Dangerous Alterations [Mass Market Paperback]

We are back in Sweet Briar with Tori Sinclair and the ladies of the Southern Sewing Circle. In this installment Tori's past comes back to haunt her.

First at a local health clinic Tori runs into her ex-fiance's great aunt Vera. The old woman seems shocked to see Tori. Tori is shocked when the woman dies on the spot, most likely from a heart attack. Vera's death brings slime-ball Jeff to Sweet Briar for the funeral and he has the nerve to ask Tori to take him back.

Tori is also worrying about Dixie, the former head librarian, filling in for her as she takes off on a weekend retreat with the Sewing Circle. Then she learns that it seems Jeff has fallen over dead during a run around Sweet Briar, from a heart attack as well. Heart problems run in his family but even Tori believes this is too much of a coincidence. The police chief thinks so too and even thinks Tori may be involved in the death.

It's time to gather everyone together and try to piece together what really happened as Tori tries hard to keep for life from ripped apart at the seams.

Dollycas's Thoughts
I love this series and I love these ladies. The story is filled with one surprise after another. Elizabeth Lynn Casey has outdone herself with this one. It is easily the best book in the entire series, but knowing this author the next one will be awesome too. The characters continue to grow, the story is full of layers that will continue into the next installments. The mystery or should I say mysteries are clever. I will say there were at least three places in this story when I said "OH MY GOSH", totally unexpected, off the wall twists.

As the time passes, the friendships of these women have grown so that even through some are already family, together they are building a new family all their own. Tori has been in Sweet Briar a very short time and now with her past up close and personal she has the entire support of the ladies of the Southern Sewing Circle. She needs them more than ever in this story. They protect her and fight for her like she was their own, daughter, niece or sister. They are there to help her pick up the pieces and move forward. These friendships are the core of this series. To move away from one life to start over in a new place is extremely difficult but she has been welcomed and embraced by this town totally.

Every trip to Sweet Briar is a pleasure. The residents of Sweet Briar just stitch themselves right into your heart. I'll give Tori and friends some time for things to settle down. I know the next book is in the works and I can't for my next visit.

Disclosure of Material Connection: I received this book free from Berkley Prime Crime. I was not required to write a positive review. The opinions I have expressed are my own. Receiving a complimentary copy in no way reflected my review of this book. I am disclosing this in accordance with the Federal Trade Commission's 16 CFR, Part 255 : "Guides Concerning the Use of Endorsements and Testimonials in Advertising."

If you're a fan of this series already then I don't need to tell you the latest entry is as enjoyable as all the others.

If you've never read a Southern Sewing Circle mystery and just like the bunny on the cover, yes, Paris is very cute; but inside the books you will meet wonderful women, all very different. These women, the Southern Sewing Circle, are all friends of the kind main character Victoria 'Tori' Sinclair, a transplant to Sweet Briar, South Carolina from Chicago. Over the course of the series Tori meets and makes friends with these characters. And characters they are. The age range in this series for the women is a good 70s but they all have bonded over their love of sewing and their newest neighbor. Tori is the glue that holds this group together.

Dangerous Alterations is the fifth in the series. Casey has made a wonderful choice in that each book she focuses deeper attention on one of the women, giving her a slightly bigger role and deepening our understanding of her. The cast is larger than most cozies and this way you get to know everybody.

The mystery in Dangerous Alterations bring us back to why the series started, Tori's aborted engagement to rat fink, Jeff. His appearance in Sweet Briar sets of the main mystery and the sub-mystery.

The latest entry in the Southern Sewing Circle series is a wonderful mystery but Elizabeth Lynn Casey also manages to make it a lovely low-key PSA about people struggling with debilitating illnesses like cancer and rheumatoid arthritis.

Give the series a try if you haven't, you won't be sorry.

I love everything this author writes. In this day of hard economics she has made my list of "will buy anything she writes". Why? Because her stories just get richer and richer with every book.
I have followed this series from the beginning and with each installment you learn more and more aboout these characters. I look foward to every book coming out as it is like returning to a favorite vacation spot and visiting with old friends.
The stories revolve around a group of mostly southern ladies and their sewing circle. I myself do not sew but I love being a part of their relationships, their crime solving, and their projects. If you do sew....you will find inspiration in the generous spirit behind their group creations.Dangerous Alterations (A Southern Sewing Circle Myste)

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