Reading and Sewing

I love to read, particularly mysteries. I agreed when requested to read “Pleating for Mercy”, a first in a series. This mystery falls into the “Cozy Mystery” category. This is a rather new category of mystery reading for me.  I tend toward the more suspense, action and graphic depiction of a murder.  This was a nice change.

The other enjoyment of the book was that the main character is a dressmaker/seamstress/sewist that designs and sews garments. She left her hometown to live in NYC where she trained and worked for a designer of high end fashion. She has returned to her small hometown of Bliss, Texas.
In returning to Bliss, she moves into her great grandmother’s home where she reopens the Button and Bows shop. Throughout the book there are many references to designing, altering and sewing garments. If you are a sewist/seamstress, then you can easily identify.

Harlow Cassidy, the main character, is a descendent of Butch Cassidy. A murder occurs in the front yard of Button and Bows and Harlow sets out to help discover and solve the mystery. The author does a good job of balancing a “who done it” suspense with every day life which makes for a pleasant cozy mystery read.