Barbara Jean Coast

Margot Williams and Daphne Huntington-Smythe are partners in the fashion boutique Poppy Cove in Santa Lucia, California. Margot is the creative designer of their beautiful fashions, and Daphne ensures each design has a complement of pretty accessories. Attending an exciting society event, Margot and Daphne didn't anticipate becoming sleuth partners. Instead of an opening ceremony of Stearns Academy for Girls, it became the opening of a murder investigation of a top client of Poppy Cove.

The atmospheric writing takes readers back to Southern California in 1957. I loved this cozy for the nostalgia, the mystery, and the fashion of days gone by. The intriguing mystery has a swirl of twists and turns, creating red herrings during the investigation. My sleuthing determined the perpetrator before the reveal, yet there was still a surprising twist and I never anticipated the motive. The highlight of the cozy was in the selection of the entrepreneurial business; there were exquisite, detailed descriptions of every aspect of the fashionable clothing and accessories.

The addition of "Barbara Jean's Fabulous Fashion Tips for the Modern 1950's Woman" at the end of the cozy provides an extra touch of added nostalgia.

Sadly, I am unable to give 5 stars due to needed copy edits.… (mehr)

Strangled by Silk is a very good read, and a very fun read, set in 1957 in fictional Santa Lucia, California. (1957 also happens to be the year that Leave It To Beaver premiered on TV. I can just imagine June Cleaver shopping at Poppy Cove, before a "date night" with Ward.) Poppy Cove is the dress shop owned by Margot and Daphne, the amateur sleuths of this cozy mystery. In Poppy Cove, customers can select garments "off the rack" in the latest fashions, or they can order a custom-made dress — designed by Margot, sewn on the premises, perhaps by Head Seamstress Marjorie, and accessorized by Daphne.

The characters in Strangled by Silk are well-written, even the "supporting cast," and well-rounded. The "villains" are not totally unlikable. The mystery story line is interesting and believable. The world-building is done well. Santa Lucia is described so meticulously, that it's almost like Barbara Jean Coast is describing her own home town. Barbara Jean does an excellent job describing little details of the era, such as the "new" Swanson TV Dinner — cooked in the oven, mind you; no microwave ovens back then — and all of the foundations that the well-dressed woman wore back then.

As a fun bonus, after Strangled by Silk concludes, there are Barbara Jean's Fabulous Fashion Tips for the Modern 1950's Woman. Here are a few of the highlights: On a picnic, avoid wearing gingham, so as not to look like the tablecloth. Two-piece bathing suits are new and daring (but to be modest, the top should be fully supported, and the bottom skirted). One should wear gloves to any social event, even in the daytime. Ballerina flats are new, and as fashionable as stilettos. For men, Hawaiian print shirts are the new modern casual look, along with Huarache sandals — but make sure he wears them without socks. To look trim and "carefree," the modern girl wears a "simple" combination of brassiere, girdle, garter, slip (full, camisole, half, or crinoline), and stockings — even in the hot California summertime.

I thoroughly enjoyed reading Strangled by Silk. I recommend Strangled by Silk to all Cozy Mystery fans, especially to those who are fashion-conscious or are fans of the '50s, and grant it my Five-Star seal of approval.

{Originally published at Jane Reads, along with a Guest Post by the authors}

… (mehr)

4 STARS



This is second book in Poppy Cove Mystery, but only the first one that I have read. I like this story. Lots of drama , fashion , murder, mystery and is a clean read.



Margot and Daphne own Poppy Cove a clothing store. They put on a fashion show with the royalty of their town as models. There clothes were a hit.



Nora Burbank is Miss Santa Lucia. She was the star in a designer gown with a necklace of real diamonds. She gets to keep the dress and a copy of the necklace.



Efrem is the one who copied the necklace. His father-in-law designed the real one for a special order. He has no idea that Efrem made a copy but that the real necklace was in the show.



Efrem later realizes that the necklace he took back to the jewelry store is a fake and must of got the necklaces switched wrong at the end of the show. He needs to get the real one back. Before he can do that Nora is murdered.



I guessed a little of the mystery before it was revealed but not all of it.



I like that there are a lot of characters. I was happy with the different mix of them. I like how they were the clothes they design and sale.



The book takes place in the 1950's in Santa Lucia, CA.



I was given this ebook to read by the authors so that I could give a honest review of Death o a Beauty Queen and be part of it's blog tour.… (mehr)