That local theater diva of a certain age, Vivian Borne—a.k.a. Brandy’s Mother—is sheriff of Serenity County now, but still hot on the trail of precious antiques. On a tour of the historic Wentworth Mansion, the two dedicated dealers are aglow at the treasure trove of priceless objects . . . never dreaming everything will turn to ashes, hours later. A charred corpse in the ruins is identified as … as the mansion’s caretaker, a one-time flame of Vivian’s. But Tony Cassato—Brandy’s beau and Serenity’s Chief of Police—throws cold water on Sheriff Vivian’s suspicions of murder. Then Brandy spots a certain familiar item for sale on the Internet, and Mother suspects the fire is just a smoke screen. When their doggie detective, Sushi the shih tzu, sniffs out a second body in the woods, Mother and Brandy turn up the heat on a homicidal torcher. Because any killer who takes on the Borne girls is playing with fire. Don’t miss Brandy Borne’s tips on buying and selling antiques on the internet! Visit us at kensington.com
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The 14th book in the “A Trash ‘N’ Treasures Mystery” series, Antiques Fire Sale from Barbara, Allan is available now. Published by Kensington Books, this book is as quirky as the rest of the series. Unlike many cozies, this one has readers laughing.
First off, I have to say that I did not like the narration of this book. It’s a personal issue for me. I do not like the characters to speak to the audience in cozies. It’s somewhat unsettling and does not make the story more interesting. It can have the opposite effect and make me less likely to enjoy the book or even finish it. I also do not like the continued use of calling Vivian “mother” instead of using her name; it feels disrespectful and insulting.
The characters in these cozies are well developed, and for the most part, likable. They are definitely not the average characters. They have personalities that can be irritating and endearing at the same time, just like any real human being. Vivian is my favorite character. She has personality in spades. She is unpredictable and easy to like, and always getting into trouble. I’m not overly crazy about Brandy, she’s too stiff and seems to dislike everything her mother does. It verges on a teenager’s attitude much of the time.
The mystery and murder(s) in this book are exciting, and there are great twists along the journey. Most cozies only have one murder to solve, but in this story, there are several, and none are straight forward. Throughout the novel, readers may get a sense that Vivian already knows who the killer is, and she is just biding her time to find the perfect occasion to unveil the culprit. The story itself is an enjoyable read, filled with Vivian’s antics, plenty of evidence, and enough twists to keep readers entertained. I recommend readers who haven’t read any of this series start from the beginning. But for those who have read this series, I recommend Antiques Fire Sale
As always, this series is a fun, delightful read. I loved the tips for online selling. Perfect to lift your spirits during the “safe at home” quarantine.
Book #14 and still going strong, Brandy and her eccentric senior citizen mother, Vivian, are investigating again. Now that Vivian has been made sheriff, Brandy really has her hands full corraling her mother. Vivian lost her driving license and has deputized Brandy as her unofficial deputy – aka chauffeur – and what a team they make. Vivian runs things by her own set of rules and those don’t always follow the rules of law. Picky, picky. She is really having fun with being sheriff. Things turn serious when, after they take a tour of the beautiful Wentworth mansion, it burns to the ground and a body is found in the ashes. The investigation is being conducted by the police chief of Serenity who happens to be Brandy’s boyfriend. Not that that will in any way stop Vivian from doing her own investigation with Brandy as her sidekick. She is truly a force to be reckoned with. They know their antiques and, having been in the house in the 24 hours before the fire, they are quick to spot items for sale on the internet that were supposed to have burned up in the fire. Homicide with an arson coverup.
This kind of humorous cozy is all that I want to read these days. Pure escape reading and the husband and wife writing team of Barbara and Max Allan Collins has never let me down.
Brandy and her mother Vivian are back. Vivian is still sheriff and lucky Brandy is her unofficial driver. When a local mansion filled with antiques burns, Vivian is tasked with finding the murderer of the owner. Or was it the owner.
Join Brandy in another crazy mystery with some good endings.
The Sheriff Is On The Job
This book is one of a series which the authors manage to let stand alone pretty well.
While there are boring descriptions of who wore what, who ate what and other minutiae, I love the detailed descriptions of the antiques. There is something for everyone. There is a lot of the characters speaking directly to the author as well as the characters arguing over who gets to tell what. It is like being with real people. The mystery part is good, but I found the rest of it quite a distraction. I received this ARC book for free from Net Galley and this is my honest review.
cozy-mystery, fraud, friendship, family-dynamics, law-enforcement, murder-investigation, situational-humor, verbal-humor, greed, punny
This book will be perfect as an antidote to real world worries. It’s a punfest with enough humor to keep laughing throughout the whole book!
The tale is told alternately by Sheriff Vivian the bipolar and her put upon daughter Brandy. The mystery is good and Vivian nearly gets fried a couple of times, but the twists and red herrings sometimes need rereading because the writing is so hilarious. Doesn’t really matter if you’ve never read any of the other books in the series as this stands alone very well. There’s also a recipe and lots of Trash ‘n’ Treasures Tips at the end of chapters, too.
I requested and received a free ebook copy from Kensington Books via NetGalley. Thank you!