Stockings and Spells (Vampire Knitting Club, #4) by Nancy Warren

Stockings and Spells (Vampire Knitting Club, #4) Reviews

• 
  Amber J

  Ok, so this one loses a star for the predictability. The author tried to divert attention to others but I suspected the killer right away and I was right. Other than that it was a good story. My favorite part of this series is the side stuff. The relationships, romance, knitting, witchcraft, vampires, and the store. It's a cute and quick read and I'll be continuing the series.
• 
  Lena

  An entertaining murder mystery centering around a Tolkien like author who may have stolen the work of his friend Sanderson! Fantasy fans will enjoy the references.
  
  What I did not enjoy was the lazy witch who is not so nice to her awesome vampire friends! Also, I know these are light UF stories but I’m missing the sexy time. I will just remind myself that Anita Blake didn’t get laid until book six.
• 
  Bea

  Do those vampires do anything besides knit? And help Lucy solve murders.
  
  A good installment and finally some forward motion in Lucy's love life. An engaging story though I missed Lucy's grandma, who had a much smaller role this time around.
  
  The proofreading was once again poorly done but not as badly as it was in book two.
  
  Still a fun and interesting series with a nice update on vampires.
• 
  Rachel (Kalanadi)

  3.5 stars
• 
  Emmalynn

  Lucy is turning into a know it all who is telling the police how to do their jobs 🙄🙄, not a good look Lucy, while at the same time keeping secrets. The mystery was once again away from the shop, not much interactions with the vampires or the “knitting club” instead, Lucy is trying to help solve the near murder of a new friend.
  
  
• 
  ⛧ Stephanie

  So idk what it is but I love these silly little books. They're not "good" per se, but they are delightful.
• 
  Nella ☾ of Bookland

  I really liked this mystery and I'm digging the slow burn with Rafe and Lucy. Can't wait for them to be a thing.
• 
  Anna's Herding Cats

  I had a good time with Stockings and Spells. A little danger. A little holiday spirit. A little murder. What's not to love?
  
  The Gist: The vampires have talked Lucy into having a knitting booth at the Christmas fair. Alls well until a fellow shopkeeper is nearly murdered! With the police coming up fairly empty handed Lucy and Rafe take to the streets to hunt down the truth.
  
  I continue to enjoy Lucy. She's a little bit of a mess with everything --knitting and witching-- but she's endearing and never gives up. Does what's right and has such a good heart.
  
  The vampires a bit silly and obsessed with knitting but they're cute and hard not to love, too. And the guys. Well Lucy has two of them and I want her to keep them both. The mortal cop and the sexy vampire. Both are good guys and I've enjoyed them.
  
  The mystery was nicely done. A shopkeep nearly killed. Ties to a decades old case of plagiarism that shot someone to world wide fame. Lots of little elements and curiosities. It was fun watching it all come together.
  
  My only complaint with the whole series, really, other than wanting a smidge more romance is the editing. It's a little dicey.
• 
  Leeanne

  This was so much better than the third book
  Crochet and Cauldrons. I didn’t immediately know who the murderer was like how I did the moment they appeared in book 3. This mystery kept me guessing and I couldn’t decide who was the most likely to have done the evil deed.
  
  I really do love this series. Every time I start one of these books it’s very hard to not devour it in one go. I love all the characters. Meri and Gemma were wonderful additions to this story. I hope Meri will stay a little longer before leaving for her Egypt trip that Lucy doubts she’ll return from. I was a bit disappointed with the lack of magic in this story, but at least Lucy’s magical instincts are getting stronger. I’m glad that her cousin Violet has joined the knitting shop staff so that she can help Lucy with her magic. Rafe is also helpful Lucy feel more confident with her magic.
  
  I love that The Chronicles of Pangnirtung stories were inspired by Inuit mythology. It reminded me that Nancy Warren is a Canadian author! I wish The Chronicles of Pangnirtung were real so that I could read them. They sound very interesting!
• 
  Micky Cox

  The holiday market is in full swing, Lucy is making a new friend and then an attempted murder followed by a murder throws a wrench into Lucy's life. She must hurry to figure out what is going on before her new found friendship is over before it can blossom. Excellent characters wrapped into a fantastic plot to make for an entertaining read or in my case, listen! I am quite enjoying this series and can't wait to listen to the next!
• 
  A Voracious Reader (a.k.a. Carol)

  Book source ~ Kindle Lending Library
  
  Lucy Swift’s friends in the Vampire Knitting Club want to participate in the Oxford Holiday Market. They don’t need her to knit any products (thank goodness) or run the booth or do anything at all really. They just need her to sign up for the booth in her name and attend the market meetings. Because, well, they’re vampires. Lucy agrees (how could she deny her friends?) and the knitted items are a huge hit. The vampires can knit super fast, so once all of their stockpile has sold, they churn out more things to sell, especially the extra long and exquisite stockings that are going like hotcakes. When the nice woman in the booth across from theirs is attacked it’s up to Lucy and her amateur sleuthing vampires to figure out who could have done such a thing and make sure Gemma is safe in the hospital while she recovers. However, Lucy’s friend (and possible love interest?), Detective Inspector Ian Chisholm, may have some words about how Lucy is always right in the middle of all the action and not in a way that’s good for his blood pressure.
  
  This series just tickles my fancy and I do believe each book is getting better than the last. The writing is tighter and the plot is more twisty. Lucy is getting better at running Cardinal Woolsey’s, her grandmother’s knitting shop, and she’s more comfortable around her vampire knitting club. She’s still dragging her feet about her magic abilities and that’s a little irksome, but understandable, considering the oops moments that have happened. There’s two possible romantic interests for her though both have their stumbling blocks and each book inches Lucy closer to having to make a decision. I’m in no hurry for her to though. Lucy makes a friend in this installment and I hope Gemma sticks around.
  
  I just love everything about these books and I can’t wait to read the next one and see what kind of “trouble” Lucy gets into next.
  
• 
  William

  Overview: Another short mystery based in an Oxford that has secret magic users and an underground Vampire Knitting Club. This time the story is based around a Christmas market, hand knitted stockings, and a fantasy author called Sanderson.
  
  After 1st Reading: Be prepared for just enough mystery to keep it interesting, but nothing to be too worrying. You know the cat, the handsome detective, or the helpful knitting vampires will be there to help sort things out in the end.
  
  After 2nd Reading: I think this may be one of my favorite of the series, and this is a series that feels like comfort food for the eyeballs. It is best enjoyed with a good cup of tea, some biscuits and preferably a big, cozy, wooly jumper.
• 
  Nicky

  This time around, Lucy is faced with a slightly different mystery from the usual: theft and plagiarism!
  I found this story to be more compelling than the previous ones. However, the narrative would benefit from fewer detailed descriptions of what the main character is wearing and more focus on the interactions between the characters. At this point, the supposed lingering attraction between Ian/Rafe and Lucy is very much an informed attribute rather than an actual romance. They have no chemistry whatsoever.
• 
  Kimberly #Audiofile

  theres a kiss in this one!
  talk about a slow burn romance .... cannot help but think its with the wrong guy tho!
  another strange mystery, another couple of assistants.
  3.5 stars -
• 
  Shelly

  The 4th installment of
  Nancy Warren’s Vampire Knitting Club series is as fun to read as the previous 3 books.
  Stockings and Spells is set at Christmas time in Oxford, England. The knitting vampires want to have a booth at the holiday market. Their creations are piling up and they want to donate their proceeds to a charity. So, as long as they promise to stay well fed from their blood bank and not holiday shoppers, Lucy thinks it could be a good idea.
  Lucy befriends a young woman that has a stall across the street from Timeless Treasures, the knitters’ stall. Her name is Gemma, she is not from Oxford and her handmade soaps, bath oils and lotions are doing so well her stall is swamped. Lucy notices that Gemma is overwhelmed and doesn’t have any help so she goes to the woman’s booth, slides in next to Gemma and starts help ringing up sales. The two women become fast friends so when Lucy returns to the Timeless Treasures booth after dark and the market has closed, and sees a shadowy figure run from the area of Gemma’s booth, Lucy goes over to be sure the booth is secure. However, Lucy finds the door ajar, caught up in a knitted Christmas stocking from her own booth. Lucy pushes the door open to find Gemma on the ground with the stocking wrapped around her neck. Lucy’s sense of right and justice pushed her to figure out who has done this terrible thing to her new friend. Of course sexy 600 year old vampire, Rafe is at her side to help.
  There is more than one mystery to solve in
  Stockings and Spells and it was fun to be along for the ride.
  
• 
  Jillian

  Stockings and Spells is book 4 of the Vampire Knitting Club series. In this book, Lucy puts her PI skills to use by helping to solve theft, plagiarism, and murder. I predicted who the murderer was. It was pretty obvious despite the clear attempts of misdirection with several potential suspects. Lucy also got her first kiss of the series! There seems to be a bit of a love triangle being setup of the past couple books, but in this book, things with Ian progressed to a kiss.
  
  I have been binging this series and haven’t been reviewing them in between each book. Some overall observations from the series so far (I have finished through book 8.5 and am partway through book 9) are that the stories are always cute and good for a short escape. I really enjoy the characters and have a vested interest in them. Something I have noticed, though, is that there isn’t continuity between books and the books really could have benefited from a proofreader. For example, in book 1, Lucy is 27 but in book 6, she has her 26th birthday. In one of the books, Rafe is at least 600 years old, but in the next book, he is only 500 years old. Occasionally there is an incorrect name used but I always know what was meant so it doesn’t confuse me or make it so that I can’t continue. Another thing that is missing, at least to the point I am at now, is any real information about the vampires. We don’t get to know anything about their abilities, only that they are vampires who feed via a blood bank. Even with the inconsistencies, I am hooked on the series and enjoy these easy-going, clean, cozy mysteries. It is a nice palette cleanser from the smutty stuff I typically enjoy.
  
  The narrator is the same throughout the series and she does a great job.
  
• 
  Krystyna

  Misdirection and misrepresentation
  
  Fabulous. Loved the storyline and the thought that had gone into making it a cohesive read. Plus the characters are gaining strength as the move through the books. Although as always wish it had been harder to spot the ' baddie '.
  The vampires are keen to set up a stall at the Christmas market and although they try to make it sound as if they need her help, they've already set everything in motion to make it happen. All they need from her is to finalise the actual arrangements. Their stall is next to one selling homemade soaps and beauty/bath products. She makes friends with the young woman running the stall and one night saves her from being murdered. As she and Rafe investigate who could have done it. They come across two things - a stalker and an old case of stolen manuscripts. Did her father really write the famous trilogy that has made one man a lot of money and a professor at one of the Oxford colleges. Mix in an attempted hit and run, a couple of murders, arson and a young woman in a coma. Will she come out of the coma? Who actually wrote the trilogy? Who is the killer?
• 
  Carol

  I do enjoy this series of gently silly mysteries, but occasionally there's a tiny detail that snags like a broken fingernail - in this book, it's a British character talking about "going to school" at Oxford University. Ouch.
  
  Note for American authors - in Britain, "going to school" is never used for anything above HIgh School equivalent. If we go on to Further Education, we go to college, go to uni or we study at a particular place. It's a tiny distinction, but getting it wrong makes it immediately obvious that you're Not From Here.
  
  And for those inevitably complaining that I can accept vampires and witches, but not this - well, you can make up your own rules when you're writing vampires and witches, for the most part. But to make them believable you have to start from a solid basis of reality. And when you get *that* wrong, it undermines things.
• 
  Jean

  This hit all the right notes for me.
  Christmas themed. Check.
  Vampires. Check.
  Cozy mystery. Check.
  Writers. Check
  
  Taking place before Christmas, this mystery can stand alone, although it is best read in order. Yes, there are vampires, but they don't really play front and center in this book. Instead we have a couple of mysteries to solve -- who almost murdered our heroine's new friend and why. The author does play fair with the reader, so I tried to guess along the way. I thoroughly enjoyed this book and bought the sequel.
  
  I'd recommend this to fans of cozy mysteries who like a touch of the paranormal or to those who find crocheting or knitting in their list of hobbies.
• 
  Rachel

  Happy to report that even though I was less than impressed and disappointed with the last installment, the series is back in its usual cozy and fun form! I really liked this one, had a bunch of easy fun with it and I decided to pick it up so soon after the previous one due to its well timed holiday theme.
• 
  J.H. Moncrieff

  4.5
  
  I love this author, and I adore this series. If you love cozy mysteries and are into the paranormal, these books are perfect.
  
  This one would be a fantastic Christmas read, as it takes place during the Oxford Christmas market. The mystery aspect to these books just gets better with each one--the plot tighter, and the ending always satisfying. The characters are wonderful, especially Rafe the vampire, and somehow Lucy neatly sidesteps the trap of the cozy protagonist. She never devolves into an insufferable busybody, and I hope that continues.
  
  I read her books way too fast, but thankfully discovered her late enough that there are many still before me. Thanks, Nancy!
• 
  Brenda

  I'm zipping right along in these. I like the stories and the narrator for the audio books. They aren't too long so it only takes a few days of commuting to/from work to get through one. I'm looking forward to more in the series.
• 
  Kate

  Loved the setting of a Winter Market, the mystery of who really wrote the books, and Gemma.
• 
  Megan

  This was good.
  
  I do really enjoy these mysteries. The paranormal side is quite small but still nice addition.
• 
  Linniegayl

  This series still sounds weird (vampires who knit) but it continues to be delightful. I liked the mystery, and enjoyed a few new characters that were introduced.
• 
  K Whatsherface

  4 for 4 of guessing the killer!! Probably means these books are predictable. Do I care? No. These are fun. As can be seen by how many of these books I've read
• 
  Heather-Lin

  I struggled with this one by the end. I ADORED the first half with the Holiday Market, but found the murder mystery somewhat tedious. It was predictable of course, but what I found actively frustrating was this odd portrayal of Lucy making assumptions and assertions all over the place. Perhaps to create a "teaching opportunity" from the detective / love interest? If this is going to signal the beginning of a legitimate character development arc for Lucy, then I sincerely hope we'll see her become just as clever and observant as the best detectives. She's been kinda oblivious to dangerous elements around her up to this point (see book #3 in particular).
  
  There were some references to mental health in this book which I took special notice of.
  
  There's a student described as being so absorbed that he missed social cues, that perhaps in this day and age he might be considered as on the spectrum. All good. There's also some nice nuance in there about how this affected his social capital and therefore credibility when there was some controversy. He did not have the charisma of the other more popular people involved. Very believable.
  
  On the other hand, there is another character that is described as romantically obsessive, who threatens suicide when faced with a breakup, and begins to stalk the ex. Okay, pretty intense and scary! Sadly, this makes this character the perfect scapegoat. I don't particularly expect people with borderline personality disorder or attachment disorders to be given great compassionate mental health rep. Unfortunately our main character Lucy models an attitude that is all too common. She uses his threat of suicide as proof that: he's crazy, and therefore deranged, and therefore a confirmed villain. I wish that this particular story element would've been strongly linked to the "teaching opportunity" element - they would've redeemed and elevated each other.
• 
  Teri-K

  I'm so happy to see this book has bounced back from the previous not-quite-as-good one! The focus returns to the mystery, not the magic, and it's a very Oxford mystery at that. It revolves around another famous fantasy trilogy, written by a student at Oxford and published shortly after he graduated. Years later the authorship of the trilogy is under dispute and the situation turns violent.
  
  I really like the Christmasy setting, the stockings and booths of the fair, and Lucy's new friend. I also liked that magic was only a small part of the book and mostly it was about the mystery. I did suspect the baddie all the time, and I don't like the hints of a love triangle in the series. But I really enjoyed everything else about this book.
• 
  Silverluna

  :)