Welcome Betty Hechtman!

When I started writing, I began noticing everything with the idea that someday I might want to include it in something.  I was only a kid at the time and the noticing had to do with checking out a  loaf shaped rural mail box and spending a long time looking at an irrigation ditch that had a tiny waterfall just the right size for a couple of fairies to play in.  I used those two details in the first story I ever wrote when I was eleven.

 

It’s a lot of years later and the habit has stuck.

 

My crochet mystery series takes place in the area of Southern California where I live, so you I pay careful attention to everything, starting with my own backyard (which happens also to be my character Molly Pink’s).  So every morning when I look out through my kitchen windows, I take in the exact color of the sky.  Is it the deep cloudless blue when it’s very dry and the air feels like silk?  Or is that lumpy sort of angry gray that means rain?  I look at the clouds and decide if they are thick mounds that remind me of whipped cream that’s been beaten almost to the point of turning into butter or if they are mere wisps that seem to have been smeared across the sky.

 

When I checked the flower beds this morning, the dirt was black and still damp from the rain we had a few days ago.  With the colder weather, the carnations have come back to life and have a few brightly colored spicy scented blooms.  Beyond, the orange trees are covered with two kinds of fruit.  There are a few of the very ripe oranges left that are so sweet and juicy just waiting to be eaten.    The rest are the new crop, more green than pale orange and hard to the touch.

 

I frequently go walking in the Santa Monica mountains and have set scenes in my books up there.  It affects the way I experience the walk.  I look and smell and feel everything as if I’m going to write about it.  How to find the right words to describe the sandy colored rocky outcroppings.  Or the way the air smells of wild sage and a bushy tree whose shiny green leaves have a pungent fragrance .  Or the way a red tailed hawk, almost eye level with me, rides the wind.  Or the way the search helicopter flew along the side of the mountains looking for someone and later landed not far away from me, sending out a rush of turbulent air and rocks.

 

The locale of my yarn retreat series is the Monterey Peninsula which is either in  Northern California or on the Central Coast depending on who you talk to.  Personally, I consider it Northern California. Cadbury by the Sea is the fictitious town where the books take place and is really Pacific Grove with a little Carmel thrown in.  It is such distinctive area, I want to capture all that makes it special and put it into the books.  So, when I go up there, I really look at the Monterey cypress trees and the way the wind gives the foliage a unique horizontal shape.  I notice that the air around the real version of the hotel and conference center where the retreats are held always smells of wood smoke, but then it’s is always fireplace weather there. 

 

I spend time walking along the beach and note how it goes from white silky sand to piles of jagged rocks with danger signs posted nearby.  As the waves roll in, I look at the color of the water which is really sea foam green like the crayon. 

 

When it comes to the yarn part, I focus on the way crochet and knitting make me feel.  How my hook moving through some yarn takes me to a calm place and I am  unbothered by the bumps and jiggles of the plane I’m on as it goes through choppy air.

 

It’s not just scenery and stitches that I pay close attention to.  People, too.  I’ll let you in on a secret.  I use a lot of the people from my gym as characters.  While the rest of the class is zoned out doing aerobics, I’m watching the women in the mirror.  I look for what is distinctive about them and then make up my own backstory.  One woman comes to mind.  There was something about her placid expression and choice of exercise clothes that struck me.  Most of the other women wear some kind of stretchy stuff, but she had on regular long shorts, a well worn tee shirt and instead of the high tech sports shoes most of the group had, she wore old white Keds.  I imagined her as one of those salt of the earth sort of people.  The kind who’d helped out at PTA bake sales and chaperoned Girl Scout trips.  Her hair had some gray streaks and my version of her had her kids grown.  But what if her husband had left her and was marrying someone else?  What would that feel like from the inside. And suppose her kids are torn between going to the wedding and siding with her..  It went on from there. The funny part is, I have no idea if any of it could be true or even what her name is.  And I’ll never find out because she stopped coming to the gym, but she has become a continuing character in my books.

 

Thanks to writing nothing just goes by me unnoticed.  The color of the sky when there is a forest fire, the way moon looks so big when it is close to the horizon, the fragrance and taste of tea with rose petals mixed in, and on and on.  You could say I that I truly do stop and smell the roses and then stick it in a book..

 

 

Betty Hechtman writes two national best selling mystery series for Berkley Prime Crime.  Her Crochet series features Molly Pink and the Tarzana Hookers, who get tangled up in murderers and yarn. For Better or Worsted, the eighth in the Crochet Series is her November release.   If Hooks Could Kill, the seventh in the series, also just came out in a paperback edition.  Yarn to Go is the first book in the  Yarn Retreat Series which follows Casey Feldstein, a dessert chef, who puts on a knitting retreat at a slightly sinister hotel and conference center on the Monterey Peninsula.  All the books include recipes and patterns.   In addition she has written a middle grade mystery Blue Schwartz and Nefertiti’s Necklace that will be re-released as an e-book in December.  For more information or to read excerpts go to www.BettyHechtman.com.  Betty blogs on www.Killerhobbies.blogspot.com on Fridays. Connect with Betty on Facebook and Twitter.

 

 

Cozy Monday -- Two New Series!

Final Sentence (Cookbook Nook Mystery #1) by Daryl Wood Gerber (Berkley Prime Crime mass market, 2 July 2013).

After the accidental death of her husband, Jenna Hart leaves the pressure-cooker world of advertising to join her Aunt Vera in opening a cookbook store and café in the seaside village of Crysta Cove, California.  Jenna plans a splashy grand opening, featuring a signing by her college roommate Desirée Devine, now a famous chef.  As she remembers, Desirée's life is fraught with drama; as soon as she parks her two motor homes outside the Cookbook Nook, she argues with a neighboring store owner, as well as her own staff. 

Later, that evening, Jenna is walking on the beach outside her cottage, admiring the sand sculptures left over from a competition, when she trips over one and realizes that under the sculpture of a mermaid is a real body.  And the body belongs to Desirée!  Because there was a rumor that Desirée had been having an affair with her old friend's late husband, Jenna comes under suspicion. 

The fear of being arrested for a crime she didn't commit, on top of the stress of relocating  and opening a new business, as well as continuing to grieve for her husband, turns Jenna into an emotional wreck.  But she's still determined to prove her innocence.

The story's charming location and appealing characters  hold promise for an engaging new series! 


Yarn to Go (Yarn Retreat Mystery #1) by Betty Hechtman (Berkley Prime Crime mass market, 2 July 2013).

Casey Feldstein has tried on several professions, but hasn't been able to find one that suits her.  So when her aunt, retired actress Joan Stone, invites her to spend some time in Cadbury-by-the-Sea in Northern Califonia, Casey eagerly leaves  her nagging parents and boring boyfriend behind in Chicago.

But Joan is killed in a hit-and-run just a few months later, leaving everything to her niece.  Overwhelmed, Casey continues to live in Joan's guest house, avoids going into Joan's home, and tries to figure out what to do.  Joan ran a craft-retreat business, using a nearby resort hotel as a location, but Casey provides baked goods to several establishments in town. 

When she learns that Joan still had a knitting retreat booked, her first thought is to cancel, but there's no way she'll be able to refund all the registration fees, Casey decides to go through with it, despite knowing nothing about the craft.  She even thinks it's going well until one of Joan's "regulars" is found murdered in her room. 

Feeling somehow responsible, Casey tries to figure out what happened, and discovers that the situation is much more complex than it seemed. 

Casey is easy to identify with:  who hasn't, at some point in life, been perplexed about the future? stories.  But, determined to learn what's right for her, she admirably stands up to pressure from both her parents and her former beau. 

This is a worthy addition to the craft mystery subgenre, and I look forward to further installments in this series.


FTC Full Disclosure: My thanks to the publisher for the review copies.

TGIF

Last Wool and Testament (Haunted Yarn Shop Mystery #1) by Molly MacRae (Obsidian mass market paperback, 4 September 2012).

The TGIF in this case is "Thank Goodness It's Fiber", the moniker of the fiber artists who meet regularly at The Weaver's Cat, the charming shop in Blue Plum, Virginia, now owned by Kath Rutledge. 

A fiber expert in her own right, Kath inherited the shop from her grandmother Ivy McLellan, who died unexpectedly of natural causes.  But Kath soon discovers that her beloved grandmother is not universally loved in the small town.  Some people, including Deputy Cole Dunbar, believe that Ivy was responsible for the death of Emmett Cobb, the unpleasant elderly caretaker of a nearby living history homestead.

Of course, Kath is certain that Ivy was incapable of murder, and determines to prove it.  But she's hampered by not knowing Blue Plum and its residents very well.  Luckily, the members of the TGIF group, who know many of the town's secrets, step up to help her with the task.

There are many, many books being published these days.   Whether self-published or not, some of the stuff that's being released is of questionable quality.  I must admit that when I picked up this book, I wasn't expecting much.

But I was pleasantly surprised.  It's well-written, and the characters (even the "types") are believable, as is the plot.  In fact, it was so absorbing I finished it in one afternoon.  I wish more of the review books I read were as enjoyable.  I'm looking forward to the next book in the series, due in the summer of 2013.




FTC Full Disclosure: Many thanks to the publisher, who sent me a copy of the book for review purposes.

Just finished reading...

A Fatal Fleece (Seaside Knitters #6) by Sally Goldenbaum.

It's too bad that Sea Harbor, Massachusetts is a fictional town. If it were real, I'd spend time there every summer and hang out with the Seaside Knitters group.

In this installment of the charming series, the elderly Birdie Favazza discovers that she has a granddaughter she knew nothing about. Actually a step-granddaughter, Gabby is the grandchild of Birdy's third husband Joseph Marietti. They are introduced by Joseph's younger brother Nicholas, who brings her to visit and then, due to an emergency, ends up leaving her with his sister-in-law while he rushes off to deal with it.

Gabby turns out to be a charming 10-year-old with a knack for crochet. She's even designed a knit cap (known in Canada as a touque and in the US as a beanie, which I've always thought of as a striped hat with a propeller on it). But, I digress.

Gabby captivates the her grandmother, the Seaside Knitters and Birdie's housekeeper, Ella and chauffeur, Harold. On her first night in Sea Harbor, when Birdy goes to the Knitters' meeting, Gabby stays with Ella and Harold. Early in the evening, Birdy receives a call from Ella telling her that Gabby's gone. A typical pre-teen, Gabby doesn't think to tell them she's gone on a bike ride to explore the town. She's finally found, visiting with a misanthropic elderly fisherman known as Finnegan. Since the death of his wife, Finnegan has isolated himself and let his house and property fall apart. The only person he occasionally converses with is lobsterwoman Cass Halloran, who regularly brings him food.

But when Finnegan is found dead near his own home, wearing a vest that Cass knit for him, the young woman becomes the prime suspect. Of course, the Seaside Knitters have to prove Cass's innocence, which is complicated by the presence of a bright and curious ten-year-old.

As usual, the Knitters eat well, both at home, at their meetings, and at local restaurants. Food and drink are described in detail, which means the reader craves good food and wine while reading. Yarn and knitting projects are described in  tasty terms like  luscious and mouthwatering.

Goldenbaum includes one knitting pattern (for a cardigan that Nell makes for Gabby), but there are more on her website, as well as recipes for some of the tantalizing meals she describes.








FTC Full Disclosure: Many thanks to the publisher for providing a copy of the book for me to review.

Just finished reading...

Sunrise on Cedar Key by Terri Dulong.*

The human protagonist (the real main character is Cedar Key, Florida) of the third novel in the Cedar Key series is Grace Stone.
We've met her before: she's the owner of the village's coffee shop, Coffee, Tea and Thee. This story begins with Grace at the home of her Aunt Maude in Brunswick, where they are packing up for Maude's move to Cedar Key.

Just before the movers arrive to load up the truck, Grace receives a call from the Cedar Key fire chief, telling her that the building containing her shop and apartment has burnt down.

Grace is, of course, devastated. Cedar Key was where she'd gone to get a fresh start after the heartbreaking end of a long-term relationship. Now, she'll have to start over again, with little more than the clothes on her back.

Luckily, her Aunt Maude is moving to Cedar Key, where she's purchased a home. Maude invites Grace to live in her upstairs apartment while she figures out what she'll do.

This is a charming addition to the tales of Cedar Key. Focussing on a different character in each novel while continuing the stories of the others in the background is not an unusual technique, but Dulong uses it skilfully, especially the concept of coming to terms with one's past in order to move on.

*Many thanks to the author for the Advanced Reading Copy. I've done my best to write an impartial review.

Just finished reading...

The Wedding Shawl by Sally Goldenbaum.*

In the fifth of the Seaside Knitters series the women are preparing for Izzy and Sam's wedding, to be held in Nell and Ben's garden, which is being given a face lift for the occasion. Meanwhile, Nell and her friends are knitting a shawl for Izzy to wear on her wedding day.

The planning is marred by the death of Tiffany Ciccolo, the stylist who was to do the hair and makeup for the women in the wedding party. Coincidentally, Tiffany's best friend in high school, Harmony Farrow, had been killed on their graduation night 15 years earlier, and the case had never been solved.

Another connection between the two deaths was Andy Risso whose high school girlfriend had been Harmony, and who had been also been seeing Tiffany. Tiffany was obviously more serious about Andy than he was about her, and they were seen publicly arguing the day before she was killed.

Andy had been the chief suspect for Harmony's death, but his involvement couldn't be proven, so the case was shelved. Now, he's the chief suspect in Tiffany's death. Nell, Birdie and Cass are certain that he's innocent, and are determined to prove it before the wedding so it won't cast a pall on the happy day.

The relationship between Nell and Birdie is wonderful. The women have known each other for so long that they can almost read each other's mind. And their friendship has grown to include Nell's niece Izzy and her friend Cass. The descriptions of their social gatherings are envy-inducing, as is the way their respective menfolk look after them.

The book is written in a matter-of-fact style that makes the reader feel as if s/he's conversing with the narrator. Be prepared to want to snack while reading this book: their many feasts are described in mouthwatering detail.

*FTC Full Disclosure: Many thanks to the publisher, who sent me a copy of the book for review purposes.

Just finished reading...

Skein of the Crime by Maggie Sefton.*

It's hard to believe this is already the eighth of Sefton's Knitting Mysteries. The tone of this one is somewhat darker than previous books in the series.

Late one night, Kelly Flynn arrives home to find a young woman in her backyard. The girl doesn't respond to any of her questions, nor to those of the emergency personnel whom Kelly has called. The girl, Holly, a student at the local college, is under the influence of drugs, and turns out to be dating the son of one of Kelly's acquaintances from the knitting shop.

Holly appears to be turning her life around, but a few weeks later, she is found dead in nearly the same place. Though this overdose is ruled an accident, Kelly is not convinced that Holly returned to her old habits, and begins to ask questions. An accountant, her mind works methodically, and she soon begins to fit puzzle pieces together.

Meanwhile, Steve, Kelly's significant other, has been having financial troubles. He declined financial assistance from Kelly and other friends, and was forced to take a second job in Denver, so he stays there with a friend during the week. When he's home in Fort Connor, he always seems to be working or sleeping and their time together is not of the best quality.

Lambspun, the yarn store across the street from Kelly's home provides not only the backdrop for the story, but Kelly's surrogate family. The author's vivid descriptions of the lush fibers in the shop are plentiful and intoxicating.

It's evident that Ms. Sefton feels very strongly about the serious subject of drug abuse, and this book is one of the better ones in the series, though the ending, a cliff-hanger that obviously leaves an opening for a ninth in the series, is frustrating.

*Review copy received from the publisher.

Just finished reading...

The Beach Street Knitting Society and Yarn Club by Gil McNeil.

Jo McKenzie's husband is killed in a car crash, but she's not sure whether or not she should grieve, as he had told her he was leaving her just before he drove away. Meanwhile, she has two young sons to raise, and no real source of income.
Then her grandmother decides to retire, and asks Jo to take over her yarn shop, in the seaside town where Jo grew up. Eager to make a new start, Jo and the boys relocate to Broadgate Bay, where Jo sets about modernizing her granmother's musty yarn shop.

While she is updating displays, upgrading stock, and starting a Stitch'n'Bitch group, Jo makes friends with her new neighbors and reconnects with people from her childhood. Unintentionally, she also makes herself much stronger and more independent, which has a trickle-down effect on her sons.

This is British chick-lit at it's finest. I began to talk with a posh accent and each chocolate digestives with my tea. I thought the ending required a bit more closure though, but I see that this book was published in the UK in 2007 under the title Divas Don't Knit, and that a sequel entitled Needles and Pearls has been published there. I hope it makes its way across the Atlantic soon!

Knitting mysteries

Just by chance, I happened to pick up two knitting mysteries in a row. I spotted While My Pretty One Knits at Borders a few weeks ago, and while I was reading it, Patterns in the Sand came in for me at the library.

While My Pretty One Knits by Anne Canadeo.
This is the first in the Black Sheep Knitting Mystery series. Canadeo is the real name of Kate Little,author of several titles for various Harlequin series, as well as Katherine Spencer, ghost-writer of the Cape Light series by Thomas Kinkade.
The story revolves around five women who meet weekly at Maggie Messina's Back Sheep Knitting Shop in the fictional New England town of Plum Harbor. When the owner of a rival shop is killed, Maggie is suspected of the crime. Her four friends are certain that she is innocent, and set out to determine the identity of the real killer. This is an easy read, and I had picked out the culprit about halfway through the story. It's not badly written, but despite being nearly 25o pages long, it goes down as quickly as a ... Harlequin romance.

Patterns in the Sand by Sally Goldenbaum is the second in the Seaside Knitters series.
This series also takes place in Massachusetts, in the fictional town/artists colony of Sea Harbor.
Nell and Ben Endicott's weekly Friday barbecue is interrupted by the call from the police. The yarn store owned by their niece Izzy has an intruder, who appears to have died in the front window of the shop. Ben, Nell and Izzy arrive to find that the young woman nestled in the yarn displayed in the window was merely asleep. Izzy decides not to press charges when the young woman, a fiber-artist named Willow, explains that she has come at Izzy's invitation. After some conversation with her, Ben and Nell determine that she's not dangerous, so they allow Willow to stay in their guest house.
Though a little shy, Willow seems to adapt to Sea Harbor just fine. But the next day, a well-known artist with whom she was heard arguing is found dead. Of course
Willow is the main suspect, especially when a relationship between the two of them is discovered.
A well-written and enjoyable read, this is still a fairly predictable story, but I have to admit that I was surprised by the identity of the killer.

I look forward to trying the next installments of both series.

Wow! I finished something!

I've been seeing the same hairstylist for about 5 years now. I've followed her from salon to salon. But when she told me she was moving to Riverside County, I decided I just couldn't make that drive to get my hair done.

She's been very good to me. Last month, when I was broke, she gave me a complimentary color (and it looked great!). So I decided I had to make her something special.

I didn't have much time, so I decided on this Drop stitch scarf. It took me just over 2 weeks to complete it, and I think she was quite pleased. She promised to send me a photo of her wearing it.

Knitting for Good - a review

I received this ARC through LibraryThing's Early Reviewer program. The subtitle says it all, really.
The book begins with an introduction to knitting (and by inference, other needle and fibre crafts) and it's re-emergence as a popular craft. The concept of knitting (etc.) as a link to one's ancestors is an important concept here.
Personally, I believe that knitting as an activity is inherently good: one is making warm garments or even toys to provide love and warmth to oneself or someone else. And then there is the psychological benefit to the knitter. Knitting is a proven stress reliever (my screams and curses when attempting to follow a difficult pattern notwithstanding).
Greer deals with this to some extent in the first section of the book, also citing the satisfaction of creating a tangible item, and the possibilities of earning a living through this creation.
In subsequent chapters, the focus is on knitting as a communal activity, which is evidenced by the number of recently formed knitting groups all over the world. The idea of knitting as a feminist craft rather than as old-fashioned "women's work" is dominant here.
The last section of the book focusses on knitting as an instrument of good on a global basis: knitting for charities outside one's immediate circle, such as those that send knitted toys to children in third-world countries.
Knitting is, without exaggeration, a respite from grief, war, and cold, as Greer makes clear in this book.
There are patterns included that are suitable for giving or sending to charities, as well as a list of knitting groups and knitting charities.

As this is an Advanced Reader's Copy, I'm hoping that the publisher chose not to print the personal narratives that appear throughout the book in white letters on gray background. It's just too difficult to read!

I didn't sit down with this book and become absorbed in it to the exclusion of everything around me, but that doesn't mean it's not valuable. It's chock-full of ideas and inspirations; perfect for dipping into when you're feeling purposeless or unmotivated.

A new WIP

Now that the holidays are over, I decided to knit something just for myself before I continue with the gift knitting that is still unfinished. I purchased some Malabrigo a while ago, after seeing this pattern:

(photo from Malabrigo Pattern Book One)

I'm knitting it in a purple/blue colourway called Violetas.
Here's how it looks so far:


Stitch detail at hem:


I'm loving the Malabrigo yarn. I now understand why everyone is so ga-ga about it; it's such a pleasure to knit with! The project is going very quickly, and I hope to be able to wear it soon!

Just finished reading...

Free-Range Knitter by Stephanie Pearl-McPhee.

I was fortunate enough to receive a copy of the Yarn Harlot's latest collection of essays from Library Thing.

What a charming little book. It contains things like a letter to the designer of a sweater pattern that just doesn't work, emails to a customer service representative from a yarn company, affectionate reminiscences of friends, relatives and acquatances who are knitters, and not-so-affectionate reminiscences of cheap acrylic yarn.

I love Pearl-McPhee's writing. She's really good at it, and I admire and envy her so much. Until I read her descriptions of what she goes through on book tours.

Wow! What a weekend!

I had an insanely busy, exhausting but oh, so fun weekend.

Friday evening was the Great Big Sea concert. It was their first show here in a few years, and we were very excited. I met Tod at his office, and we had dinner at the House of Blues before the show. (Great food, by the way.) Since we had dinner there, we were able to "jump the line", so we were able to secure a spot right in front. The boys were energetic, as usual, and encouraged us all to sing along. The third-to-last song was Company of Fools, after which Alan credited his co-writer Russell Crowe.
Then:

Photo by Tod

Ayup, Russell came out. They sang Folsom Prison Blues and Cockles and Mussels together to end the show.

Saturday was the Oregon-USC football game. I had some trouble dragging myself out of bed, but managed to do it. We got there early enough to get a good parking spot, and then had brunch at the Galen Center. Unfortunately, towards the end of the first quarter, I started getting a migraine, and went back to the car to sleep it off. Leaving the stadium meant I couldn't get back in, which was a shame, as the Trojans won, 44-10. But I did have a great nap!

Sunday was the Stitch'n'Beach annual yarn swap at Susan's place. There were about 20 people there, some of whom don't come to weekly meetings that often, so it was an opportunity to connect with them. And Rhonda brought Sofie, who is now five weeks old and absolutely adorable!

A completed knitting project

According to my ravelry entry, I began this shawl on February 22. I completed it, including weaving in ends and blocking, on August 22. Yes, it took me six months to complete this fairly simple project. But, for the record, I generally only worked on it on Wednesday nights at my knitting group.




Close-up of stitch pattern (a knit row alternating with a k1 p1 row)

Just finished reading...

Dyer Consquences by Maggie Sefton.

In the fifth volume of the Kelly Flynn Knitting mysteries, all sorts of mishaps befall Kelly. Her home has been vandalized, a fire has been set on the ranch she recently purchased, and her dog has been poisoned. Kelly is convinced that someone has a vendetta against her, but when a young woman dies in the basement of the House of Lambspun she begins to reconsider.

I didn't enjoy this as much as the earlier books in the series. Characterization depends too much on the reader's knowledge from descriptions in the previous books. Additionally, the plot seemed to depend waaaay too much on coincidences.

I'm hoping this is an aberration in an otherwise decent series.

I've been busy

I haven't posted for a while because I've been busy working on my sister's birthday present. It's already late, but I finally finished it on Tuesday, blocked it yesterday, and sent it off this morning.

The pattern is from the Lion Brand website. (You may have to register to see it.) It's quite easy, though it does require a little concentration.


(Apologies for the poor quality of the picture. I was standing on an ottoman so I could get the whole thing into the shot.)

A knitting post!!!

I know, I know, it's been ages since I posted about my knitting.
I haven't been doing much. Firstly because it has been so hot for the past while, and secondly because I hadn't been feeling terribly well.
Thankfully, it finally cooled down a couple of days ago, and I'm feeling much better.

My sister's birthday is coming up awfully soon, and although I have a couple of things to send her, I really wanted to include something hand-knit. So I'm quickly whipping up a little lace scarf.

I've got about 6" done already:


I'm using Lily Sugar'n'Cream in Cornflower blue. Because it's a worsted weight yarn I'm getting on quickly, and hope to have it done in time to put it in the mail by Wednesday or Thursday.

Finished object

I had planned to give my mother-in-law a shawl for Christmas. Of course, with my history of making shawls for Christmas, this wasn't ready in time.
But I finally finished it a couple of weeks ago, and gave it to her on Saturday, so now I can post a picture.
I used the Prayer Shawl/Healing Shawl pattern from Lion Brands, in the russet colourway.

Just finished reading...

Thanks to the rainy weather, I've read more books than usual in the past week.
I'm still hooked on the Mary Russell series by Laurie R. King, and last week managed to get through A Letter of Mary and The Moor, in conjunction with a few other books that I've been anxious to read.

With one of the bookstore gift cards I received for Christmas, I picked up Stephanie Pearl-McPhee Casts Off, which is a great "dipping into" book. Stephanie is a great writer, she can be funny enough to make me laugh out loud, and then a few lines later make me misty-eyed. (Also, she's Canadian, and I recognize a lot of the stuff that she talks about.) It was a great book to keep beside the bed for the few minutes I can stay awake to read before I fall asleep at night.

Another book that I'd been waiting impatiently for, Cornelia Read's The Crazy School, finally came in to the library. It's the sequel to A Field of Darkness, and continues the story of Madeline Dare, a Long Island debutante married to Dean, a railroad worker. In this installment, Madeline takes a job at a private school for troubled teens, abnd soon discovers that it's not just the students who are troubled. While everyone does have secrets, the administrators of the school seem to have more and darker ones than most.
Yes, a flimsy review, but while I enjoyed the book immensely and read it in one day, it's very difficult to describe. But if you liked A Field of Darkness, you'll love this one.