home > mystery novel reviews > consigned to death

Consigned to Death

by Jane K. Cleland

Consigned to Death has been touted as the mystery readers' 'Antiques Road Show.' It's a decent appellation. Jane K. Cleland, the author, knows a good deal about antiques and their value, apparently from her experiences running an antique and rare bookshop in Portsmouth, New Hampshire before she moved to New York City. Wherever she obtained her expertise, Ms. Cleland knows just how to disseminate it throughout a thoroughly engrossing story without you once feeling you're being taught anything! Consigned to Death is a cozy mystery, with a very realistic heroine and a very believable, suspenseful tale.

Josie Prescott has escaped New York and the cold shoulders of her former friends after she's exposed her auction house boss and his nefarious dealings. Josie has been able to build up a very successful business of her own on the New Hampshire coast. Then, just when she's about to sign off on a very lucrative consignment, the owner is murdered – and guess who's the primary suspect!

The local police chief and Josie feel attraction for each other, but bury it under more critical issues at first – after all, how could a suspected killer be a girlfriend – and how could a cop who thought you murdered somebody be attractive to you? As further evidence comes to light, a stolen Renoir is revealed, and it's presence is discovered in Josie's warehouse.

Josie's business has its rivals, of course, and the couple includes a loud-mouthed, unpleasant woman taking every opportunity she can to denegate Josie's appraisals and her antiques knowledge in general. Considering the fact that the woman (Martha) makes extremely careless and often wrong appraisals herself, Josie simply avoids her as much as she can. It doesn't help, however, that Martha and her husband often show up at Josie's previews and auctions.

The Renoir isn't on one of the appraisal lists – neither are two other paintings by famous artists, and the dead owner seems to have wanted to sell them separately. When his daughter, Mrs. Cabot, arrives with her daughter, Andi, Josie is faced with hostility from the younger of the two, who obviously is interested only in the money sale of the three artworks can bring to supply her with needed drugs. The other two paintings have been well hidden, but Josie eventually discovers them. All three were stolen from their rightful owners.

The mess is finally straightened out and the murderer disclosed, along with the reasons for implicating Josie. Consigned to Death finishes with the police chief and Josie getting together at last. This mystery is chock full of information about valuable antiques as well as important knowledge on stolen art, all written by a very competent businesswoman as well as a talented, gifted writer. Jane K. Cleland is an author to watch closely. If her success in the business world is any indication, she'll probably soar as a fiction writer!

Alan Paul Curtis

back