Cold Tuscan
Stone
by David P. Wagner is the first of a series of what is now eight books. Originally
published in 2013, Poisoned Pen Press re-issued it in 2021. Rick Montoya, son
of an American Foreign Service father and a Roman mother, is comfortable in
either of his parents’ worlds. He decides to move to Rome from his home in New
Mexico and take up translating and interpreting to capitalize on his bilingual
ability. He is settled in there when an old school friend, now an official in
the Italian Ministry of Culture, suggests meeting. Rick quickly learns that
more than a reunion is on his friend’s agenda. Since Rick is known as an
American, he is well placed to make inquiries about sources of high-end
Etruscan replica statuary and stoneware, ostensibly on behalf of a friend in
New Mexico who runs an upscale gift shop. What he is really supposed to be
seeking is information about the stolen burial artifacts that have entered the
market around Tuscany.
He's given
the names of three firms who have come to the attention of the authorities, and
he seeks them out to drop hints about his willingness to purchase illegal
artifacts. One of the employees dies from a fall soon after meeting with Rick,
which brings Rick under suspicion by the local police, complicating Rick’s
research and making a lot of people interested in Rick’s activities.
The
resolution to the mystery is unexpectedly complicated, while the information
about the food, architecture, and landscape of Tuscany and the illicit trade in
valuable artifacts is seamlessly woven into a smoothly told introduction to an
original amateur sleuth.
All eight of
the books in the series are highly rated on Amazon by reviewers, which speaks
volumes for their quality. Starred review from Library Journal.
·
Publisher: Poisoned Pen Press (January
26, 2021)
·
Language: English
·
Paperback: 288 pages
·
ISBN-13: 978-1464214646
Amazon Associate
Purchase Link: ] https://amzn.to/3YqEFV0
Aubrey Nye Hamilton
©2024
Aubrey Hamilton is a former librarian who works on Federal It projects by day and reads mysteries at night.
Posts
No comments:
Post a Comment