Silk Stalkings (A Material Witness Mystery, #3)

by Diane Vallere

Fabric shop owner Polyester Monroe can get tangled up in textiles, but it’s murder that really throws her for a loop in the latest mystery from the national bestselling author of Crushed Velvet.

The time has come for San Ladrón, California’s annual Miss Tangorli beauty pageant, and Poly has agreed to use Material Girl’s inventory of shimmery silks to create embellished gowns fit for a crown. But when millionaire Harvey Halliwell—the man who revived the city’s citrus trade with his imported tangorli tree—is found dead days before the pageant contestants are announced, something sour takes over the town.
 
To make matters worse, her friend, mechanic Charlie Brooks, is soon caught up in the crime, having been seen in the company of the case’s prime suspect. Now Poly’s on a mission to squeeze out the truth. But as she searches for a pattern, the killer seems intent on cutting up the evidence...

• ISBN10: 0425270599
• ISBN13: 9780425270592
• Publish Date: 2 August 2016
• Publish Status: Inactive
• Out of Print: 4 November 2022
• Publish Country: US
• Publisher: Penguin Putnam Inc
• Imprint: Berkley Publishing Corporation,U.S.
• Format: Paperback (US Mass Market)
• Pages: 304
• Language: English
• URL: https://penguinrandomhouse.com/books/isbn/9780425270592

Reviews

[MurderByDeath]

This is a good series, with really well done characterisations and a nice cozy small-town setting, but the editors blew it with this one and the story wasn't strong enough to compensate.   

The story was interesting enough and the murder well-plotted but the sloppy editing not only had characters talking face-to-face and then suddenly hanging up the phone, only to continue chatting face-to-face, but vague references are never followed up on, hints are left dangling and logic trails left from previous edits are left as shadowy dead-ends.  There were quite a few moments where I felt like I didn't have a handle on what was going on, and ultimately that cost this book 1 star.  

 I'll still happily order and read the next one in the series; perhaps the editor will find his/her mojo by then.

[Silvara]

Check out my other reviews, discussions and link ups at Fantasy of the Silver Dragon.

I received this book for free from Berkley Prime Crime in exchange for an honest review. This does not affect my opinion of the book or the content of my review.

The beginning was a little slow, but once I got past the first 30 pages or so it picked up and started to suck me in. There were a lot of plot twists, but none were over the top and all of them fit perfectly and made a lot of sense.

I had a few ideas on who the killer was, and it turns out all of them were wrong. But the reveal as to whom and why, worked. I just didn't guess that person because of all the other possibilities. I really liked Poly and Vaughn, the backstory tidbits on all the characters were interesting. But I didn't really care for Charlie much. Mostly because her character seemed repressed, and so we never really got to see much of her personality beyond cranky/angry in the book.

There were a lot of family and relationship dynamics in the book. Both between Poly and Vaughn, as well as between Charlie and various members of her family. There were also family moments with a number of other characters, but I won't tell you who as that would be spoilers for some of the twists in the book.

If you like mysteries with lots of twists, as well as ones that center on things besides the main mystery, you should try this series.

This review was originally posted on Fantasy of the Silver Dragon