Dealing in Murder

A new writer whose name ought to garner a lot of attention is Elaine Flinn, author of the wonderful debut novel Dealing in Murder, which shows just how dangerous the world of antiques can be.Molly Doyle was a hotshot dealer in New York until her dramatic public downfall and arrest, caused by her husband's scamming and philandering. She is exiled to the Left Coast and a friend sets her up in a ramshackle antiques shop on the Monterey Peninsula.Doyle is an appealing protagonist, a mixture of anger, savvy and vulnerability. She also seems authentic, the kind of character you could actually know and like. She is a strong woman who can handle herself but never seems like a feminine man, which unfortunately happens with too many female mystery characters.The well-crafted plot revolves around three sins: murder, fraud and greed. It's complicated enough to keep you interested in finding out what happened and why, but not so convoluted that it leaves you baffled or bores you with its improbability.Reviewed by David Montgomery, Chicago Sun-Times

Anyone who reads Elaine Flinn's debut mystery will join me in wishing that this woman not only enjoys a long and prolific career, but that she writes fast. If I didn't think it would prolong the arrival of the next book in this series, I would organize a group to picket Flinn's house in Carmel demanding more Molly Doyle ASAP.Molly is savvy, salty, and fun. She may be down on her luck after her (thankfully) ex-husband's antiques fraud is exposed, but she's no whiner. Given the opportunity to start again at the bottom of the trade, she rolls up her sleeves and starts wheeling and dealing "merch" whenever she's not trolling garage and estate sales for the inventory she'll need to rebuild her reputation. A chance find lands her in the middle of a murder investigation, which she handles with more aplomb, guts, and polish than any character I've run across since Hollywood started using Technicolor. This is a woman you want to see played by Rosalind Russell or the mature Bacall--a chick who knows from good bourbon and snappy comebacks. Molly's (and Flinn's) depth of professional expertise makes the Antiques Roadshow look like a La-Z-Boy commercial. If you want learn how to tell Sheraton from Shinola, and tons more besides, this book blows the rest of the antique-mystery subgenre out of the water.The only caveat I have for potential readers is to hold off on "Dealing" if you've recently quit smoking, or to have plenty of Nicorette on hand while you peruse. Molly and her newfound Carmel gang like their tobacco as much as their banter, and the going is rough for the recently smoke-free.

There are few things more exciting than discovering a great new writer. When you are searching the stacks and you get that feeling you have read all the good stuff and from here on out its gonna be tedious, that you will probably never get that rush again. And then it happens, I meet Molly Doyle and its like first love. I start taking her to work with me so we can visit during my lunch break. I start reading slower because I know it will end too soon. I start imagining how I would help her out and what great pals we would be instead of paying attention to the meeting I am having with a new supplier. When I finished the book I found myself angry with Ms. Flinn for not having published more novels. At least she could announce the publicatiom date of the Molly's next venture. It had better be soon.

You know you're reading a good mystery when you get wrapped up in the characters' lives and find yourself talking to them-and when the whodunit puzzle is so convoluted that you can't drop it even though you're driving to work or feeding the baby. Elaine Flinn's "Dealing in Murder" shines with both of these prerequisites. Other people on this site have given the thumbnail sketch of Lorna Jacobs' murder and of Molly's descent from the glittering world of high-end antique dealing to the workaday life of scouring flea markets and catering to uninformed tourists. It's a great story. But what really makes this book so strong is-Molly Doyle is someone you want to know better. Her life is messed up in just the right way and her personality rich and multi-layered enough to sustain a series. Randall, Bitsy, Daria, Bennie and all the other people who inhabit Flinn's fictionalized Carmel, California are more than bit-players-they live and breathe on the page.Give yourself a treat. Buy and read this wonderful debut novel.

If you're an antique lover who loves mysteries...or a mystery lover who loves antiques...this is one of the best I've read in years. Ms. Flinn obviously knows her antiques, more than I can say for some of the other so-called mystery writers using antique dealers as their progagonist. Molly Doyle is refreshing and sassy all at once. A woman of her time, she isn't even intimidated by the former big time cop from L.A. who suspects her of murder. I particularly enjoyed the inside info about artists and how fakes are done. Oh, and what not to do at an auction. Her setting of Carmel, California is great and I can't wait to visit it and look for Tosca's and Daria's restaurant. They probably don't exist, except in the mystery, but I sure wish they did. Do yourself a favor and pick this one up. You won't be sorry. I can't wait for the next one. Hurry up, Ms. Flinn! I'm tired of Antique Roadshow re-runs.