Annette Mahon

Once again I've treated myself to one of Annette Mahon's St. Rose Quilting Bee mysteries as well as one of the quilts she makes. (Yes, that's her quilt on the book cover.) Mahon is adept at using local news items as grist for her mystery-making mill, and this practice makes for a very interesting read.

One of the things I enjoy most about Mahon's mysteries is their gentleness. Yes, bad-- even horrible-- things happen to people, but they happen offstage. Also, the sleuths, who come from varying backgrounds and have very different temperaments, are retirees who don't wave guns around and jump half-cocked into dangerous situations. Even Maggie Browne's police officer son has learned how well her quilting group can gather valuable pieces of information, so he occasionally asks them to keep their ears to the ground.

Annette Mahon's Slay Bells shows that it is possible to solve a mystery without fighting and gunfire. The St. Rose Quilting Bee is an entire group of Miss Marples who are fantastic at stitching, asking questions, and listening to the answers. I enjoy each and every book in this series.… (plus d'informations)

If you like character-driven mysteries featuring women "of a certain age," I recommend Annette Mahon's St. Rose Quilting Bee series. The Bee members are a cross section of women from all walks of life and of all personalities. Maggie Browne gave her north Scottsdale ranch to one of her sons and his family, and now she's enjoying horseback riding, theater, her children and grandchildren, and doing volunteer work through her quilting group. Maggie tends to be the most level-headed and inquisitive of the group, which also contains a retired nurse, a woman who compares clues to the mysteries she's read, and the resident curmudgeon (among others). There may not be any physical descriptions of these women in this book, but that's really not necessary. Their voices and behavior distinguish each one quite easily.

Having a killer in a nursing home easing the elderly out of their lives of pain and into the hereafter is an excellent plot device and really kept me guessing, and Mahon's skill with the Scottsdale, Arizona, setting gives you a real taste of city living in the desert.

You also get a taste for quilting (an art form I've always greatly admired) while reading An Ominous Death. Bee members even get several people-- women and men-- to take a class at the Palo Verde Care Center. I have to admit that my favorite part of the book was listening to all the women as they sat around the quilt frame, stitching together layers of fabric and batting and discussing each new scrap of information. It's like watching an entire group of Miss Marples, only these ladies don't pack knitting needles.

Annette Mahon has created a group of women that Miss Marple herself would be proud to know, and I think you'll enjoy them as much as I do.… (plus d'informations)

You know me-- when I hear of a mystery series set in Arizona, I have to get my hands on it. Annette Mahon's setting was a familiar one. I could picture myself traveling the streets of Scottsdale with Maggie, as well as on out into the desert where the ever present land sharks are buying up as much land as possible to turn into cookie cutter housing for the rich and not-so rich. Also easy to envision was Maggie's quilting group, which is filled with a variety of characters sure to play featured roles in future books. I liked the way quilting really played a part in events and felt as though I learned a good deal about how a quilting group works. But my enlightenment did not stop there. I also became acquainted with the theater through reading Mahon's book.

An excellent setting, the imparting of knowledge-- and a darned good cast of characters. Between Maggie's sons and their families and the "Phantom of the Opera" cast, Mahon has plenty of scope to flex her characterization muscles, and she does without getting me tangled up in names once. Maggie is a strong, intelligent, caring woman who's the heart of her family and also has a busy role in her community. She's perfect as the main character.

For some reason, I knew the identity of the murderer almost immediately. I'm not sure why because I don't think the author made it that obvious. (Perhaps I wasn't wearing my tinfoil hat as I read the book?) I enjoyed reading about this group of older (mostly retired) women solving crime on my own turf, and I look forward to reading more of their adventures.… (plus d'informations)

This is the third in the St. Rose Quilting Bee Mysteries by Annette Mahon and the first that I have read. Working on quilts for their church’s bazaar they have time to talk so when one of their members, Claire declares that the Keith Upland ,who is missing and a chief suspect in his family’s death, is innocent they get pulled in. Keith, a soldier who is suffering from Post Traumatic Stress Disorder, is believed to have caused the explosion of his home that killed his wife and two daughters. He saves Clare in a car accident and on hearing his story she believes him.Maggie, Clare’s dear friend is not sure of Keith’s innocence and just wants to keep Clare safe. Some members of the quilting bee also waver but they agree to help investigate.

Mahon writes an interesting cozy centered around the friendships these women have made as they work on quilts for their church. You see the interworkings of a small town and how everyone knows each other. There is also a feel for the relationships these women have forged through the years of growing up in the same church. If you like Miss Marple type mysteries, you will enjoy this one.… (plus d'informations)