Last Wool and Testament

by Peggy Ehrhart

Author Peggy Ehrhart is a multi-talented person as is reflected in her writing. A former professor with a Ph.D. in Medieval Literature, her writing is excellent. I usually get quickly bored with novels that describe repeatedly and at great length what the characters are eating and the locations of their dining experiences. This is not the case with the Knit and Nibble Mystery series. Although the protagonist Pamela Paterson has the same toast and coffee every morning, all the other meals, even the simple ones, are beautifully described with interesting details.

The author is also very interested in crafts, so Pamela is a work-from-home associate editor of Fiber Craft magazine. She reviews books for the publication and chooses and edits submitted articles. She frequently works on pieces that involve archeology that show how the fiber arts have been important through the ages. 

Pamela with her friend and neighbor Bettina are the backbone of a group called Knit and Nibble who meet weekly in member homes to knit, chat, and enjoy a special dessert prepared by the host. Pamela and Bettina are frequently involved in various investigations when crimes occur in their town of Arborville, New Jersey. 

The Knit and Nibble series is one of the calmest, gentlest, cozy mystery series I have read. There are indeed murders to be solved—two in this book, but there is so much emphasis on friendship and community relationships that it is a low stress book. Pamela and Bettina follow some leads, but they don’t constantly put themselves in danger as the protagonists in many cozy mysteries often do. There is a big emphasis on looking at the mystery as a puzzle and putting the pieces together as they discover clues, often though observation.

In Last Wool and Testament, an artistic neighbor specializing in fiber arts is killed shortly before she was to have a showing at a local gallery. There are a number of possible suspects, but just as they narrow the field to one, he is also murdered! 

I received a complimentary copy of this book in exchange for an honest review. Opinions expressed in this review are completely my own.

Rating: 4/5

Category: Mystery

Notes: 1.This is the 12th book in the Knit and Nibble Mystery Series. I have not read all of them; but I have enjoyed a number of them, and I recommend the series. Reading some of the earlier novels would be helpful, but the author does give background to each character when they appear in this book.

  2. At the end of this book, the author includes information on Intarsia, a special knitting technique, and then refers the reader to her web page that has even more information along with illustrations.

3. She also has recipes for three of the dishes the Knit and Nibble group enjoy in the book and has photographs on her web page of the steps involved in cooking them.

Publication:   April 29, 2025—Kensington

Memorable Lines:

Two pieces remained, themselves quite inviting—each edged with a puffy ridge of golden-brown crust, layered with mozzarella-streaked tomato sauce, and dotted with lustrous rounds of pepperoni…Then he flipped the box’s lid back to release an aroma that combined tomato, garlic, and olive oil with the seductive lure of fresh-baked yeasty dough.

Pamela hadn’t actually thought that until she heard herself say it. Clearly, the act of walking had set her mind free to roam as well, and it had been mulling over the journal images she had studied anew before heading out the door.

By the time all six dishes had been filled, the layered chunks of pudding remaining in the compote evoked a stratified landscape disrupted by a seismic upheaval.