Threading the Needle

Cobbled Court Quilts #4

by Marie Bostwick

From New York Times bestselling author Marie Bostwick comes a beautiful novel of sisterhood lost and found—and of the ways we create the rich tapestries that encompass the past and the future. . .

The economic downturn has hit New Bern, Connecticut, and Tessa Woodruff's herbal apothecary shop, For the Love of Lavender, is suffering. So is her once-happy thirty-four-year marriage to Lee. They'd given up everything to come back to New Bern from Boston and start their business, but now they're wondering if they made the right decision. To relieve the strain, Tessa signs up for a quilting class at the Cobbled Court Quilt Shop, and to her surprise, rediscovers the power of sisterhood—along with the childhood friend she thought she'd lost forever. . .

Madelyn Beecher left New Bern twenty years ago and never looked back. But when her husband is convicted of running a Ponzi scheme and she's left with nothing but her late grandmother's cottage, she is forced to return to the town she fled. Unfortunately, the cottage is in terrible shape. Madelyn's only hope is to transform it into an inn. But to succeed, she'll need the help of her fellow quilters, including the one friend she never thought she'd see again—or forgive. Now Madelyn and Tessa will have to relive old memories, forge new ones, and realize it's possible to start over, one stitch at a time—as long as you're surrounded by friends. . .

Genres: Fiction, Chick Lit, Quilting, Contemporary, Romance, Friendship, Audiobook

370 pages, Kindle Edition

First published January 1, 2011

About the author

Marie Bostwick is a New York Times and USA Today bestselling author of uplifting historical and contemporary fiction. She lives in the state of Washington and travels frequently to sign books, speak to reading groups, and meet her readers. Keep up with Marie, her travels, new releases and lifestyle blog, Fiercely Marie, at www.mariebostwick.com.

Reviews

[Linnea · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is the first book I've read by Marie Bostwick, but it certainly won't be the last! She writes about real people facing real-life situations. She is a Christian author, but doesn't get preachy and neither does she create her characters as someone we could never live up to. Of course, writing about quilters and old houses adds immensely to her charm for me! This is the 4th in a series of "A Cobbled Court" books, so I'll be going back and reading the rest. Hope you enjoy her writing as much as I do!

[Julie · Rating 3 out of 5]

A light gentle read, good for this time of year. I will say that the author did a beautiful job of incorporating faith and hope in a non-denominational, non-preachy way. The characters were reflective in their lives. I know the story has reached me when I get a catch in my throat.

[Andrea · Rating 3 out of 5]

What a cozy, gentle series.

[Sherri · Rating 5 out of 5]

Once again the ladies of New Bern made me feel at home in their midst. A involving story of faith, friendship, redemption, and more. Oh there are a lot of good one liners in here.

I like how this is spread over about a year so it doesn't seem like this all takes place overnight in a rose-colored world.

I'm excited to read Margot's story in the final #5 of the series, but sad to say good bye to these characters.

[Sherri Thacker · Rating 5 out of 5]

I highly recommend ALL books by Marie Bostwick. This quilting series especially. They are all about friendship and are "feel good" books. This is my 4th one and can't wait to read the next one. Why have I waited so long to read them???

[Judy Iliff · Rating 4 out of 5]

Marie Bostwick's Cobbled Court series just gets better and better. I was a little disconcerted when I realized the main characters from the previous books didn't play as big a role this time as they have in the past. After I "got over" that, I thought the book was wonderful. All of these books are really stories of strong friendships among women as well as quilting. They are a joy to read, and I always learn something about myself or something to hopefully make me a better person when I read these.

The economic downturn has hit New Burn. Tessa and Madeline, who were best friends in grade school, have both moved back to New Burn, Tessa because she and her husband no longer want to be caught in the corporate rat race. Tessa opens an herb shop, For the Love of Lavender, but the economy isn't not helping it to be a success. Madeline's husband was convicted for running a Ponzi scheme, and Madeline is left with only the clothes on her back, some money she'd put in a savings account 20 years previously before she got married, and a house inherited from her grandmother, a house to which she never wanted to return. Tessa and Madeline have not spoken since 7th grade when Tessa told Madeline to, basically, get lost because Tessa was interested in boys and felt smothered by Madeline's friendship.

Sisterhood again saves the day for Tessa and Madeline; quilting is the means by which they reconnect. This really is a great read!

[Bonnie Eldridge-labaff · Rating 5 out of 5]

I have totally fallen in love with this series. The more books I read in this series the more I wan to read. I am inspired to learn how to quilt and I am searching locally to find a quilting class. I would be a beginning but I have cross stitched and scrapbook so I have a good eye for color and pattern. What struck me most with this book was that even when we make mistakes we can pick ourselves up and make a better life for ourselves.

[Elizabeth Meadows · Rating 5 out of 5]

Excellent book! Excellent series!

[Cynthia · Rating 4 out of 5]

Feel good story about friends lost and found.

[Cindy B. · Rating 4 out of 5]

Heartening story of friendship, love, hard work, loss, and healing. Christian morality presented. Clean. Very well performed by two of the best female narrators.

[Viviane Crystal · Rating 5 out of 5]

Madelyn Beecher has been giving the good life for many years, spending willy-nilly and never wondering where a penny is coming from. Hers is a marriage of convenience, as she is the trophy wife, beautiful and able to make her way through upper society without a blip. She lacked knowledge and so was thought beautiful but dumb at one time but quickly remedied that by slowly reading through the dozen books her husband, Sterling Baron, insisted she read. All in all, Madelyn has overcome the horrible rejection she suffered as a young girl who was rejected by her best friend and the chaos she created through some unwise choices as a young woman before her wedding. But Madelyn's world has now, in the present, hit rock bottom, her husband indicted on fraud charges from the Ponzi scheme rip-offs he conducted that robbed hundreds of whatever money they had. In plain English, she's a pariah again but this time because of being the wife of a criminal hated by the many he duped!

Having hocked her jewelry and everything else, Madelyn discovers an inheritance that she must redo, the home where she grew up and now hers with her grandmother's death. She is pretty useless in the beginning but quickly develops a set of skills she never realized she had. Her support in these endeavors is the loveliest part of this story.

In town are Tessa and Lee Woodruff, Tessa being the gal who years ago crushed Madelyn with unexpected shunning. But now she's got her own problems. Tessa and Lee's world is crumbling financially as his business isn't enough to get by and Tessa's small store where she sells home-made herbals is failing. Stressed out, they begin arguing which grows worse when Madelyn returns to town and decides to set up a small bed and breakfast inn.

To tell more would be a spoiler, but this reviewer assures every potential reader that this novel is one of the most touching stories read in a long time. It's so real it's almost tangible, showing the evolution from spiteful, small-mindedness to the compassionate, giving nature of fierce and caring characters. There are great segments on quilting that are the heart of this tale, piecing together appropriate old segments that yield a tapestry of love sure to warm the hardest of hearts!

Absolutely delightful, Ms. Bostwick!

[Avid Series Reader · Rating 3 out of 5]

Threading the Needle by Marie Bostwick is the fourth book of the Cobbled Court Quilts series set in contemporary New Bern, Connecticut. A story of risk-taking, redemption, true friendship.

Tessa and Lee took a big risk - moved from corporate jobs in Boston to a farm in New Bern, where they raise all their food (Lee's dream). Tessa's dream is her own shop, For the Love of Lavender, where she sells all the products she creates with loving care from the herbs she grows.

Their dreams are nowhere near as successful as they'd hoped. They cannot afford to pay all their bills. They realize the downturn in the economy affects everyone. Lee is especially bitter about all the high-flyer financiers who swindled away the savings of their clients.

Madeline was a trophy wife enjoying a luxury lifestyle for years, but now her husband is in prison for swindling hundreds of clients out of millions of dollars. She has nothing left but Beecher Cottage, her childhood home, to which she had vowed never to return.

Tessa and Madeline were once best friends. Their friendship ended abruptly decades ago. They meet again as they cope with hardships, gently pushed to reconcile by the over-the-top friendliness of the Cobbled Court Quilts staff and Friday night quilting group. Madeline rekindles romance with a former boyfriend from high-school days. A feel-good saga of appreciating what you have vs. pining for what you don't, and of the importance of doing good for others vs. satisfying selfish desires.

[Anna · Rating 4 out of 5]

Madelyn and Tessa were best friends until peer pressure, boys and other influences drove them apart. Tessa carried the guilt of disowning Madelyn, and Madelyn sought love through the admiration of boys, and eventually became the trophy wife of a wealthy investor. Tessa returns to their hometown of New Been seeking a simpler life with her husband. Madelyn returns reluctantly when her husband is accused of fraud. She moves into the home left to her by her grandmother, who raised her after her father died. She has many bitter memories of her childhood. Madelyn is broken and defeated, but finds the determination to remodel her grandmother's home into a bed and breakfast. Tessa takes Madelyn's return as an opportunity to renew their friendship and heal their wounds. Each of the women are soon embraced by the women of the Friday night Quilt Circle, giving each the support they need.
I have come to feel I know the good people of New Bern through this wonderful Cobbled Court series. I like that the characters are not perfect, nor their lives ideal. The stories are about real people.

[Charmaine · Rating 3 out of 5]

Having listened to the audio versions of the first three books in this series, it was nice to take another "trip" back to New Bern, CT. I enjoyed the story line and characters in this book a bit more than in the 2nd and 3rd books in the series. I would have given it 3.5 stars if that option were available. There was less about quilting and the quilt shop and more about the lives of the two friends who were the focus of this book. Also, the author did not spend quite as much time telling the backstories of other characters as she did in the 2nd & 3rd books - which I really appreciated.

Clean readers: this one is generally clean - although there are a few intimate scenes between husband and wife that would be PG-rated.

[Michele · Rating 5 out of 5]

I received this book as part of the Good Reads First Reads Giveaway. I loved it! I had never heard of this author before I entered the giveaway for her book but I am now going to locate the rest of her books from this series so that I can read them also. :) Her style of writing is smooth & easy. It makes you feel like you're right there & part of everything going on. I had a hard time putting the book down & doing other things. LOL! It took me almost a month to read the book but that's only because I didn't have much time for reading. Otherwise, I'm willing to bet that I'd have had it read in a week or less.
Great book! Enjoy!

[Gab · Rating 3 out of 5]

This is a lovely story about the friendship a group of women in a small town share. They are brought together by quilting, but the book is about so much more than that. Madelyn and Tessa were childhood friends who had a terrible fight when they were teenagers. They both moved away from New Bern only to return 30 years later. Madelyn returns under horrible circumstances as her husband had just embezzled millions of dollars through an investment scheme. Tessa and her husband buy a farm and pursue their dream of living off the land. The two women meet up and gradually become friends again, through the help of Evelyn and her quilting friends.

[Rachel · Rating 5 out of 5]

I love this book. Reading Marie Bostwick's books are always comforting and relaxing and definitely inspiring. This book is a refreshing change of pace about two old friends who reconnected again 30 years later after an incident in middle school that caused a split between the two of them. The other familiar characters of Cobblestone Court are there but they're mainly in the background as occassional characters, so this is a nice change of pace in Bostwick's collection of excellent books! I love this and her writing style! This is definitely the perfect summer read!

[Linda Smatzny · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is the story of Tessa Woodruff and Madelyn Beecher best friends as girls who have each returned to New Bern, Connecticut to start their lives over. Tessa and her husband have bought a small farm to grow organic food and Tessa has started a business in town with her lavender products. Madelyn has returned to town because she has no where else to go after everything is taken by the government because of her husband. The book was a quick easy read.

[Kim · Rating 4 out of 5]

4.0/5.0 - This officially moves Marie Bostwick onto the "Authors that I've 5 or more books" list! A Christian author, she doesn't come across as preachy, she just quietly shows how having God in your life makes it better. In this Cobbled Court Quilts offering, two childhood friends turned enemies both move back to their hometown of New Bern, CT. Tessa and her husband Lee come here to escape the rat race of corporate life and the busyness of Boston. They are struggling during a poor economy with trying to get two small businesses (a farm and an herb shop) up and running. Madelyn returns to a town she thought she'd never see again, when her husband, a Wall Street mogul turns out to be the next Bernie Madoff and everything they own is taken away, and he is sent to prison. Madelyn doesn't have happy memories of living here, but her (cruel) grandmother has left her the house and that provides her a place to live and start over.
Anchoring the town are the women of the Cobbled Court Quilt shop and circle, and they provide friendship and support to these newcomers. Finding their way back, moving on from the past, healing for the future and learning to trust again are all themes that play out on these pages.
Book 203 of 2020

[Ann Boytim · Rating 4 out of 5]

New Bern Ct is the home of Tessa Woodruff's herbal apothecary shop. Tessa's shop For the Love of Lavendar unfortunately is not doing well and Tessa and her husband are beginning to realize things are on the downward economic path. Tessa and her husband had moved back to New Bern and he is trying his hand at farming but the strain is telling on their marriage. Tessa was raised in New Bern and at one time was best friends with Madelyn Beecher but that friendship turned very sour. Madelyn left New Bern and married but her husband has now been convicted of cunning a Ponzi scheme and Madelyn is left with almost nothing but some money she had before they were married and she has been told he has inherited her grandmother's old cottage. This cottage is of course in very bad repair but Madelyn has no choice. How will the town treat Madelyn after all these years and will Tessa and Madelyn repair their relationship. Tessa signs up for a quilting class at the Cobbled Court and discovers the powers of sisterhood. Madelyn has dreams of turning the cottage into a B & B - repairing relationships is hard but is possible.

[Edie · Rating 5 out of 5]

I absolutely loved this book and could not put it down. The Cobbled Court Quilters are fabulous people and their generosity, friendship, stories are amazing. This one dealt with childhood friendships gone astray, but rekindled by accident when each returns to New Bern, Connecticut each for different reasons. It also deals with Evelyn (Cobbled Court quiltshop owner) and her elderly mother Virginia, who was once a quilt teacher who lives by herself in another state and is really not doing too well, and has Evelyn worried until she convinces her to take a trip to New Bern, Connecticut to visit Evelyn and her friends. What happens next is amazing. Also continues the story of the girls from New Beginnings (who were abused, etc.) and were making new lives for themselves. Highly recommend this book as the previous 3 and cannot wait to read books 5 and 6 which I have already downloaded on my kindle. The one thing I love about this series is the development of each of the characters...fantastic.

[Beks · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is the first in the series where we break away from the core group and expand to other residents of New Bern. Set in very real economic down turn of 2008/2009 it does a good job conveying the stress and struggle small towns and small businesses faced then. It feels a little close to home with what's going on right now.

It was nice to see some new people and how past history always seems to keep catching up to you. I really liked Tessa, I loved her relationship with her husband. I loved her perseverance and the resilience she shows throughout.

Madelyn was a good foil to her. Terrible marriage compared to a strong one, setting out on her own with nothing and thinking she has no external support, having to recover from years of belittling abuse. She's also a firecracker with her pride intact.

This book felt a little more religious than the other. If that's going to bother you then skip it. I liked as much as the others, even with the pivot in characters and I can't wait to read the next one.

[Maria · Rating 4 out of 5]

I wasn't quite as enamored with this book as I was the previous three in the series. The author apparently decided to focus on different characters that were never even mentioned in the first three books, Tessa and Madelyn. Both grew up in New Bern and were the best of friends until their teens, when a terrible spat split them up and they went their separate ways. Brought back to the town by coincidence and fate, the two learn to mend their fences and improve their lives. The characters from the first three books are part of the story, but only as peripheral characters.

A real three-hanky Hallmark movie.

In spite of the schmaltz, I enjoyed the story, so I'd still give it four stars for what it is---a gentle drama. If that's what you like, you'll like this. If you're after blood, guts, drama, foul language, and deep and meaningful art, you probably won't. I was in the mood for it, so I liked it.

[Larisha · Rating 5 out of 5]

Beautifully written story about friendship between women and woven throughout the storyline - a message about redemption.

This paragraph from the book sums the book up nicely… “Somehow, as I was praying, rocking the needle back and forth the way Virginia taught me, I forgot to be awkward. Prayer flowed from me, naturally, in a plain and continuous pattern that mirrored the motion of my needle; simple, rhythmic, thought by thought, stitch by stitch, forgetting to be worried by the outcome, focused only on that stitch, forgetting to be worried about the outcome, focused only on that stitch, that inch, that curve, until I came to the end of my thread and myself, and pulled my gaze back to discover the bigger picture, the pattern that had emerged through the honesty of my prayers and workings of my needle - and I liked what I saw.”

[Lorraine · Rating 5 out of 5]

Another hit for Bostwick!

In this book, Marie Bostwick continues to please with another beautiful quilt story. She lays the foundation of a past time for a grandmother which a child she resents. As the story unfolds, the child’s background is exposed and then a step to the future. Madelyn, the granddaughter, now a grown woman, finds herself in a position where her husband has gone to jail, she has no money and has no choice but to go back to the house where she lived with her grandmother. It’s a great tale of how a bad childhood can set the tone for problems in adult life. Befriending and old friend from school, her life changes. Easy reading. Interesting characters. Enjoyed every minute reading this book.

[Michelle · Rating 3 out of 5]

This is the 4th book in the Cobbled Court series. This book focuses on two new characters who reconnect through quilting. Tessa and her husband are struggling to keep their farm and her herbal bath and body product shop afloat after leaving their city jobs and moving to New Bern. Their marriage is also starting to struggle. On the other side, Madelyn has returned to the area after her husband’s arrest for a financial scheme and is left with very little besides her grandmother’s cottage. She hopes to convert it into an inn in order to support herself.The two have been estranged since they were girls, but were once the best of friends. After a rough start, the two begin to remake their lives, and atone for their mistakes in the past.

[Diane Ferbrache · Rating 5 out of 5]

I picked up this book from a library book sale. I had not read any of the other Cobbled Court Quilt books, but I will now. Tessa and Madelyn were inseparable as children, then there was a big blow-up and they never spoke again. Twenty years later they are back home in the small town of their childhood. Will they repair their friendship?

This is not Pulitzer Prize material. It's actually quite predictable and would make a wonderful Hallmark movie. That being said, I loved this book. There are memorable characters, sweet relationships, moments of humor, and moments that brought me to tears. There are many references to God and spiritual beliefs without being too "preachy". Just the kind of book I love. It's a quick read with heart and soul about reconciliation and forgiveness.

[SEH · Rating 5 out of 5]

Someone else said of Marie Bostwick’s books - sometimes you just want a good happy book where you know how things will end. And that’s how I feel about this one: there’s no huge! Life changing! Incredible! Passages in this book, but it’s just a good, peaceful ride where you know things will end well and they will. It does get billed as a piece of Christian fiction but it’s really not that bad - just a little bit of some characters praying here and there. And that’s coming from someone who HATES religious-y literature.

I’m glad I own a copy of this one. I’ll probably come back to it in 5-10 years, though hopefully not for another covid reread.

[Deb Blackbourn · Rating 5 out of 5]

B & B - A Quilters’ Retreat

Once again, Ms. Bostwick wrote a book that is sure to get everyone, especially quilters, interested in reading. Maybe in reading this book, if one is not a quilter, they will want to become one! I have always wanted to open a bed & breakfast & seriously thought about owning a quilt retreat. Ms. Bostwick has the characters/quilters portrayed very realistically as well as the retreats. Madelyn, the B & B owner is recovering from her husband’s crime & moving on with very little money. A past best friend, Tessa, comes into her life again. Madelyn never wants to be a quilter, just likes the camaraderie of quilters. I recommend this book to anyone!

[Megan E · Rating 4 out of 5]

Reading a cobbled courts, quilt book is like curling up in a comfortable chair by a fireplace, with a cup of cocoa, a brownie and a warm quilt over your lap.

Childhood friends Tessa and Madeleine felt out as teenagers. Years later in 2009, they find themselves both living back in their hometown of New Bern, Connecticut. Now arch enemies, they both are struggling financially due to the recession and its agents.

When an old quilt reunites the two women, the circle of quilters at Cobbled Court Quilts work their magic. Together through ingenuity and kindness, the quilters help Tessa and Madeline rebuild their lives and their friendship.