The Antique Hunter’s Guide to Murder by C.L. Miller

 

Reviewed by Jeanne

Freya Lockwood used to be an antiques hunter, before the incident in Cairo ended her career.  She was pushed out by Arthur, her former mentor, and ended up in an unhappy marriage. At least she had her daughter, Jade, but now Jade has grown up and Freya is at loose ends. Then a call comes from Aunt Carole, asking Freya to come visit:  Arthur is dead, and Carole says he wanted Freya to come back.  Frankly, Freya could not care less about what Arthur wanted—he betrayed her, after all—but Aunt Carole is another matter.  She needs comforting, and she’s always been there for Freya.

Then Freya receives a letter from Arthur, written just days before he died.  It’s rather cryptic but he wanted Freya to get back in the antiques game, and he hints that he’s in danger.  Is it possible that Arthur’s fall down the steps wasn’t an accident? And why does he want her to go to an antiques weekend at a manor house?

I was excited about this book because the author is the daughter of Martin and Judith Miller, authors of the well-known Miller’s Antiques Handbook and Price Guide. I’m not really an antiques person, but I love Antiques Roadshow and like knowing the history behind the items. The reviews on it were good as well, so I had high hopes.

Miller has a good grasp on the mystery aspect: the plot is classic Golden Age mystery, with a letter filled with clues and some international antique intrigue.  I was not as impressed with the rest of the book, however.  The characters were not well developed, and the author’s use of multiple narrators really didn’t add anything.  It was an effort to ratchet up the tension, but it fell flat for me.  Finally, there was some general information about antiques but not enough to be entertaining.  There was some detail about antiques forgery and how crime syndicates sometimes use them as collateral in transactions, but I had read another mystery with better explanations more entertainingly delivered (The Man Who Died Twice by Richard Osman).  As for antiques, Jane Cleland’s Josie Prescott series delivers a good mystery and some fascinating information.

Every book is not for every person, and from other reviews I think a lot of people really enjoyed it.  It just didn’t meet my expectations.

This is the author’s first book and it is a first in series book, so I still have hopes for the next one.  Death on the Red Sea is due out in February, 2025.