Annie's Attic Mysteries

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Annie's Attic Mysteries is a subscription club to a series of crafting novels
published by Annie's Attic. There's actually several series, Annie's Attic being the first.

Annie Dawson is a recent widow from Texas who has been willed her Grandmother Betsy Holden's estate. Betsy was a famous cross stitch designer and a pack rat. Each book focuses on a mystery that Annie finds in the attic of Grey Gables, the large Victorian House in Stoney Point, a small coastal fishing town in the state of Maine. She gets help from the Hook and Needle

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Club members who meet every Tuesday morning at the local craft shop AStitch in Time, and the mayor of the town Ian Butler who may or may not have more of an interest in her than just friendship.


Basic review of the series is this. It is a 30 book series. This series is written by a variety of writers - likely to make sure that the books kept coming and you don't really get a writer's voice in each book. The editing is done to standardize the series.

The characters are engaging, the story lines are

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interesting, the writing is meh. Which I don't blame the writers for. This is in
the editing. There's a lot of cliche writing. A lot of explaining what people are wearing. A lot of misplaced explanations. Sometimes events don't quite connect between books. It's the usual thing you find in this type of series when you have different writers. At least all the writers get a byline and aren't writing under one name. There is some religion mentioned but I wouldn't call these inspirational books - just in case that bothers you.  Annie's parents were missionaries who died from diseases they caught

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being out in the field. It's not something that's focused on, just part of her
character. The writing isn't awful, but it's not going to win any awards. Think Nancy Drew but the characters are middle aged. This is popcorn writing. It's not nutritious but it's fun and you can get hooked on these books. And there ain't nothing wrong with popcorn. After all, that's what cozy mysteries are for. Just to have fun.

Cast of Characters:

Hook and Needle Club

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Annie Dawson: Still grieving over the loss of her husband Wayne, a car
salesman who died of a heart attack. She's also grieving over the loss of her grandmother, a woman she wishes she spent more time with. She had spent many childhood summers in Betsy's home, but as she grew older and raised a family, visits were few and far between. She's religious, loves to crochet, is an early morning girl and loves to solve the mysteries she finds. She's in her late forties.

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Alice MacFarlane: Best childhood friend of Annie. (I think they made a mistake when they named these two women with the same initial. It gets confusing. First rule of thumb as a writer for naming people. Don't use the same initial for your characters!) Alice lives in the carriage house of a mansion we never see next door to Grey Gables. She does home parties selling Princessa Jewelry (hate that name) and Divine Decor to make a living. (Sigh. I wish she did something else. I cringe all the time at these names). She's divorced. No kids. Alice is fun and always up for a challenge. Although she's also a big blabbermouth that keeps telling the other members of the craft club what Annie is up to. Sometimes I want to stick tape over her mouth. She likes to do cross stitch.

Mary Beth Brock: Owner of A Stitch in Time, the craft shop of Stoney Point. This sounds like one big honking craft store because she specializes in yarn, cross stitch, quilting fabrics and anything else that people come in for. She's never been married but is motherly. I think she's somewhere in her fifties.

Kate Stevens: Employee at A Stitch in Time. Kate is a master fashion crochet designer and the mother of a teenage girl. She's also divorced from a fairly difficult man. Kate's nice. Doesn't create waves. She's learned to stand her ground. Thirty-something.

Gwendolyn Palmer: Always immaculately dressed. Always socially busy. Gwendolyn is fifties or sixties. She does a lot of charity knitting.

Stella Brickson: Think elderly society woman. She has a chauffeur (Jason) who drives her about and opens car doors for her. Stella crochets as well and sniffs at needlework because it isn't practical. She's prickly. She comes from New York city. She has opinions that she thinks everyone should adhere to. She's hard to get to know.

Peggy Carson: Peggy is a waitress at the town diner "The Cup and Saucer". She has a handyman husband and a little girl. Peggy is somewhere in her twenties. She likes to do hand quilting. She's also the town gossip. She keeps her ears open where she works and she's happy to share information. Turns out she can be quite bossy.

Annie's Family

Betsy Holden: Now deceased, she left everything to her only granddaughter, Annie. Betsy was an acclaimed cross stitch designer, a keeper of things, and a friend to all.

LeeAnn Sorenson: Annie's adult daughter who's a pain in the butt. LeeAnn is always whining that she wants Annie to come home and chastises her for doing the things she does. I keep wondering why Annie tells her things because LeeAnn never approves of anything. LeeAnn has young twins John and Joanna, who she uses as guilt and bait to get Annie to leave her new life and come home to Texas where she's ignored.

Other Characters:

Ian Butler: The town mayor. He's a recent widower who has taken a liking to Annie and always seems to show up at the right time. Annie can get him to do anything for her and he knows everyone.

Wally Carson: Annie's handyman who helps her fix up Grey Gables and Peggy's husband. Wally is always short of money and is on the look out for ways to make it honestly. He's also a fine wood craftsman.

Boots: Betsy Holden's spoiled cat that Annie inherited along with the house. Boots has been known to help find treasures.

Books in the Series

The ones that have colored text I have read and reviewed and you can click on the titles to follow the link. The others are waiting their turn. Thanks to Cozy Mystery List for the info. This is a fabulous site where you can find all kinds of lists for cozy mysteries. To get the Annie's Attic Mysteries series and other series from Annie's Attic, you can go to Annie's Fiction Series. You sign up and they send you a book a month in order. At this point there are five different series to choose from.

The books are well done. Beautiful dust jackets which cover a lovely hardbound book. They look nice with or without the cover depending on the look you want on your bookshelves. And they come with a sewn in matching ribbon bookmark which is a really nice touch. The type is also easy to read.

1. The Lady in the Attic by Tara Randel
2. Medals in the Attic by Cathy Elliott
3. The Photo Album by Marlene Chase
4. Letters in the Attic by DeAnna Julie Dodson
5. The Package by Sharon Dunn
6. The Map in the Attic by Jolyn Sharp
7. Rag Doll in the Attic by Jan Fields
8. Boxed In by Karen Kelly
9. The Deed In the Attic by K.D. McCrite
10. Emeralds in the Attic by Jan Fields
11. The Wedding Dress by Mary O’Donnell
12. The Valise In the Attic by Jan Fields
13. The Unfinished Sonata by K.D. McCrite
14. The Stolen Canvas by Marlene Chase
15. A Man of His Word by Karen Kelly
16. The Key in the Attic by DeAnna Julie Dodson
17. Road Trip! by Jan Fields
18. The Tapestry in the Attic by Mary O’Donnell
19. Gunns and Roses by Karen Kelly
20. The Legend of Fuller’s Island by Jan Fields (aka Ghost Island)
21. A Stony Point Christmas by K.D. McCrite
22. A Spicy Secret by D. Savannah George
23. The Cats & the Riddle by Jan Fields
24. Jazzed by Donna Kelly
25. The Diary in the Attic by DeAnna Julie Dodson
26. Angels in the Attic by Mary O’Donnell
27. Wild Things by Karen Kelly
28. The Kennel Caper by Jan Fields
29. The Legacy in the Attic by DeAnna Julie Dodson
30. Ring in the Attic by K.D. McCrite