Published By: Macmillan
Pages: 352
Released On: 13/02/2025
When a painting vanishes from a maritime museum – and a dead body is found nearby – the newly established Lockwood Antique Hunter’s Agency, Freya Lockwood and her Aunt Carole, are called to investigate.
Following a lead that takes them aboard a glamorous antiques cruise sailing toward the Red Sea in Jordan, they quickly discover that the ship’s art gallery is filled with stolen antiquities. Each and every one of them is also listed in Freya’s late mentor’s journals detailing unsolved cases. In chasing a murderer with a stolen painting, they may have found something more sinister than they could’ve imagined . . .
Their hunt soon turns deadly when they learn that the enigmatic and dangerous art trafficker named The Collector could be on board. But on a ship full of antiques enthusiasts – plus some unexpected familiar faces – will Freya and Carole be able to discover The Collector’s identity and stop his murderous plans before the ship docks?
Or will the killer strike again?
*****
Thanks to NetGalley and Macmillan for the advanced copy of this title in return for an honest review.
I really loved the first book in this series – An Antique Hunter’s Guide to Murder – and have been keeping an eye out for its follow-up ever since.
Once again, Miller’s background in antiques shines in this book. She writes about them with such passion, in a way that only a true aficionado can.
This has got a very strong Agatha Christie vibe about it; whether that’s because it’s set on a boat and it’s a bit like Death on the Nile, I don’t know, but it’s a fine comparison.
This one is less about death and more about the antiques, which is a slight deviation from the first one, but I still got enough of what I wanted from it.
Miller has given us fully developed characters – some we met in the first book and others who are new. They’re all well developed, great characters, some good and some bad and some in between. They’ve all got great personalities and there wasn’t a bum note amongst them. Freya is again our main character and I really like her, but I did find her a bit too trusting at times which makes her feel slightly naïve, but I felt close to her. Her Aunt Carole is fabulously eccentric and I love her. I wish every book had a Carole in it.
There is the potential that all the details about antiques could become too heavy or too complex and make the reading of it too slow, but maybe because I love an antique, I was fascinated by all the details she has gone into.
I thought the first book was exceptional and it can be hard for the sequel to live up to it, but if I’m honest, I think I liked this one more, because I was familiar with the characters and their quirks and so it felt like returning home to friends.
This one is a little simpler and less busy in terms of its setting. The first book had the characters going here, there, and everywhere. Whereas, apart from the odd scene, this book is set on a cruise boat. Which helps give us that sense of claustrophobia and fear that comes from being confined to one space.
It has so much depth and layers to it – from the characters to their history, to antiques, and death threats. Everything is so entangled with everything else, it’s really quite impressive.
I really do hope this will be a long series – in the same vein as Poirot or Miss Marple perhaps – as I absolutely love it.
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