A Crafter Hooks a Killer by Holly Quinn is the second book in the “Handcrafted” cozy mystery series. Publisher: Crooked Lane Books, coming June 11, 2019.

Community Craft proprietor Sammy Kane suspects that a tantalizing thread links the deaths of her best friend and a bestselling author. But can she weave together the clues?

Samantha “Sammy” Kane is settling into her new life in idyllic Heartsford, Wisconsin, running her late friend Kate Allen’s craft shop, Community Craft when one early June day, bestselling crochet author Jane Johnson visits Heartsford. Captivated by Community Craft, Jane devotes a chapter in her new book, Behind the Seams, to the store. Sammy is honored, though satisfaction quickly turns to shock when she finds Jane strangled to death—her cold hands clutching a copy of her most recently published book, with the words “THE END” raggedly scratched into the cover.

Heavens to Etsy! Not only must Sammy contend with the author’s inauspicious demise, she has to untie some knotty details from her own past. It turns out Kate’s death was not what it seemed, and instead somehow hooked to Jane Johnson’s demise. Handsome Detective Liam Nash is on the “skein”, more than happy to see the shop owner again, if less than enamored by her sleuthing interventions. But this was Sammy’s best friend—she has to know.

Fortunately, Sammy has a “lace” in the hole. As a child, she formed the S.H.E. detective team with her cousin, Heidi, and her sister, Ellie. Having already reconstituted their partnership, the S.H.E. team searches for a pattern behind the latest death. As the case starts to unravel, will Sammy and team be able to sidestep Liam quick enough to stitch together the clues?

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I truly enjoyed my time spent in Heartsford, Wisconsin with Sammy, Ellie and Heidi. When Sammy finds the body of a well-known crafter, she is more than curious when said crafter had information pertaining to her best-friend’s death. Nudging her way into the police investigations, there’s nothing Sammy and her fellow S.H.E. members won’t do to find justice.

I like the comfortable tone and the writing style presented in this whodunit. The mystery was well-crafted and I liked that it was a mystery within a mystery with clues that may or may not help solve a previous incident.

The author strategically introduced suspects and gave me just enough details to keep them on my radar. I had a sensed as to who was the person responsible for and it was fun watching it all play out, especially when the killer’s identity was revealed.

Sammy is a determined young woman who sometimes comes on too strong for her own good. She is surround by a great supporting cast of characters and I enjoyed her interactions with them, especially the local detective. This was a great read and I look forward to reading more adventures with the members of S.H.E.

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FTC Full Disclosure – I received a digital ARC of this book from the publisher via NetGalley.