Another great book in series. ( )

I believe this is the first book from this series that I have read. I found it on a library book sale shelf.

I enjoyed learning a bit about how appraisers track down provenance (both for a woodblock print and for a guitar). Josie seems to have expanded her business in various ways: she's an appraiser, I believe she has a salesroom for selling antiques, she has a tag sale space, she arranges an "instant appraisal" booth at various times, she searches out new stock, she tracks down provenances and does research. In this book, she is also planning to partner with or buy out the owner of an antique mall and also help him open a second location.

Josie's also facing personal changes to her life--getting married and possibly facing a move related to that.

I did not like that Josie and Ty appear to be living together or at least staying together before their marriage.

I didn't guess who the killer(s) was/were before it was revealed. That's usual for me so your experience may vary. The mystery was complicated and interesting but I don't think I'd seek out other books in the series--though if my path crossed one, I'd definitely read it. ( )

Antique Blues is the 12th book in the Josie Prescott Antique Mysteries series. This is the first book in the series that I've read. I will definitely be going back and reading the rest of this series!

Josie Prescott is an antiques expert and amateur sleuth. A friend asks Josie to appraise a Japanese woodblock print that she just acquired. Mo Shannon bought the print from her sister's less than stellar boyfriend, Cal. The situation seems a bit off from the beginning, but even more so when Mo turns up dead and Cal disappears. Josie finds herself investigating not only her friend's murder but also some underhanded antique purchases.

The plot in this book is much more complex than the usual cozy mystery. There's a lot going on.....suspects, plot twists, investigation. The background theme of antiques and appraisals is an integral part of the plot instead of just background cuteness. I like the characters. Josie Prescott is one smart cookie. She knows the antique business and utilizes her resources and contacts to make progress in business and during investigations. The side characters are all interesting and come together to help solve the crime. I look forward to reading more books in this series. I really enjoyed this story!

I was easily able to jump in at book 12 and enjoy this story. There were no real spoilers of earlier books. Character backgrounds carry over from book to book, of course, but I was easily able to pick up enough info to get the general idea of who was who and what relationships between characters were. So, readers could jump in anywhere in this series and still enjoy the story. I'm going to backtrack and start at book 1 because this is a very well written cozy and I want to see how these characters have developed over time.

The cover art is great! :)

I don't often give 5-star ratings to cozy mysteries, but this one is well-written, interesting and entertaining. Full marks from me!

**I voluntarily read an advance readers copy of this book from St. Martin's Press via NetGalley. All opinions expressed are entirely my own.** ( )

Josie finds herself in a bind when her good friend Mo, asks her to appraise a Japanese woodblock print that Mo purchased from her sister's boyfriend.
Mo, who is an elementary school teacher who doesn't seem to have an enemy in the world ends up murdered after she gives Josie the woodblock print to appraise. Josie who is a bit of an amateur sleuth finds herself trying to figure out who would kill Mo and why? Several weird things are happening in Rocky Point and all things seem to point to this Japanese Woodblock print.
There are several subplots going on that keeps this mystery moving right along and there isn't a dull moment. I can see why this has been such a successful series.
This is the first book I've read in this series, as I stated above it's been a highly successful series and I see why. Ms. Cleland does an excellent job with her character development that I didn't find myself lost and trying to figure out who belonged to who or what, it's a pretty straightforward well-written mystery that had this reader hooked. I look forward to reading more of this series. I loved the New Hampshire setting plus it looks like Josie is in for some major changes.
Disclosure: I would like to thank the publisher and NetGalley for providing me with a copy of this e-galley in exchange for my honest opinion. The opinion I expressed above are my own. ( )

Antique Blues
By
Jane K. Cleland

What it's all about...

Josie is an antiques dealer. She is planning a wedding. She has a lovely friend named Mo. Mo has been killed. The question...of course...is...who did it?

Why I wanted to read it...

I love cozy interesting mysteries. I loved the cover and the cover as well as the story summary...drew me to this book.

What made me truly enjoy this book...

I grew to really enjoy Josie and her relationships. She is curious as well as adventurous. There is both humor and mysterious circumstances in this book. I enjoyed the writing and the characters. I loved the cats.

Why you should read it, too...

Any reader who loves cozy mysteries should enjoy this book. The only problem I had with this book is my unfamiliarity with the past experiences of Josie. I don’t think that there was enough done to help the reader understand exactly who Josie was. I mean...I got it but I was often confused and I often had to go back into the book to reacquaint myself with these characters...Wes, Ty, Cal, Ellis...it was hard to keep track of them. It’s really my fault for starting in the middle of a series.

I received an advance reader’s copy of this book from the publisher through NetGalley and Amazon. It was my choice to read it and review it. ( )