Suede to Rest by Diane Vallere Guest Post, Giveaway & Review

Suede to Rest
by Diane Vallere

This is a fast paced story that has entertaining characters, great dialogue and a well-written cozy mystery. I was drawn in right from the beginning.
~Brooke Blogs

Ms. Vallere does an excellent job introducing us to Poly, her family history and the story behind “Land of A Thousand Fabrics”… I really enjoyed it and can’t wait to read the next installment, Crushed Velvet when it comes out.
~Queen of All She Reads

The plot will keep you captive with great characters and a town painted so vividly you will feel like you are there…
~Shelley’s Book Case

This is truly an awesome beginning for a new series… It’s full of intrigue. The characters are well developed. And I loved them all.
~Booklady’s Booknotes

This was a cozy that kept my attention from the time I picked it up until I finally put it down.
~Melina’s Book Blog

I will go so far as to call this an innovation in cozy mysteries. Make no mistake, I have enjoyed every cozy I have read so far, and Suede to Rest added a new refreshing twist that made me sit up and ‘take notice’.
~Back Porchervations

I really loved this book! … Great new series, one to definitely check out. We give it 5 paws up!
~Storeybook Reviews

This is an amazing debut. Diane Vallere has introduced us to some very strong characters and the plot is full of unexpected twists. I was totally drawn into this story and it held on tight.
~Escape With Dollycas Into A Good Book

A wonderful cast of characters …
~Mochas, Mysteries and Meows

Suede to Rest
(A Material Witness Mystery)
Cozy Mystery
Brand New Series
Mass Market Paperback: 304 pages
Publisher: Berkley (November 4, 2014)
ISBN-13: 978-0425270578
E-Book ASIN: B00JJXV198

Synopsis

When Poly Monroe was little, she loved playing in her family’s textile store. But after a fatal family tragedy, Land of A Thousand Fabrics was boarded up and Poly never expected to see the inside again. Now, as inheritor of the long-shuttered shop, she’s ready to restore the family business. However her two new kittens, Pins and Needles, aren’t the ones causing a snag in her plans…

Not everyone wants Poly back in San Ladrón, especially a powerful local developer pressuring her to sell—and leave town fast. But even when the threats turn deadly, she’s not ready to bolt. Because Poly is beginning to suspect that the murder behind the shop is tied to a mystery in her family’s unsettled past that she’s determined to solve…before her own life is left hanging by a thread.

About This Author

After close to two decades working for a top luxury retailer, Diane Vallere traded fashion accessories for accessories to murder. SUEDE TO REST, the first in her new Material Witness Mystery Series, comes out November 4. In addition, she writes the Style & Error Mystery Series, featuring former fashion buyer Samantha Kidd, and the Mad for Mod Mystery Series, featuring Doris Day-loving interior decorator Madison Night. Diane started her own detective agency at age ten and has maintained a passion for shoes, clues, and clothes ever since. Find her at http://www.dianevallere.com/.

Guest post:

Can Do Spirit

It would be easy to write Polyester Monroe as a knockoff of Samantha Kidd, the character in my Style & Error series, but I didn’t want to do that. Samantha, a former fashion buyer for a luxury store in New York, is a clotheshorse. Writing her is like getting to play dress up with a never-ending closet of clothes acquired over decades. She’s the Barbie doll of my mysteries.

Poly Monroe also has ties to the fashion industry, though at the opposite end of the spectrum. A design school graduate, she now works for a pageant dress shop owned and operated by a man with questionable morals. Poly learned quickly that the demands of her job—fixing sewing machines, gluing trim onto flammable fabrics, pushing rolling rods of samples to local showrooms—were easier achieved when wearing a disposable and nondescript wardrobe of black. Her 5’9” stature keeps her mostly in flats, which also help keep her klutziness mostly under control.

Early on in my training as a buyer, someone pointed out that the skill set for our job was half-creative and half analytical. A light bulb went off over our collective heads. Until that point, I’d been pulled between those two worlds as if I had to neatly fit into one or the other. Finally I’d found a place where I could rely on both. What I wanted for Poly was to explore that balance. Show that she could be creative enough to sketch out a collection of dresses for the seamstresses in the workroom to turn out into garments, but also that she understood what was needed to run a business. The light bulb goes on for her when she first considers reopening the fabric store that she inherits.

I enjoyed giving Poly the opportunity to step up and show that she had determination and drive. The more people try to convince her to sell the store and move on, the more she thinks about doing just the opposite. There is a power in saying, “I can do this,” and that’s the power I gave Poly. I hope you cheer her on, and maybe take a page from her can-do spirit and attempt something challenging yourself!

Author Links

web: http://www.dianevallere.com/

Twitter: @dianevallere

FB: dianevallereauthor

GR: Diane Vallere

Purchase Links
Amazon    B&N

My Review:

This was a really interesting read. There were plenty of puns, like polyester and a material witness, that kept me reading and looking for more. It was interesting that Poly had memories come back, and yet she also met new people in the town as well. I would love to inherit an old fabric and sewing shop. There is a craft project in the back of the book to make your own throw pillows! I liked the cover with the cats too! It reminded me of when I sew and my cats play with the thread! The ending was good, and I liked that this is the first book in a new series. I am giving this book a 4/5. I was given a copy to review, however all opinions are my own.

Giveaway

I am also giving away 1 Print Copy of this book, open to US only. Please enter here:

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