Antiques Flee Market: A Trash ’n’ Treasures Mystery

by: Barbara Allan

Published by: Kensington Books

Reviewed by Kathy Perschmann

Barbara Allan is the pseudonym for the husband-and-wife writing team of Max Allan Collins and Barbara Collins. This is the third in the delightful Trash ”˜n’ Treasures series.

The charming Brandy Borne has retuned home to her small Midwestern hometown of Serenity to live with her elderly mother. The two women are running an antique stall in the town and are visiting a special flea market to buy stock when they run into Walter Yeager selling some of his belongings. He is trying to help out Chaz, a newly discovered granddaughter, the product of a wartime romance in England.

Chaz is real character, but hits it off with Brandy and her mother Vivian when they prevent Walter from selling a valuable first-edition Tarzan book for less than it is worth. Then a theft distracts everyone, but Brandy is astute enough to realize that Chaz knows something, and follows up on it and gets the money back. When she meets Chaz at the trailer park where she lives with her grandfather, they discover Walter dead, apparently a heart attack. Vivian is convinced it is murder, and when Chaz is arrested, she is convinced she is innocent. Vivian’s meddling in the investigation pulls in Brandy, and the two manage to confound and irritate the local police. They also manage to put themselves in danger, as usual.

The fast pace, amusing characters, and unusual plot make this light and cozy mystery a winner.

Armchair Interview says: A fun read with fun characters.

Author’s Web site: http://www.MaxAllanCollins.com