In this cozy mystery, biographer Rona Parish has been asked to write a biography of artist Elspeth Wilding. She accepts the commission but is worried that, because Wilding has been missing for eighteen months, she might get involved in another crime investigation. Is the biography intended as a ploy to have the disappearance investigated or to create interest in the artist and raise the value of her paintings? It's an implausible story that side-tracks a lot to fill in for the fact that nothing much happens. Skip this one. ( )