Shadows at the Fair: An Antique Print Mystery (Antique Print Mystery Series Book 1)

Local antiques dealer dead in a one-car accident on his way home from an antiques exposition in Columbus Ohio Two Scranton Pennsylvania antiques dealers dead of smoke inhalation Massachusetts antiques dealer dead of substance abuse at an auction in Sharon Connecticut Antiques dealer dies in his booth at the Westchester (New York) Antiques Show Ignorance is truly bliss for recently widowed Maggie Summer owner of Shadows Antiques when she arrives at the prestigious Rensselaer County Spring Antiques Fair. Sadly she wont remain ignorant of the suspiciously high mortality rate among her fellow antiques dealers for long. Rumors are everywhere. The most recent victim John Smithson died of poison at a show just last week and many of the same dealers are here at Rensselaer. They make the identical circuit year after year so they know each other well. Or do they? Murder is still far from Maggies mind as she arranges her Shadows booth: some Currier & Ives prints here Winslow Homer wood engravings on the hack wall other prints arranged on tables and easels by category. With eleven years experience she knows her stock. So far the worst thing that has happened was putting the wrong price tag on a Homer engraving and having to sell it for $170 instead of $1700. Maggie doesnt intend for that to happen again and she doesnt intend to worry about murder. This shows security is tight. But she cant help observing her colleagues with fresh eyes. Some Eke Gussie White in the booth next door are dear friends and Gussies assistant her twenty-year-old nephew Ben who has Downs syndrome is a delightful new acquaintance. Others however even people shes known for years suddenly seem suspect. The opening night wine has hardly stopped flowing when death claims another victim. Maggie will still sell a few antique prints but shell spend most of her time looking for a killer and trying to save a vulnerable young friend. Will Maggie herself become a potential victim? The answer may be in one of Maggies prints but she has hundreds in her booth. Where should she begin? With its riveting behind-the-scenes glimpse of antiques shows and its revealing data on antique-print values Shadows at the Fair introduces a captivating new series that unveils the powerful mysteries of antique prints even as it entertains.