Title: FALLING TO PIECES
Author: Vannetta Chapman
Publisher: Zondervan
September 2011
ISBN: 978-0310330431
Genre: Inspirational/contemporary/mystery
Deborah Yoder is an Amish woman, married, with five children. But she has two friends who are both needy. One has lost her husband, and is relying on the community for support and care, the other has a seriously ill child and needs a lot of money for medical care. Deborah and her friends start stitching quilts which they sell locally at Daisy’s Quilt Shop. But then the unthinkable happens and Daisy dies of a heart attack while tending her garden.
Callie Harper has inherited her aunt’s quilt shop and that inheritance turns her life upside down. Already reeling from losing her husband and the death of her baby, Callie doesn’t want a quilt shop in the middle of Shipshewana, Indiana. She needs to start looking for a new job where she belongs—in Houston, Texas. Callie has no intentions of reopening her aunt’s store, and Deborah has no intentions of taking no for an answer.
But then, due to circumstances out of her control, Callie learns she’ll sell faster if it’s open. Deborah talks her into selling the quilts on eBay. And that move has several in the community upset. But then a murder occurs and Deborah and Callie try to set aside their differences and try to solve the mystery…
FALLING TO PIECES is the first book in Ms. Chapman’s Shipshewana Amish Mystery series. Technically, this is not an Amish fiction since the main character is English, not Amish, but there are Amish in there—such as Deborah (and her friends.) I love the setting. I had the opportunity to briefly visit Shipshewana once, and would love to go again sometime.
Ms. Chapman has a unique idea here, using the popularity of a Amish tourist attraction as a setting for her cozy mysteries. She did keep me guessing with whom the murderer might be, which is a good thing. If you are looking for a mystery to read, then pick up FALLING TO PIECES. Don’t judge this book by it’s cartoonish cover. An excerpt from her second book in this series, A Perfect Square, is included at the end. $12.99. 332 pages.
3 comments:
Hi Vanetta:
Your book sounds great. How would you define the audience of cozy readers? Are there several of them? Best wishes.
Una Tiers
Hi Fiona. Great question! Cozy readers are usually folks who like to watch Murder She Wrote or Monk on television. They prefer books that have a puzzle to solve, but no grizzly details. Thanks for asking!
Vanetta, you mentioned Monk and right away I knew this was a book I want to read. Looking forward to getting my hands on this one!
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