Thread Herrings

It’s February and everyone is quietly performing their winter tasks, which means Sarah is visiting several auctions and restocking her shop. Never having been to an auction, Angie goes along – and here we are treated to information about estate auctions from a dealer’s perspective, and see the pieces during the viewing. While Sarah finds pieces that she can resell and use as stock, Angie finds a not-particularly well-preserved piece of needlework, a coat of arms, a rarity in New England. Bidding on the piece, Angie is the winner – and takes the unusual piece home, full of questions. Taking the piece from the frame, Angie finds clues and a mystery hidden behind the piece, all needing more investigation. Discovering the two old Maine families whose items provided the lots for the auction, and some preliminary searching bring Angie to Portland to the history museum, information gathered there gives her new places to search and free hours have her contacting a high school friend turned reporter, and we are off. A one minute spotlight on Angie and her questions about the piece lead to several death threats, the death of her friend Clem, Reverend Thom’s injuries when her car explodes, and danger everywhere. With strangers looking for her in town, footprints around the carriage house that shouldn’t have been there, and a strange couple questioning Sarah about Angie’s piece of embroidery, the questions are never ending. But, frustrated and tired of hiding, an email left by the enquiring couple, a few chance connections made after a news story and cooperation from Sarah bring them face to face with the killer – not quietly as Angie has to use (for the first time) her gun to get Sarah out of danger and be sure the killer is caught. Of course, as in all of this series, insets of work from old samplers worked in colonial and later eras, and the solid feelings of community, friendship and plenty of snow, sea smoke and cold all combine to paint the quaint little town in winter clothes. Wait brings a sense of the place solidly forward while keeping everyone aware of the fact that murder never makes real sense to anyone BUT those willing to kill for something – and in this story the motive of retribution for hurts perceived and done for years was just as silly, even as the tension, questions and information came hard and fast. I received an eArc copy of the title from the publisher via NetGalley for purpose of honest review. I was not compensated for this review: all conclusions are my own responsibility.

Thread Herrings by Lea Wait is the seventh story in A Mainely Needlepoint Mystery series. Angie Curtis is the manager of Mainely Needlepoint in Haven Harbor, Maine. Angie is accompanying her friend, Sarah Byrne to an auction in Augusta. Angie has not been to an auction previously and is looking forward to the experience. Angie is intrigued by a half-finished vintage framed needlepoint coat of arms that is not in the best condition and she spontaneously bids on it when none of the other participants show interest. At home, Angie removes the needlework from the frame and finds a pale silk blue embroidered ribbon along with receipt from the London Foundling Hospital dated October 26, 1757 for a child baptized Charles. Angie wants to learn more about the coat of arms and the child, but she is unsuccessful at the Maine Historical Society. She has lunch with Clem Walker, friend and television reporter, who suggests doing a human interest feature and appeal to the public for information. Instead of receiving helpful material, both ladies receive death threats. Soon Clem is found shot dead in car in Haven Harbor and Angie’s car goes boom injuring someone close to her. Angie goes into hiding, but she this does not deter her from investigating. Can she identify the culprit before he finds her? Thread Herrings can be read alone if you have not indulged in any of the previous novels in A Mainely Needlepoint Mystery series. Angie goes to her first auction and her friend, Sarah kindly explains auction protocol. Since I have not been to an auction, I found it interesting. I had no idea there was a buyer’s premium added to the hammer price (winning bid). I could tell the author did her research on the London Foundling Hospital, land patents or grants, the billet or receipt for the child and mementoes parents left behind as identifiers (to later claim the child). Lea Wait incorporated the information in a way that made it easy to understand. Ruth Hopkins helps Angie with genealogy research, but we see very little of the other Mainely Needlepoint group. Patrick West is in town and Angie hides out in his finely appointed carriage house. Personally, I am not a fan of Patrick and I keep hoping they will break up. Patrick comes across as superficial (especially when he was discussing the yacht that could only sleep eight). Angie needs a partner with more depth and who is interested in sleuthing. The mystery plays out with clues interspersed up to the reveal. Angie must solve the mystery via phone since she is unable to go out in public which is a unique way of investigating the crime. Readers are unable to play along and solve this whodunit. I could have done without the frequent (I stopped counting after six) mentions of Angie’s gun (a Glock). Angie does manage to indulge in cooking, dining out friends (before the death threats), drinking fine wine, playing with Trixi (her kitten), watch movies, handle business details and check in with Gram. As the action heats up in Thread Herrings, you will find yourself riveted. You cannot help but keep reading to discover how the story plays out.