Two Purloined Pillows

It's been a little over a year since Shelby started managing Nina's Nimble Needle following her office-romance and career implosion. Next, Shelby is excited to oversee two well-known needlepoint designers who will be participating in the town's first two-week-long arts festival . . .

Laura Bitters and Paul Bardo have each stitched up one-of-a-kind pillows that should be big wins for the Nimble Needle at the festival's auction . . . until the pillows vanish amid a sudden string of shoplifting incidents.

Laura proves highly anxious, while Paul is an egomaniac who believes Laura has been stealing his customers for years. But things go from bad to tragic when Laura behaves oddly at the auction dinner, then collapses—dead.

Resolved to piece together the truth, Shelby rallies her personal team, including her sister, Jessica, her friend Deb, and Jake, her potentially more than a friend. As an extra twist, a magazine reporter arrives with unsettling—yet useful—dirt that includes Laura and Paul.

What unravels is a skein of suspects, long-held resentment, bitter jealousy, and betrayal, from which Shelby will have to pull the one crucial thread tied to the killer: a murder-worthy motive . . .

©2026 Alyse Stanko Pleiter

Delightful story.

Allie Pleiter is an exceptional writer and storyteller. Her characters are entertaining and witty, This cozy mystery is so unique with a delightful twist at the end. I am looking for her next sequel.