Quilt store owner Dewey Pellicano is desperately trying to save the store she inherited from her mother last year. Once a thriving business, Quilter Paradiso hasn't changed with the times and business is down. The twentieth anniversary sale is coming up and Dewey plans to launch a special line of exclusive quilting patterns and an online store. If the anniversary sale doesn't go well it could be the end of Quilter Paradiso.

When a man is murdered in the alley behind her store, Dewey is afraid negative publicity will doom the sale less than a week away. She assists the San Jose PD as best she can, all the while prepping for the big event. She's not helped by her stubborn and backstabbing sister-in-law Kym, who resents the fact Dewey inherited the store instead of her. Kym seems to delight in throwing a wrench in all of Dewey's plans, even as she professes to only be trying to help. But Dewey can't fire family, right?

The police seem to be stumped for clues in the murder, so Dewey does her own investigating. With the help of the Stitch 'n' Bitchers and the store staff, she eventually figures out the victim's identity. A rift between two of the quilt club members distracts Dewey from both the murder and the sale. Will she be able to mend the rift, find the killer and come to an understanding with Kym before the sale? And before the killer strikes again?

The murder takes a back seat much of the time to the quilt store business. OLD MAID'S PUZZLE is a light cozy mystery. Fans of the recent trend of craft cozies should enjoy Ms. Thayer's second quilting mystery. Some may find the continuing antagonism of Kym to be annoying after a while, just as I did. Readers will eagerly await the next book in the series to see how things go after the surprising conclusion of this book.

Book Summary

Thirty-year-old techie Dewey Pellicano is trying to make a go of Quilter Paradiso, the quilt shop she inherited from her mother. But she's facing a patchwork of problems—fierce competition, an uncooperative employee (who also happens to be Dewey's sister-in-law) and, oh yes, a dead body in the alley.

Dewey pins her hopes on the store's huge 20th anniversary sale and appearance on national television. With the help of her smolderingly hot detective boyfriend Buster Healy, can Dewey save her shop and find the killer?

Praise for Terri Thayer's Wild Goose Chase

"Cutting-edge drama deftly sliced to reveal the sass beneath the surface of the quilting business." —Margaret Miller, author of AnglePlay Blocks

"Put down your piecework, brew yourself a cup o'Joe, fill up a snack bowl, and laze around the yard this spring with this amusing quilt-themed mystery." —Mark Lipinski's Quilter's Home Magazine