Murder at a Scottish Social by Traci Hall

 

First Lines: Nairn, Scotland. Saturday morning Paisless Shaw left Cashmere Crush, her sweater and yarn shop, in the wrinkled but capable hands of her grandfather, Angus.

 

Paislee Shaw is so grateful for her life. Her bespoke knitwear and yarn shop, Cashmere Crush, provides a good living for herself, her ten-year-old son Brodie, Grandpa Angus, and their Scottish terrier, Wallace. To pay it forward for all her blessings, she participates wholeheartedly in a weekend-long charity event to raise money for the Nairn Food Bank. 

 

Paislee's weekend would have gone a lot better if she hadn't had to meet a group of competitive mothers who treat the baking competition as if it were life-and-death. When not concerned with baked goods, these divas spend their time roaming the area with their noses held high and their vicious comments flying thick and fast. 

 

Things take a turn for the worse when the queen bee of the group, Kirsten Buchanan, dies from anaphylactic shock. Who would poison Kirsten's shortbread? To be honest, nearly half the town, but when Paislee's friend Blaise makes her way to the top of the suspect list, Paislee swings into action to find a peanut-wielding killer.

 

~

 

I wish I could knit as fast as Paislee Shaw. Of course, my quality of life doesn't depend on how fast my own needles can fly. I've enjoyed Traci Hall's Scottish Shire cozy series for its depiction of life in small-town Nairn, Scotland, for its knitting, and for its characters, especially the core group of Paislee, her grandfather Angus, and her ten-year-old son Brodie. My enjoyment of Murder at a Scottish Social was diminished, undoubtedly due to the presence of the group of acid-tongued divas at the charity event. I dislike people like this so much that I don't want to spend even a second of my time with fictional ones, let alone real ones.

I was more interested in the newest developments in Paislee's family life. How Grandpa Angus' search for his missing son was progressing and how Brodie was dealing with problems at school. I would much rather have spent time knitting and chatting with Paislee and letting those divas take care of themselves. Ah well.

If you're in the mood for a puzzling mystery that's steeped in small-town Scottish life and focused on a charming mother, son, grandfather, and pup, you should pick up one of Traci Hall's Scottish Shire mysteries. And if you find divas amusing, Murder at a Scottish Social will definitely be your cup of tea.

 

Murder at a Scottish Social by Traci Hall

eISBN: 9781496726049

Kensington Books © 2022

eBook, 304 pages

 

Cozy Mystery, #3 Scottish Shire mystery

Rating: B

Source: Net Galley

Murder in a Scottish Garden by Traci Hall

First Line: Paislee Shaw gritted her teeth as the school bus jounced over a crack in the paved road, and wished for a wee bit more padding to protect her bum from the hard plastic seat.

 

Single mother Paislee Shaw's priority is her ten-year-old son Brody, but you can't blame her if she wants to do a bit of multi-tasking now and again. She signed on as chaperone for the class trip to the Leery Estate, but she not only wants to take care of the children on the field trip, she also wants to track down the heir to the estate, Shawn Marcus. Yes, that Shawn Marcus, the man who served an eviction notice to her and five other shopkeepers in Nairn and then disappeared. Her knitting shop, Cashmere Crush-- her sole means of support for herself, her son, her grandfather, and their dog-- is at stake.

 

But instead of finding the missing man, Paislee finds herself shielding one of Brody's classmates as a dead body comes crashing through a hedge. Who is the dead man? Why was he shot? And where in the world is her missing landlord? Paislee's got a lot more multi-tasking to do to get to the bottom of this mystery.

 

~

 

Knit shop owner Paislee Shaw continues her winning ways in Murder in a Scottish Garden, the second in Traci Hall's Scottish Shire cozy series set on Scotland's north coast. The mystery is the type to keep you scratching your head as you try to unravel all the knots and tangles. True to any rich family worth its salt, those on the Leery Estate hold themselves to different standards, and everyone on the property seems to have at least four different versions of the truth that they share with both Detective Inspector Mack Zeffer and the ever-inquisitive Paislee Shaw.

One of the things that I like about this series is that there's more going on than the mystery. There's the problem of Paislee's missing uncle, a mystery that her grandfather seems loathe to share and which ties into the strong parents-and-their-children theme of the book as does the lawsuit facing the school. There's also the problem of the eviction notice that she and the other shopkeepers have been served. If Paislee is forced to move from her prime location, it could have dire consequences for her business. If she loses Cashmere Crush, women won't have any place to gather for their Knit & Sip meetings or a place to buy yarn or order one of Paislee's custom-knit items.

And of course, like any good cozy, all this is held together by a fine cast of characters, in particular Paislee, her son Brody, and her grandfather. I like how Paislee's primary concern is her son, how she isn't looking for a man but thinks nothing of trying to play matchmaker for her single friends. There is no shortage of eligible men in Nairn. For example, there's the "high-end fashion model" handsome detective inspector who seems to be slowly learning to appreciate Paislee's sleuthing skills, and there's the local headmaster with the irresistible dimples. Well, they used to be irresistible until that lawsuit.

I find Paislee, her family, and her sleuthing to be good for what ails me, and I wouldn't be at all surprised if you did, too. If you're new to the series, I suggest that you begin with the first book, Murder in a Scottish Shire. You have some fun in store!

Murder in a Scottish Garden by Traci Hall

eISBN: 9781496726025

Kensington Books © 2021

eBook, 304 pages

Cozy Mystery, #2 Scottish Shire mystery

Rating: B+

Source: Net Galley

Murder in a Scottish Shire by Traci Hall

First Line: Paislee Shaw eyed the clock above the cooker as if Father Time were her mortal enemy.

It's a sensible life for twenty-eight-year-old single mother Paislee Shaw, her ten-year-old son Brody, and their Scottish terrier, Wallace. Her dear departed grandmother taught her how to knit, and since Paislee certainly has a knack for the craft and is blessed with more than her share of determination, she is now the proud owner of Cashmere Crush, a yarn and specialty sweater shop in Nairn, a picturesque village and tourist destination on the north coast of Scotland.

Recently though, Paislee feels that her life is coming unraveled. She's been served with an eviction notice, and her estranged and homeless grandfather has been brought to her door and is now living with her. That would be more than enough to deal with, but Paislee also discovered the body of a young woman she'd rehired to help her in the shop. The details of the woman's death just don't add up, and before she knows it, Paislee is helping handsome Detective Inspector Mack Zeffer solve a murder.

I love Scotland. I'm familiar with the book's setting of Nairn. I love to knit. I certainly love mysteries. Traci Hall's Murder in a Scottish Shire was a no-brainer for me to pick up, and I'm delighted to admit that I was surprised by just how much I enjoyed this cozy mystery.

Hall is better known for her romance novels, which is one genre that I avoid like the plague. She's set up her main character with a couple of romantic prospects, but so far Paislee is standing firm: Brody is her primary concern until he's old enough to be on his own. With the possibility of a romantic triangle reminiscent of Janet Evanovich's Stephanie Plum, this is a situation I will be monitoring closely, but in the mean time, I went along for the ride and enjoyed every minute of the story.

With characters like Paislee, young Brody, cantankerous Grandpa Angus, and best friend Lydia, Hall's strong, well-paced mystery unfolds smoothly, and a few unknotted threads at the end certainly make me anticipate the next book. Can the author avoid diving headlong into a sea of romance? I enjoyed Murder in a Scottish Shire so much that I certainly intend to find out.

Murder in a Scottish Shire by Traci Hall

eISBN: 9781496726001

Kensington Books © 2020

eBook, 304 pages

Cozy Mystery, #1 Scottish Shire mystery

Rating: A

Source: Net Galley