10 Interwoven Jennifer Chiaverini Books 

The first of the Elm Creek Quilts novels, The Quilter’s Apprentice follows the journey of a young woman named Sarah McClure. Having recently moved to Waterford, Pennsylvania for her husband’s job, Sarah finds work at Elm Creek Manor. 

Under the guidance of Sylvia Compson, manor’s owner, Sarah comes to appreciate the rich history that each quilt contains. Sylvia is a master quilter, and she agrees to teach Sarah the art of quilting.  

As Sylvia’s apprentice, Sarah learns to make several traditional blocks for a quilt sampler. As Sylvia and Sarah work together, they form a tentative friendship, exploring and uncovering the rich history of quilting, and how it impacts their lives and families. 

Sylvia’s cold demeanor melts, and Sarah discovers that the community of Elm Creek Quilters may be just what she needed.  

As Sarah helps Sylvia face the challenges of running a quilting school out of Elm Creek Manor, she and the other members of the group face their own struggles in the quiet town of Waterford. 

Sarah deals with the repercussions of her husband’s mounting identity crisis, and is unable to reconcile her mother’s nit-picking and criticism.  

Bonnie battles the truth of her husband having an emotional affair with a woman that he speaks to online, and does her best to rekindle the relationship. Diane has trouble balancing her children’s interests with her care for outward appearances to the community.  

The quilters work on a Round Robin quilt, passing the intricate work, their troubles, and their choices between one another.  

When Donna, Grace, Julia, Megan, and Vinnie decide to create a quilt together after they’ve met at Elm Creek Quilt Camp, it seems like a great idea. There’s just two little issues. 

One: they’re scattered across the country. Two: they can only create their square once they’ve solved a personal problem. 

The five of them agree to meet at Elm Creek Manor to sew their individual squares together—but their challenges make the quilt’s creation a challenge.  

Despite her personal success as a rocket engineer, Megan struggles to help her troubled son. Julia is an actress sent to the Quilt Camp to learn about the process for a new role. Vinnie is an older woman looking for a new lease on life. 

Donna, a mother of two, has concerns about her daughter’s upcoming wedding. Grace, a well-known and famed quilter, is hiding a shocking secret about her health.  

The fifth installment in the Elm Creek Quilts novels goes beyond a cozy college town to become something of a cozy mystery. 

When Sylvia Compson realizes that some of her mother’s quilts are missing from Elm Creek Manor, she takes it upon herself to recover them. 

Devoted to her fond memories of the quilts and her mother, Sylvia chases down the truth striving to recover the lost quilts.  

After turning to the internet for help with journals and photos, Sylvia is chagrined to discover that her deceased and once estranged sister sold the quilts to help maintain the Manor, and her living expenses. 

Sylvia undergoes a journey with her fiance, Andrew, determined to get the quilts back.  

As the holiday season closes in on Waterford, the Elm Creek Quilters find themselves in festive mood. When Sylvia suddenly marries her fiancé on Christmas Eve, the quilters decide to surprise her with a bridal quilt.  

As the quilters prepare for the wedding and create the quilt, they struggle balancing their personal lives with holding the secret of creating the bridal quilt. As they separately sew blocks, misunderstandings and embarrassment arise. 

Bonnie struggles with her failing quilting shop, Grandma’s Attic. Diane works at the shop part-time, but the few hours make it difficult for her to pay for her son’s college. 

Gwen struggles with her position at Waterford College, and her daughter, Summer, makes an unexpected romantic move that threatens to upset her family.  

As another holiday season closes in on the Elm Creek Quilters, they find themselves reconciling their personal style of celebration with each other’s. 

Sarah enjoys a big, brassy, holly-jolly affair—the exact opposite of the refined and calm Christmas that Sylvia likes.  

The Christmas Quilt explores Sylvia’s complex family history, tracing the quilts, and her pain, back through the struggles that her family has faced. 

Sarah, meanwhile, does her best to keep her spirits high and have a merry Christmas—even as her mother’s rampant criticism threatens to bring the holiday down.  

As the Elm Creek Quilters camp grows and two teachers choose to vacate their posts, the need for more teachers arises. 

The position attracts quilters from all over the country. Diane is intentional and methodical with her interview process, and it takes longer than the quilters initially anticipated. 

As the Elm Creek Quilters try to find two people to fill the posts, they struggle with the reality of losing two of their dearest friends.  

Set in the Roaring Twenties, The Quilter’s Homecoming follows the journey of Elizabeth Nelson, a young woman who returns to her family's farm in Pennsylvania after the death of her father. 

Haunted by memories of her childhood and seeking refuge, Elizabeth finds solace in Elm Creek Manor. 

As Elizabeth struggles to come to terms with her grief and adjust to life on the farm, she discovers an unfinished quilt hidden among the Manor’s belongings—a quilt that may hold the key to unlocking family secrets.  

If you enjoyed learning about the journey of creating Sylvia’s bridal quilt, you and your quilter’s group can make one together. This sampler instructs readers how to create their own bridal sampler, with 140 different traditional blocks to help you create your own bridal quilt.  

This sampler quilt is inspired by The Union Quilters, the seventeenth book in the Elm Creek Quilts series. The blocks in this sampler can be mixed and matched with squares from Sylvia's Bridal Sampler, allowing you to create your own quilt as you deepen your knowledge about the Civil War.