Synopsis
Spring has sprung a major leak in Serenity, as the Mississippi River droops in for an extended stay. With hundreds of homes and dozens of businesses flooded, what better to help the cozy town get back to normal than a city-wide church bazaar? But Brandy Borne knows the outcome of her mother Vivian's plan is more likely to lean toward bizarre -- especially when she hears Mother wheedle a reclusive Russian heiress into donating the last Faberge egg ever created!
Publishers Weekly
In Allan’s giddy fourth antiques mystery set in the Midwestern Mississippi River town of Serenity (after 2008’s Antiques Flee Market), Vivian Borne persuades elderly Nastasya Petrova to contribute her Fabergé egg to a charity auction for Serenity flood victims. When Madam Petrova dies in a mass poisoning at the auction and someone pushes the winning bidder for the Fabergé egg, a Chicago art dealer, down a spiral staircase to his death, Vivian and daughter Brandy swing into dizzy detecting mode. Brandy must cope with morning sickness (she’s a surrogate carrier for close friends) and digest the news from her biological mom that her biological dad is a U.S. senator, but these distractions don’t prevent Brandy from getting closer to hunky Serenity police chief Tony Cassato as more bodies pile up. Auction tips and a recipe for spicy beef stew enhance this satirical cozy. Allan is the husband-wife writing team of Max Allan Collins and Barbara Collins. (Mar.)