Grave Apparel (Crime of Fashion Series #5)

It is so bad that I had to stop reading.

I got to page 82 and just quit reading. I quietly put my nook down and walked away. Brooke is the worst character any author has ever created. I never leave a book unfinished - NEVER. This piece of poop shouldn't even be called a book, though.

1 out of 2 people found this review helpful.

It was Ok

It wasn't bad. A little slow in the beginning, but not too bad.

Christmas sweaters and murder

An editorial written about gaudy Christmas sweaters becomes known as Sweatergate around the newsroom at the Eye Street Observer. Many people believe fashion reporter Lacey Smithsonian wrote the editorial. But soon it is revealed that Cassandra Wentworth, an editor who is against materialism, wrote the article.

As Lacey is getting ready for the Eye's annual holiday party, she receives a phone call bringing her out to the alley where she finds Cassandra bleeding and unconscious and wearing one of those acrylic Christmas sweaters. A homeless child is the only witness and runs away at the mention of the police.

Suspicion falls on the Eye's food editor, Felicity Pickles. Lacey sets out to find the child to help him/her, but soon realizes they are in danger and her search intensifies. Does the killer believe the child saw more than they did?

I love this series. It's such a fun and quick read. I soon find myself lost in the fashion world of DC and murder. Having lived in DC I enjoy hearing about places I know. Lacy is such a fun character. I love reading of all her exploits and adventures. I can't wait for more! I highly recommend this book.

A Special Holiday Treat

Gaudy Christmas sweaters may be a crime against fashion, but they shouldn¿t be a reason for capital punishment. However, newspaper columnist Lacey Smithsonian nearly discovers the contrary after she is blamed for an editorial attacking the sequined and glittery fashion faux pas. Lacy gets placed in the middle of the battle between the real culprit, cranky anti-materialism editor Cassandra Wentworth, and the food editor Felicity Pickles, who boycotts cooking her holiday treats until Cassandra recants. Instead, Cassandra is attacked in an alley during the Eye Street Observer¿s holiday party and Felicity¿s Christmas sweater is left at the scene. Lacey comes to Cassandra¿s aid after being summoned by a phone call from a young child, a street urchin dressed in a shepherd robe who witnessed the attack and escapes before talking to the police. Despite her antipathy towards both women, Lacey is pressured into investigating by nearly everyone, from Felicity¿s and Cassandra¿s two paramours to her fellow reporters who are suffering from the withdrawal of Felicity¿s baked treats. Against Lacey¿s better judgment she¿s soon interrogating Cassandra¿s fellow radicals as well as her stalker, all in an effort to discover who has it in for the unlikable woman. Much more important to Lacey though, is the desire to rescue the missing witness whose life may be in danger from the would-be fashion murderer. The reluctant fashion columnist Lacey Smithsonian continues to be an entertaining heroine in this fifth entry in the Crime of Fashion series. The fashion tips never intrude on the plots, although they do often provide valuable clues. The reader sympathizes with how poor Lacey is virtually railroaded into starting an investigation, but it¿s her softer side compels her to find the sassy and savvy urchin who is homeless during the holidays. Again accompanied by her steadfast and resigned detective boyfriend Vic, her unique and free-spirited friend and hairstylist Stella, and her other BFF conspiracy theorist Brooke, Lacey shines through with her sharp wit and determination. Author Ellen Byerrum brings in her experience as a Washington DC journalist to reveal the fascinating ¿ and hilarious ¿ side of newspaper journalism to this continually enjoyable series. This is the perfect treat for the holidays or any other time the reader needs some Christmas spirit.

A reviewer

Joy to the World! A Smithsonian Christmas story. I have a weakness for Christmas stuff, so for me, this isn¿t just the latest volume in the Lacey Smithsonian canon, but a perfectly festive way to celebrate Christmas in July. I bought and brought my copy home, cranked up my a/c, made myself some Christmas tree cookies with red and green sprinkles, and settled in for a long summer¿s read of this latest in Ellen Byerrum¿s series. As usual, it does not disappoint. There are all the Smithsonian usuals: Lacey¿s fashion clues, Felicity¿s feeding foibles (including a baking strike this time around), and Lacey¿s characteristic skewering of DC¿s self-important class. This time though, instead of honing in on the helmet-haired, Ms. Byerrum gifts us with everything you¿ve ever wondered about the ecologically-correct irritatingness that is Cassandra Wentworth, her cronies, and an acrylic (eww!) Christmas sweater at the center of a controversy so heated, it becomes known as Sweatergate. I don¿t want to give away too much of the plot. I¿ll just say that besides Cassandra and this sensational sweater, a lot hinges on a child who can¿t find a place to live in DC in December. I know Lacey has a hate-like relationship with Felicity and her feeding frenzy, but I wish Ellen could provide us with a recipe or two for Felicity¿s fine foods, e.g., this book¿s hot chocolate pudding cake with peppermint pieces. If you¿re the buy-it-when-you-see-it kind of Christmas shopper, you can cross a lot of people off your list now by buying GRAVE APPAREL. Or gift it to someone now for Christmas in July. Either way, don ye now your GRAVE APPAREL.

a reviewer

At the capital based Eye Street Observer, editorial columnist Cassandra Wentworth and food editor Felicity Pickles get into an argument over Christmas sweaters fashion editor Lacey Smithsonian tries to stay out of the dispute as she dislikes both of them and is loathed in turn. An irate Cassandra writes a nasty editorial condemning the colorful holiday garb, but everyone naturally blames Lacey as the fashion writer for the blistering commentary since no name is attached to the article.------------- Not long afterward someone wearing a Santa cap attacks Cassandra with a candy cane just outside the office. A child uses Cassandra¿s cell phone to call the last person the editor spoke to which was Lacey. She runs outside to find an unconscious Cassandra wearing a Pickles¿ Christmas sweater and a boy in shepherd¿s costume blaming Santa. The child flees as the medics and cops arrive. Lacey vows not to investigate, but somehow she is pushed by her boss who worries about the child, an ungrateful Cassandra who wants justice, and Felicity who is the prime suspect.---------------- The fun in this fashion mystery is Lacey¿s efforts to stay out of the investigation leads to everyone not believing her as her lover and her work peers assume it is in her blood. The ¿sweatergate¿ scandal is cleverly designed while the Santa-dude assault makes for a fine whodunit. Although overall a humorous cozy, there is a subplot involving homeless children living near the seat of American power (K Street) while her boss Mac proves quite the softy.----------- Harriet Klausner

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