by the people around them. Jillian is a relatively recent widow, who is in the early stages of a new relationship with a man who is also a security specialist. Ritaestelle lives with two cousins, her sister-in-law, and her nephew and has a multitude of ties to her community. With rumours circulating about her mental state, and possible shoplifting and minor theft charges placed against her, Ritaestelle is looking to clear her name, and find out who might be setting her up and why. Taking refuge at Jillian's house for a time, along with her cat Isis, she cooperates fully with Jillian to figure it out. 

A cosy mystery with lots of cats present and showing their unique personalities. 

The Christmas Boutique

Finished July 20

The Christmas Boutique by Jennifer Chiaverini

I've read other books by this author, but none in this series before, so I found it helpful that there was a little introduction to each of the featured characters that gave me some background, but not so much that a regular reader of the series would find it repetitive. 

The novel moves through several narrators with each in their own well-labeled section and only overlap when it was needed for perspective. For each of these sections, there is background that relates to what is happening in the present, giving us insights into character, circumstances, and motivations. 

The time period covered here is quite short, only a few days, but a lot happens. As the book opens it is a beautiful winter day, but a heavy storm is predicted, so people are either delaying going out to do things until the storm is over and things are cleared up, or they are  trying to get everything they need done as quickly as they can. Elm Creek Quilts is in their slow season and one of the staff has been pulled away by other needs, causing some friction. In the town, things are gearing up for the annual Christmas Boutique, run by one of the local churches and benefiting a local charity. When the storm moves through, it damages the regular venue for this event and Elm Creek is approached as an alternate, giving a lot of preparation to do in a short time frame and we see the role that each of the characters plays. 

I enjoyed this brief taste of life in this small town and a glimpse of the characters, giving me a sense of which ones interest me more and which ones less. I'd say it is a good taster for the series.

For those who quilt, there is a lot of description of various quilting patterns as well. 

Material Visions

Finished August 10
Material Visions: A Gallery of Miniature Art Quilts by Stampington & Company

This is a glorious collection of art quilts, featuring over ninety quilts from forty artists. Most of the artists are American, but there are a couple from Australia too. The materials used include traditional quilting materials as well as other fibres, found objects, paper, and natural materials.
A few of the artists have multi-page coverage, where they discuss their inspirations and how they work to create their works.
Others have short descriptions of the quilt, the materials and methods involved. Each quilt includes at least one photography and sometimes closeup images as well.
I found myself inspired by these pieces and I kept thinking "Oh, I can do something like that, but with this instead..." as I read my way through it.
An absolute delight to see how many different ways artists can make their visions happen.

Stitches to Savor

Finished November 16
Stitches to Savor: a Celebration of Designs by Sue Spargo

This book is a delight of ideas, featuring Spargo's folk art quilts, full of colour, embellishments, textures, and fun details.
There are not a lot of words here, as the pictures speak for themselves, The book includes twelve quilts, with multiple pictures for each, including close-ups of different areas of the quilt and one of each quilt in its entirety. The quilts included here are as follows.
* African Days: a house surrounded by animals, plants, and proverbes
* Imperial Blooms: three rows of three flowers, all different and colourful
* Circle Play 2: a creamy textured background with ten rows of seven circles, all different
* Magnolia: a house, surrounded by birds and flowers
* Travel Journal: A tree on a circle, surrounded by a ring of living creatures and country names
* Coffee Cups: a multi-textured background with four rows of three cups, some with saucers.
* Flower Pot: a vase with many different flowers and greenery surrounded by a border of coloured rectangles
* Bird Dance: six rows of five birds, all different, on subtly different squares, bordered by a vine with round fruits
* Earth 'n Twig: a stylized tree with six blooming branches, ringed by a flowering vine, birds, and rabbits
* Silk Road: A colourful flower with four flowering shoots, bordered by a green flowering vine
* Leaf Play: seven rows of eight teardrop-shaped leaves, each different, all on a nubby background
* My Tree of Life: a multi-branched tree, covered with leaves, berries, and birds, with dogs below, a stream with fish below that, all bordered by brown, then an outer border of green with a flowering vine with butterflies.
The quilts are sewn by a variety of stitchers, credited at the back of the book, some of which have patterns available for them.
A perfect book for curling up with a cup of tea.