Book review: 'The Wedding Quilt' is fun for quilters

"THE WEDDING QUILT," by Jennifer Chiaverini, Dutton, $25.95, 321 pages (f)

With 11 New York Times best-sellers to her credit, Jennifer Chiaverini has become the most celebrated novelist for the quilting niche. The books have garnered a faithful following with their charming, gentle stories and authentic quilting details.

The latest installment is "The Wedding Quilt." Sarah, the main character throughout the series, gathers family and friends for her daughter Caroline's wedding weekend at Elm Creek Manor. Amid the bustle, she reminisces in lengthy flashbacks about her life since she came to Elm Creek, first as a novice quilter and ultimately as the owner of Elm Creek Quilters.

Each of the previous 11 books are summarized within these memories, woven together with the thread of the impending marriage. However, since each memory is an entire book condensed to a few pages, it's difficult for someone new to the series to sink into the stories.

Readers who have known and loved the previous books may enjoy revisiting them this way, and no doubt will like seeing beloved characters interact one more time. But for some, this may not be enough, since there's nothing new here.

There's no real conflict in the book, as Sarah successfully goes from one wedding task to the next, recalling past adventures. Things unfold smoothly, making the reader wish all weddings could be this problem-free.

Elm Creek Manor sounds like a delightful place. The food descriptions were especially enticing. Avid quilters will enjoy the inclusion of accurate quilt block names and descriptions and other quilting tidbits that have made the series so well received.

"The Wedding Quilt" is a sleepy wander down a pretty path — one that hardcore Chiaverini fans will enjoy.

If you go …

What: Jennifer Chiaverini book signing

When: Thursday, Nov. 17, 7 p.m. (doors open at 6:30 p.m.)

Where: Davis County South Branch Library, 725 S. Main, Bountiful

Web: kingsenglish.com, elmcreek.net

Margot Hovley's first novel will be published by Covenant Communications in 2012. Her self-reliance blog is at www.mynewoldschool.com and she writes about her writing adventures at www.margothovley.com.