Sally Goldenbaum - Death by Cashmere

Of all the craft cozies, Death by Cashmere has an inviting premise: four friends brought together by a weekly knitting circle in a small, seaside Massachusetts town, who think the murder of the young woman who lived above the knitting shop is more than what it appears to be. It would be easiest to write the murder off like the police are as one committed by a transient passing through on his way to Boston or New York. But the combination of the murder and a lobster poacher wrecking havoc on the livelihood of one of the members of the knitting circle makes the little circle of friends uneasy. Goldenbaum's writing never lives up to the potential of the premise. She spends a good portion of the book setting up the character of Izzy, the owner of the knitting store only to make Izzy's aunt, Nell, the protagonist. Suddenly the reader is following Nell around town with only a vague idea of the character. Goldenbaum also has problems with continuity. One minute a character is taking dirty dishes to the kitchen; moments later after performing other tasks, she is carrying the plate she had previously taken to the sink. A table set with a pitcher of tea and tall glasses is then incongruous to the steam rising around a character's face as she takes a sip. Iced tea does not steam. Although the inconsistencies are minor, the reader is jarred out of the story to validate the error and is left wondering if an error in clues will follow. The mystery is nothing unique, and the murderer and motive are apparent very quickly. Goldenbaum does have the genesis of some good characters. If she can give them some flesh and work on her plotting, the next book may be a winner.