Book Description

Abigail Timberlake Washburn, petite but feisty proprietor of Charleston's Den of Antiquity antiques shop, stopped speaking to best friend and temporary decorating partner Wynnell Crawford a month ago -- after questioning her choice of a cheap, three-foot-high replica of Michaelangelo's David to adorn the garden of a local bed-and-breakfast. But now Wynnell has broken the silence with one phone call ... from prison! It seems the b&b owner has been fatally beaned -- allegedly by the same tacky statue -- and Wynnell's been fingered by the cops for the bashing. But Abby suspects there's more to this well-sculpted slaying than initially meets the eye, and she wants to take a closer look at the not-so-bereaved widower and the two very odd couples presently guesting at the hostelry. Because if bad taste was a capital crime, Wynnell would be guilty as sin -- but she's certainly no killer!


About the Author
Tamar Myers is the author of seven previous Den of Antiquity mysteries: Larceny and Old Lace; Gilt by Association; The Ming and I; So Faux, So Good; Baroque and Desperate; Estate of Mind; and A Penny Urned. She is also the author of the Magdelena Yoder series and an avid antiques collector. Ms Myers lived in the Carolinas.

FROM OUR EDITORS

The Barnes & Noble Review
Tamar Myers is back with her 11th delightful volume in the Den of Antiquity mystery series. Charleston antique shop owner Abigail Timberlake (a.k.a. Mrs. Greg Washburn) knows the importance of not mixing business and private life -- that's why she has two names, for crying out loud. But when Mrs. Washburn's best friend, Wynell, begs for a part in Ms. Timberlake's new venture -- redecorating a very upscale bed-and-breakfast -- Abby breaks that cardinal rule and agrees.

Since Abby deals with interiors, and Wynnell is to handle the garden, personal and professional peace is maintained, at least until Abby points out the utter tastelessness of the replica of Michelangelo's David that Wynnell has chosen for the garden's focal point. After exchanging heated words, as only southern ladies can, the pair stop speaking to each other entirely -- until Wynnell calls Abby from jail, where she's under arrest for fatally attacking the B&B owner with the tacky statue!

Wynnell's taste in garden sculpture may be deplorable, but that's hardly a criminal offense. To prove her friend's innocence, Abby turns her finely honed research skills on the other suspects at the scene of the crime, like the not-so-grieving widower or the strange guests. Until justice is done, Abby refuses to be distracted by her personal tribulations, which include her mother's decision to open a tearoom in Abby's home and the return of her prodigal brother, who is sporting a clerical collar and aggressively brandishing the new leaf he's supposedly turned over. Statue of Limitations is a wickedly funny, fast-paced look at southern lifestyles of the rich and dead. Sue Stone

FROM THE PUBLISHER