Reviewed By Liz

ISBN 0-425-20800-1

I must admit that I was predisposed to like this book. I love history and archaeology and was really looking forward to reading what was billed as an intelligent archaeological mystery. So I was a little surprised that there wasn’t more of a focus on the archaeological theme. Don’t get me wrong, the book was still good, it just wasn’t quite as advertised. What the book is mostly about is the main character, Lara McClintoch (an antiques dealer), trying to figure out how she messed up on an authentication of a rare Mackintosh writing cabinet, which turns out to be a fake. The man who bought the cabinet chops it to pieces with an ax when he finds out it is a fake and the dealer who sold it to him is subsequently found murdered with the same ax. Needless to say, Lara feels a little guilty and confused because she really thought the desk was genuine.

There are several things I like about this book. First, Lara doesn’t drop everything and run off to investigate. This is the real world, after all, and she has to look after her business. So she sits and stews about the problem for some time before doing anything about it. And when she does do something, she follows her few leads logically and then bumbles around when they run out. This is a very realistic approach that the reader can appreciate and relate to.

However, this book suffers from a severe case of coincidence that tosses this lovely organic buildup right out the window. When all of the possible suspects end up in a remote corner of the world at the same time, you expect them all to traipse into the castle for a midnight game of Murder on a dark and stormy night. But even with this serious lapse on the part of the author, the book is well worth your time.

Did I guess it? No. Will I read more? Absolutely.

Mystery Book Reviews by Reviewed By Liz.com ©2006