Thai Die (Needlecraft Mystery Series #12) by Monica Ferris

From the Publisher

Back from a trip to Thailand, Doris Valentine is eager to show Betsy, owner of the Crewel World needlework shop, her souvenirs. Later when the souvenirs are stolen from Doris's apartment, Betsy thinks there is something more to some of this exotic embroidery than meets the eye.

Publishers Weekly

Thai silk to die for plunges Betsy Devonshire, the proprietor of Crewel World in Excelsior, Minn., into danger in Ferris's winning 12th needlecraft mystery (after 2007's Knitting Bones). Among the many souvenirs Betsy's friend Doris Valentine brings home from a Thailand vacation is a stone Buddha to be delivered to a St. Paul antiques dealer. When Doris discards the dirty cloth the Buddha was wrapped in, Betsy rescues the cloth, which turns out to be valuable silk more than 2,000 years old. Has Doris become an unwitting pawn in an international antiquities theft operation? After someone ransacks Doris's apartment and murders the antiques dealer, Sgt. Mike Malloy of the Excelsior police and "civilian detective" Betsy find themselves involved in a case more complicated than any needlework pattern she's ever attempted. With more action and a stronger plot than Knitting Bones, this entry in the popular cozy series offers such choice knitting tidbits as how to spin hair from a 14-pound angora rabbit. (Dec.)

Jo Ann Vicarel - Library Journal

Ferris has written another gentle cozy involving the needlecrafters from Crewel World, the finest shop in Excelsior, MN. One of the women returns from a trip to Thailand, bringing with her many samples of silk and yarns. She also has a small statue reputed to be of no value. Soon it has been stolen, and a man murdered. Ferris never misses an opportunity to educate the reader. Here, she dwells on ancient Chinese silk. Needlecrafters and fans of Maggie Sefton's knitting mysteries will snap this up.

Kirkus Reviews

Exotic objects, doubtful imports, theft and murder-what's going on in a quiet Minnesota town?Sleuthing needlework shop owner Betsy Devonshire is happy to welcome Doris Valentine home from her trip to Thailand. In addition to her own purchases, Doris has brought back something for a St. Paul antique dealer. Her friends all admire the stone Buddha and ignore the dirty rag in which it's wrapped. When Doris throws it out, Betsy rescues it from the trash. The dealer's murder naturally arouses Betsy's curiosity. Although she's appalled when Doris's apartment is wrecked in a search, the outrage just increases her interest. After Doris is attacked while she's snowed in at a bed and breakfast with her boyfriend Phil and some other friends, the attacker is killed in a fall down the stairs, but Doris's troubles have only begin. The searchers clearly want the Thai silk, but Doris has only the material she bought for herself. Betsy astutely suspects the dirty rag the Buddha was wrapped in may be of more interest than its looks suggest. Research shows that it's an ancient and very valuable item stolen from a Chinese tomb. In the end, Betsy and her friends are lucky to escape alive from a obsessively determined thief. Betsy's adventures (Knitting Bones, 2007, etc.) are always pleasantly cozy. This one adds a bit more excitement to the mix.

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