Customer Reviews

Splendor in the Glass (A Den of Antiquity Mystery)

5 star:		(3)
4 star:		(6)
3 star:		(5)
2 star:		(1)
1 star:		(4)

 

 

Abigail Timberlake has gotten married to Greg Washburn who quit his job as a policeman in Charlotte to become a shrimp fisherman. Since there aren't a lot of shrimp in Charlotte that haven't already been breaded and fried the newlyweds move to Charleston. Abby has always wanted to be a South of Broad resident and she buys a house that does indeed make her a SOB (South of Broad). The people who live there always refer to themselves this way, and very proudly I might add. She leaves her Charlotte antique shop in the capable hands of her assistant and opens her second shop in the Holy City. No, not Rome, Charleston has so many churches that it has gained that nickname. The Rob-Bobs soon make the move themselves and Abby's mother has moved in with Abby and Greg so most of her old crew is still around for Abby's adventures. To make it all the more cozy, CJ is in Charleston for a visit.

Of course to have any social standing at all in Charleston one not only has to live South of Broad but also has to have had three hundred years worth of Charleston ancestors. Abby, like the other newcomers is referred to as being from "off" but at least she's not a Yankee. They are referred to a s being from "way off." That being the case, Abby is thrilled when she is invited to have tea with the grand matron of Charleston society. She's even more thrilled when she finds that the lady in question has a priceless glass collection that she wants Abby to sell for her, but the thrill dies quickly because the owner of the collection is poisoned shortly after Abby's visit. The death of any little old lady that Abby visits seems to be a recurring theme in this series. This is of course the key to the whole plot for if Abby weren't a suspect in these murders she would have no reason to poke around in an attempt to clear herself.

As usual, Abby's investigation almost gets her killed and she fingers the killer almost by accident, but the mystery in this book is a much better one than in some of the previous books. As is also normal for these books there are laughs a plenty; most of which come from CJ and Abby's mother Mozella. One never knows from book to book just what Mozella will come up with next and in this book she becomes an art aficionado. At least she becomes an aficionado of velvet art and has her eye on a new painting for Abby's living room. It is a velvet depiction of Jesus and Elvis riding a horse and is entitled, "Two Kings." Chasing the horse on foot are the Three Stooges with Marilyn Monroe bringing up the rear waving a Confederate flag.

Mrs. Myers has a wonderful sense of humor and these books are a great deal of fun. The characters are always one of a kind and the endings are often a great surprise. This entry in the series is no exception. On the other hand, this author was able to lend a deep sense of atmosphere to the previous books but fell a little short with this one. Charleston has so much atmosphere though that I'm sure that this will improve in the next book. I do wish that Abby would stop wailing so much but in this book almost every sentence out of her mouth was wailed. I also wish that Mrs. Myers would stop advertising her "Magdalena Yoder" series within the text of this series. This has happened before but was particularly a problem with this book. We all know about Magdalena Mrs. Myers, there is no need to wave her in front of our face like a giant red flag. That is unless you are planning on chasing after Elvis and the Three Stooges.

In the 9th book in the Abigail Timberlake mystery series by Tamar Myers, we find Abigail has moved to Charleston to be closer to her shrimp boating husband, Greg. She sets up another antique store, and with help from CJ, she begins to settle in nicely. However, she wants desperately to fit into Charleston society, and she gets invited to tea by one of society's grand dame's, Mrs. Amelia Shadbark. Mrs. Shadbark asks Abigail to broker the sale of her priceless Lalique glass collection, but after she is found dead Abigail realizes that the collection was not everything that it seemed. When Abigail finds herself as the prime suspect (having been the last one to see the victim) she sets out to prove that she may be short on height, but not on innocence.

Tamar Myers writes both the Abigail Timberlake mystery series and the Pennsylvania Dutch mystery series with recipes. She tends toward witty humor and uses quite a few puns in her writing, many of which she repeats in each book. I have enjoyed many of the previous books, but am a bit tired of some of the "stale" puns that she overuses in each book (the jokes about CJ are reused too much for example). However, I enjoy cozy mysteries (mysteries with little "on-stage" violence, no overt savy, and little gore) and I enjoy those with a bit of humor. These are excellent examples of the genre and probably would be a bit too silly or trite for those that enjoy police procedurals or intense mysteries (i.e. Patricia Cornwell). If you like cozy mysteries and want a bit of a change, I would recommend giving Tamar Myers a try.

The first book in this series is "Larceny and Old Lace". Enjoy!

A Cozy Lover

Abby Washburn has moved to Charleston with her new husband the former homicide detective. He now runs a shrimp boat with his cousins. The RobBobs and Mozella have also relocated and CJ is visiting. Abby has just about given up being accepted by the very exclusive society of the city when she is invited for a business tea by Amelia Shadbark. Amelia has a fabulous collection of Lalique glass and wants Abby to broker the collection for her. Unfortunately, she is murdered that very night and the collection destroyed. Abby relies on a nosy neighbor to help her, but that neighbor is murdered also. Amelia has a very disfunctional family, each accusing the other of greed and illegitimacy. Abby will solve the mystery as usual with the help of her friends.

Nothing has really changed in this series. Greg Washburn has become a nonentity, her mother is even more annoying and CJ's Shelby stories are worse than ever. The mystery was pretty good, although we could have done with more of a description of her new home town, and new life. Overall, not bad, but this author has done better.

The main character is unlikeable and very condescending towards her her husband, her mother, her best friend and everyone else she comes in contact with. She insults people right and left but gets her dander up if anyone is the slightest bit rude to her. The personality of the main character is uneven and unpleasant; scenarios in which the main character pursues leads are often forced and do not follow a natural flow. Half the time I wondered what on earth she was doing or why she was going somewhere. The "romantic" interludes with the slueth's husband were so poorly written and embarrassing, I thought a high schooler with no romantic experience had written them. The author's constant attempts to be humoruous fall flat and it is immediately obvious as to what killed who. One of the suspect's continued mispronunciations of a simple, easily-remembered name (Timberlake) are silly and ridiculous as are the author's continued references to Magdelana Yoder - who is the main character in a different series by the same author. There's also an unpleasant diatribe on race relations that consumes almost an entire chapter of the book. Sorry but I thought I was reading a mystery - not a political commentary.

You may be wondering why I persisted in reading a book I so obviously disliked - well, a twenty hour flight to Australia will force you to read pretty much anything and this was all I could get my hands on in the airport store. I wouldn't have wasted my time otherwise and I suggest you don't either.

In the 9th book in the Abigail Timberlake mystery series by Tamar Myers, we find Abigail has moved to Charleston to be closer to her shrimp boating husband, Greg. She sets up another antique store, and with help from CJ, she begins to settle in nicely. However, she wants desperately to fit into Charleston society, and she gets invited to tea by one of society's grand dame's, Mrs. Amelia Shadbark. Mrs. Shadbark asks Abigail to broker the sale of her priceless Lalique glass collection, but after she is found dead Abigail realizes that the collection was not everything that it seemed. When Abigail finds herself as the prime suspect (having been the last one to see the victim) she sets out to prove that she may be short on height, but not on innocence.

Tamar Myers writes both the Abigail Timberlake mystery series and the Pennsylvania Dutch mystery series with recipes. She tends toward witty humor and uses quite a few puns in her writing, many of which she repeats in each book. I have enjoyed many of the previous books, but am a bit tired of some of the "stale" puns that she overuses in each book (the jokes about CJ are reused too much for example). However, I enjoy cozy mysteries (mysteries with little "on-stage" violence, no overt savy, and little gore) and I enjoy those with a bit of humor. These are excellent examples of the genre and probably would be a bit too silly or trite for those that enjoy police procedurals or intense mysteries (i.e. Patricia Cornwell). If you like cozy mysteries and want a bit of a change, I would recommend giving Tamar Myers a try.

The first book in this series is "Larceny and Old Lace". Enjoy!

This is one of the best books in Ms. Myers' "Den of Antiquity" series. When a pillar of Charleston's society invites Abby to tea and then dies, Abby tries to save her rep by finding the killer. This is the first book that shows Abby in her new home, Charleston, and as a new bride. Mom lives right in with Abby (how could we not have Mozella around?). Friends CJ and the Rob-Bobs visit. The plot is excellent and full of surprises. Additional characters are kept few, interesting and uncomplicated. Ms. Myers' humor does not seem to kick in until the last parts of the book. Again she relies on past phrases that have gotten her laughs in prior books but are now old to us. The paint shaker at the Home Depot & a sandwich short of a picnic were worn and tired phrases several books ago. Her repeated use of "wailed" can get irritating, and I don't know why she brings up "my good friend, Madgalena Yoder" (her main character from her other, Penn-Dutch, mystery series) so often. Once would have been fun. I may sound like an ungrateful reader, and I am not. She continues to be a top favorite. In spite of these flaws that keep me from giving it 5 stars, this is still one of her best. Don't miss it.

Tamar Myers latest novel is a delighfully fun read!! What a pleasure to read a mystery and get to giggle all the way through! Living just outside of Charleston myself I can assure you that Mrs. Myers has it right - names that are spelled one way and pronounced another, old society, being from "off" and "way off," and lots of crazy characters! I am more than happy to welcome Abby Timberlake Washburn and her quirky friends and relatives to Charleston and I hope they stay for a very long time. I've recommended this book to all my friends and am eagerly awaiting the next installment!

I always enjoy Tamar Myers' work. I think CJ, and in general the eccentricities of the characters are what makes this book good. To me, a good mystery is a good book first and a good mystery second.

Myers' sense of humor is one of the things that makes her mysteries worth reading. She is primarily a comic writer, with a strong sense of place and of character. The mystery is secondary - which to my mind is the way it should be.

I suspect that living outside the U.S. during her early life has given her an outsiders eye; she sees stuff that is invisible to most of us because we take it for granted.

Finally, I might have found another series of mystery books to read that are entertaining and not all blood and gore. Since my absolute favorite author Anne George died, that has been hard to do. I guess I am working backwards since this was the first book I read in the series. It will not be the last. I get the same feel of Charleston from her books as when I am there and I can relate with her feeling of being "from away".

In this book, Abby and her husband Greg have moved to Charleston. She has opened up another Den of Antiquity shop there. Abby's mother Mozelle is also living with them. And CJ, her friend from Charlotte is visiting when the first murder occurs. This is a humourous book, and I actually enjoyed it. I've found that the later Den of Antiquity mysteries seem to be getting a little better. The plots are tighter and the humour is less forced. The book opens with Abby trying to muscle her way into the top echelon of Charleston society. When she receives a request to have tea with the leading society lady she accepts, and takes CJ with her. But no sooner do they leave after having tea with her, than the lady turns up dead - poisoned. Abby needs to find the killer before the rest of society believe she is the murderer. Throw in some antique glass and a new shop assistant that can sell ice to Eskimos, and you have the story. Abby almost gets killed, but is saved just in time - just like usual. In all honesty, I read these books for CJ. She is THE best character in the stories, and she has a big part in this one.