A good book. Well written with great characters and a good plot. The storyline flows and the mystery is enjoyable. I highly recommend.,

The highland games are in town and there just may be more to delve into than the games. Fun cozy mystery

The Highland Games theme was fun, and having poisoned whiskey made the premise play out even more. Daria is a great character and this continues to be a fun cozy series.

Another excellent edition to a wonderful series! Full of twists and turns that leaves you wanting more and enjoying each moment until the end when the killer is caught.

Princess Fuzzypants here: I enjoy books that can weave history into their fictional narrative. Daria, being a historical seamstress, gets involved in a combination of these two things. This time, she is caught up in the time of the Rising and Bonnie Prince Charlie. She may have witnessed the actions of the killer who poisoned one of the contestants in the caber toss at a HIghland Games. The problem is she is not sure which of four possibilities is the one. It doesn’t help that one of them shares her house.
The nosy seamstress, as her friend has labelled her, tries to sort through the backstories of all of them. She is not exactly subtle nor is she adept but, she is effective. Unfortunately, when all is revealed, her life is on the line. She uses some unusual means to escape. It leads to a fast and exciting conclusion.
This combining of history with fiction has its challenges. Often the historical revelations and stories end up being more interesting than the current day ones. There is a fascinating twist here where a best selling author meets Daria and thinks she is the embodiment of his heroine.. It is all flattering and creepy at the same time. The convergence of the stories heightened my enjoyment of the book. It didn’t hurt that I had guessed the perp long before the end.
I am a cat and my Momma was born with ten thumbs so neither of us sew but we both found Daria’s creation of an authentic kilt for a friend most interesting. We enjoyed all the Scottish background information as well. We know Outlander fans will enjoy this story.
I give it four purrs and two paws up.

The Highland Games have come to Laurel Heights, PA and Daria is using it to advance her business of being a historical seamstress. As she works the booth housing her wares her roommate, Aileen, has sent a bandmate to Daria asking for a real kilt to be created for a bagpipe competition. As Daria watches the games and looks at all the different kilts one of the athletes collapses during a competition. Daria finds herself, yet again, in the middle of investigating a murder.

I happened upon this series by accident one day reviewing NetGalley and am so glad I did. All three books have been enjoyable. I love how the author, Greta McKennan, weaves in history without making it dry and boring. The history in this book is probably one of my least favorite time periods but I was totally enthralled in learning about Scotland and the history of kilts and what haggis is and how it is made (I'm pretty sure I will never try it!).

You have the most unlikely group of characters with straight-laced Daria, hard rocker roommate Aileen, and ex-con brother Pete but it works beautifully. All the characters meld together to make a great team when it comes time to solve the crime.

This series has a light touch of romance but nothing over bearing and is a clean read. The most gruesome might be the initial death scenes but nothing too harsh. I would recommend this series to any cozy mystery read, new or experienced.

I received a complimentary copy of this book from Kensington/Lyrical Underground through NetGalley. Any and all opinions expressed are entirely my own.

This is such a delightful series ! . I have enjoyed the entire series and highly recommend this next in series. It is a lesson in Scottish history with each book that makes this such fun to read. This author has written with great detail the sewing, Scottish dances and historical traditions through this next in series.

Our protagonist Daria is a bridal gown seamstress in a small town in Pennsylvania who has expanded her business to historical Scottish costumes. She has a booth at the First Annual Highland Games with her friend Letty. Each of them are advertising their respective business. . Trouble occurs with certain game attendees and soon the worse happens. When a murder occurs Daria wants to help. Her friend reporter Sean joins in and together they soon find four suspects and clues a plenty in many different directions.

I enjoy this series for the well written historical information, the charming small town and the supporting charcters. The sleuth was very well rounded and included many charcters that added to the story. Very well done to the author. I look forward to the next in series.
Thank you for the ARC which does not influence my review.

Royally Dead

Gretta McKennan


This book is the third in a series about a seamstress of bridal gowns who has decided she wants to add more to her business. She becomes an historical seamstress, making period pieces for different events. In Royally Dead Daria Dembroski is selling her period pieces at an event celebrating Scottish history and folklore. Surrounded by many people involved in the games and contests, Ladd Foster, famous log thrower (one of the highland games) collapses and dies right before his last toss. Daria is thrust into the middle of a murder mystery.


Even though this book is the third in a series, it can be read as a stand alone. The characters are interesting and the story line is engaging. I thoroughly enjoyed the history included in the story. It made me interested in learning more about Scottish history. If you enjoy cozy mysteries with a dose of history, this series may be the one you want to check out. It's worth your time.

I will leave a 4 star review on Amazon under name of Connie.

Thanks for granting me access to this book.

Historical seamstress Daria Dembrowski is enjoying her booth at the local Highland Games. She's never sewed a kilt, but she's busy selling stuffed versions of the Loch Ness Monster and bow ties in traditional tartan and hoping to attract some new customers who want custom clothing. Then one of the competitors winds up dead...because this is a cozy mystery and there's got to be a murder to solve.



And that's where this one was different from most of the cozies I've been reading lately. We get a chance to meet the victim while he's still alive and to see exactly who might want him dead and why. There are a few strong suspects and they've all got motives that make a lot of sense. Even the one who I was sure definitely didn't do it had me a bit nervous by the end of the book. All of the subplots tie together.



I've read all three books in the series and look forward to spending more hours reading about Daria and her friends.

Royally Dead

by Greta McKennan

Daria, a seamstress in little Laurel Springs, Pennsylvania, expanded her business to include historical sewing. As Royally Dead opens, she is at the First Annual Highland Games where she and her friend Letty, who owns an antique shop, are manning their booth to make sales, let people know about their businesses, and support the local community. The reader is introduced to a lot of interesting characters, and Daria and Letty get into more than they bargained for as they witness a manly contestant who just can’t seem to stay out of trouble: flirting with an underage girl, arguing with a famous author, angering one of Daria’s roommates, and continuing a long-standing conflict with another contestant.

Greta McKennan’s Royally Dead is full of sewing, historical mysteries, and Scottish dancing woven throughout a good whodunit. Suspicion falls on four characters, all of whom have both motive and opportunity. So, in this cozy mystery we have four interesting stories playing out as Daria tries to help people and solve the murder. Her friend, Sean McCarthy, a congenial newspaper reporter, is always willing to help and accompanies her on many of her adventures. He affectionately refers to her as the “nosy seamstress.”

There is lots of information about Scottish customs, clothing, and traditions, as well as history surrounding Bonnie Prince Charlie and the Battle of Culloden. Just as interesting, is the information about sewing and some of the difficulties inherent in hand sewing without a pattern. Also I was excited to pay a visit with Daria to the local museum to see a kilt worn in the battle in 1746 and a bridal gown from the 1750’s in an archival room in the basement of the museum.

This cozy mystery provides a good time right up to the end as the spotlight shines on various suspects. There are even some surprises as backgrounds and relationships come to light.

I would like to extend my thanks to netgalley.com and to Lyrical Underground (Kensington Press) for giving me the opportunity to read this book in exchange for an honest review.

Rating: 5/5

Category: Mystery

Notes: Royally Dead is #3 in the Stitch in Time Mystery Series. When the first two books in this series were published, I passed on the opportunity to read them as ARC’s. What a mistake! Although I had no problem reading Royally Dead as a standalone, I really liked the characters and would enjoy learning more about them in the previous two books. Author Greta McKennan achieved success in the difficult task of combining interesting characters with a good plot.

Publication: September 11, 2018—Kensington Press (Lyrical Underground)

Memorable Lines:

…the old-fashioned handwriting was very hard to read. I was glad I had persisted in learning cursive writing in the third grade, even though my teacher had made it optional because he didn’t see much use for beautiful penmanship when a computer could do the trick. But my cursive training certainly helped me to read this historical document.

Aileen set down her glass and looked me in the eye. I tried to keep eye contact without flinching. After a couple of hours—or maybe just thirty seconds or so—she picked up her sandwich again.

If small-town life was like living in a fishbowl, living in Laurel Springs was like taking that fishbowl and setting it up on a table in the middle of the most popular restaurant in town on a Friday night.

He's a big man and he usually wins in the games. He's been accused of cheating but he just brushes that off. Besides throwing trees around, he likes to drink. When his flask is left in the tent closest to the competition, he goes in for another snort. That one turns out to be fatal...

Lyrical Books and Net Galley let me read this book for review (thank you). It is being published today.

Someone laced his booze with torch fuel. She'd been watching the people going in and out of the tent and couldn't imagine anyone of them killing him. But someone did.

As she traces what few clues she has, she checks into the dead man' background and his family. She's amazed to find his heredity went all the way back to Prince Charles.

She makes the mistake of telling the wrong man and she's suddenly found her killer. Will she manage to evade him and stay alive? Read the book to find out!

Enjoyable and entertaining!
A tale with unique characters and a sense of camaraderie that could border in romance; with an intriguing plot that will have you glued till the very end.

My first introduction to this series, I found Daria to be both intriguing and empathetic, while the lesser-known and unknown tidbits from history that made their way into the story added both interest and ‘I didn’t know that’ moments. The over-arching set up here is the Highland Games, and Daria is attending as a vendor, while soaking up as much of the action as time allows. And there is plenty of that: an author with a newly released and popular fictional tale of Bonnie Prince Charlie who’s taken a fancy to Daria, her roommate Aileen there to perform with her band knows (perhaps well enough to argue with) one of the highly touted contestants, another of her bandmates Corgi, wants a kilt to wear while trying his hand at the games – since the cheap one he already has will cost him points as inappropriate. If that’s not enough, she’s also in the midst of designing a wedding gown with a nod to Scotland, and a chance meeting with a local historian offers her the chance to see a dress in the archive of the museum, with a diary – both belonging to a well-known former resident.

Sure – the twists and turns are deep in this one – but the way that McKennan wove them all together – each thread building and extending from the initial whole cloth that is the games and Daria’s participation. From there – each story branches out to have its own character that is the focal point – all stemming from the connection to Daria. From Ladd’s poisoned whiskey death to Aileen’s landing in the prime suspect position with Daria’s knowledge that she couldn’t be the killer AND her willingness to dig deeper which places her in harm’s way keep this fast-paced whodunit dig for the truth moving quickly forward. When you add in the historic elements about tartans, the rules for clothing for Highland Games participants, food, bagpipes and even a bit about the Bonnie Prince, there isn’t a ton of time to lose interest or feel overwhelmed, so good are the introductions of new elements, questions and facts. Of course the culprit was completely obvious when revealed, with ‘reasoning’ that made sense, if one is a killer. I didn’t find that I was confused or lost jumping into this series partway through, and thought the character of Daria had a solid mix of curiosity, sense and a cleverly constructed occupation that allowed for plenty of interest to a reader. A perfect getaway cozy read that has me interested in the earlier titles in the series.

I received an eArc copy of the title from the publisher via NetGalley for purpose of honest review. I was not compensated for this review: all conclusions are my own responsibility.

Review first appeared at <a href=” https://wp.me/p3OmRo-a1k/” > <a> I am, Indeed </a>

Who poisoned Ladd? Not Aileen, surely. This is a nicely done installment in a fun cozy series featuring Daria, who is of all things, a seamstress who specializes in historical costumes (for want of better word.). This adds an extra zip to the books because you learn a bit about a period and place in time, in this case Scotland. There are bagpipes, Bonnie Prince Charles, kilts, and so on but this aspect never overwhelms the story. Daria's a fun heroine, with a good sense of humor as well as of who might be a bad guy. Thanks to net galley for the ArC. The mystery isn't too twisty, the Laurel Springs setting is fun, and all in all, this is a good read.

a good story that includes history and the Scottish games. Add in sewing and a couple romances. Mix it all together for a good story. I liked the fictional author pushing his book.

Daria Dembrowski is a seamstress who is attending the Highland Games both as a vendor and a spectator when she finds out that her renter Aileen, singer and guitarist for the band Twisted Armpits, seems to know one of the game contestants, Ladd Foster. Their meeting doesn't seem to be a pleasant one, but Daria decides to stay out of the altercation.

The festivities are in high gear and she plans to be part of it, and that includes meeting the author Morris West, who has written a fictional book about Scotland's Bonnie Prince Charlie and when he meets Daria, envisions her as his heroine from his book named Catherine and continues to call her by that name, to her annoyance. Then Aileen's bandmate Corgi asks Daria if she will fashion a kilt for him, since he's learned to play the bagpipes and wants to enter the competitions - the one he has is a cheap knockoff and will not pass muster and even costs him points in performing.

But during the games Ladd suddenly collapses and falls dead and Daria, with her innate curiosity discovers the source which happens to be the flask he was drinking from during the day. While it seems he left the flask in a tent that was also visited by four others beside herself - including Aileen - she wonders which one hated him enough to kill him. But when the police arrive, the flask has disappeared from the tent, and now finding a killer as well as the weapon of choice could be very difficult indeed.

She's also creating a wedding gown with a tilt to Scotland for a friend, and a young girl named Gillian had an infatuation with Ladd, not to mention the girl's surly attitude could only make it worse; and at the last, she meets an employee of the Templeton museum who offers to let her see the wedding gown and diary of a long-ago resident of their town, Margaret Oliphant, the woman for whom the local college was named. Little does Daria know that once again her curiosity may bring her into mortal danger...

This is the third book in the series, and after reading the first two, I truly believe that Ms. McKennan has found her voice. While I have to be honest and say I wasn't enthralled with the first one, in this book the story line kept me riveted throughout.

While it may seem to some that there are several plot lines going at the same time, they are all (mostly) entwined and watching them come together is indeed a delight. We follow Daria as she innocently tries to complete the wedding dress and create an authentic Scottish kilt while not only participating in the Scottish celebration but watching it as well, while surreptitiously keeping an eye on the young Gillian in an effort to keep her out of harm's way.

Adding to this is the fact that Daria's tenant Aileen is suspected of killing Ladd, although Daria knows it's not possible. Aileen may act tough, but Daria knows there's a soft underbelly that wouldn't kill. So she sets out to look at the other suspects while trying to find out who had the best motive; even involving her maybe-boyfriend Sean McCarty, a newspaper photographer/reporter. (To be fair, he plays along with her willingly in the hopes he'll get a story).

For the most part I was highly entertained; Daria is evolving into a a woman who's coming into her own, who's becoming braver within herself and more circumspect with others, McCarthy is beginning to grow on me and I do love a man with a sense of humor; and while we learned a little more about Aileen's past, it still doesn't explain how she got to where she is today. (From one extreme to another?)

All in all, as I stated above, the plot line was very good and the story was written well. I enjoyed the twists and turns throughout the tale that brought everything together in the end, much like watching a fine tapestry being woven and delighting in the final product. When the killer was discovered (although I figured it out early on - but then again, I read a lot of these) and the reason for the murder revealed, it reminds us that even those that seem the most stable can often be the most insane around us.

Ms. McKennan is indeed learning her craft, and this, as the third book in the series, proves that fact. She has managed to give Daria and Sean life, and make us want to visit the small town of Laurel Springs, Pennsylvania. Her characters are becoming well-rounded and believable; and when I finished this book I realized I was ready for the next in the series and that's a very good thing. Recommended.

A charming addition to a delightful series. This one includes Scottish games, kilts, and wedding dresses. Interesting and entertaining.

Royally Dead is the next exciting addition to the wonderful series by Greta McKennan.
Daria Dembrowski is a seamstress who specializes in historical clothing. She is a strong, solid character that I have truly come to love.
In this installment of the Stitch in Time series, the Highland Games are in town, and Daria is there, watching the games, when someone suddenly becomes ill.
Was it an accidental death or was it murder, and why is Daria's roommate involved?
I was captivated by the mystery and all the history that filled the pages of this book.
I couldn't put it down until the very end, and I'm anxiously awaiting the next book.

I volunteered to read and review an ARC of this book provided by the publisher and NetGalley.

I loved this book! It’s the best book of the series thus far. There’s a beautiful, epic plotline coupled with juicy character development and Scottish intrigue. Royally Dead is a delightful and addictive read, perfect for rainy afternoons.