Lie Like A Rug

Ginger Barnes is helping her husband out with a problem student by taking him to a scared straight session with an intimidating judge. While waiting for the interview to end, she sits in on a trial going on in the courthouse. To her dismay, her old babysitter is on trial for fraud. They claim that he aged a rug and sold it as an antique. Ginger doesn't believe a word of it, Uncle Wunk was always pathologicaly honest. Then, all of the prosecution's witnesses start to die off. The defendant is elderly and on a respirator much of the time, not a likely candidate even if he was a stranger. There is also the secret cause of his early retirement, what was it and does it have anything to do with this case.This was a really enjoyable and fast mystery. The information on textiles was very interesting. The mystery has many twists, turns, and red herrings. Enjoy.

Donna Murray's Gin Barnes novels always epidomize that oh-so-rare quality in the genre: genuine cozies...but cozies with a brain! LIE LIKE A RUG (7th in the series)comes especially well-equiped with heart too and is quite probably my favorite of them all. Why? Because not only does spunky Gin's determined sleuthing in this particular instance logically evolve out of her completely understandable concern for an old, dear friend who's in big-trouble when the novel opens (something that we can all relate to), but we get to see her win-out in an especially satisfying, cleverly-conceived, cliff-hanger denouement that keeps the reader guessing right down to the finish-line. More? If Gin Barnes flew a flag, it would probably read "Don't Tread on Me!" with the sentiment extended to read "Me or Mine!" Some of the strongest sections in this book are part of its subplot (which eventually dovetails marvelously with the main thrust of the action) wherein Gin helps husband Rip...another beautifully developed characterization...deliver a well-deserved kick in the pants to an enfant terrible who's been wreaking havoc at Bryn Derwyn Academy while the reader stands up and cheers! Finally, as is again typical of what her fans expect, Ms. Murray has focussed her book around a thoroughly-researched, utterly intriguing technical background in which antique textile arts and their intricacies introduce us to a side of history that I have not encountered before and makes me want to transplant bag and baggage to the Winterthur Museum and experience its wonders for myself. Warm and wonderfully real...Gin is a heroine to cherish, and since LIE LIKE A RUG reads beautifully as a stand-alone novel, it's a perfect introduction to a consistently outstanding mystery series.

I enjoy this series because they draw me in and actually make me feel the adventure. Her character is very real. I love the local flavor and the use of real places. After reading any one of her books I come away with a better understanding of the subject.... like the textile industry. The research was thorough and enlightening. While at the hairdressers, I was finishing the book and the person next to me was excited to see that I was reading Lie Like a Rug and noted that she worked at a museum in Dolyestown and also noted great insight into the industry. Oh so true..... "Let The Buyer Beware"!

For fifteen-year-old Ryan Cooperman the welcome mat at Bryn Derwyn Academy ends with his latest incident of negative behavior. The nasty teen terrorist is going to pay a visit to Judge Rolfe in nearby Philadelphia where Ryan will be officially welcomed into the "scared straight" program. Of course, Ginger Barnes endlessly kicks herself for volunteering to escort the miscreant when her husband is too busy to do so. After depositing her "client" with the Judge and his crew, Ginger passes the time waiting for the torturer to be returned to her by wandering the courthouse. She is stunned to observe that former childhood hero Professor Finnemeyer is on trial for a fraudulent antique scam. Ginger decides to investigate after she rids herself of her delinquent charge at the local train station. She soon finds that the witnesses for the prosecution have agendas to keep things quiet so that Finnemeyer will take the hit, but that her champion falls off the pedestal as he has a history of questionable, illegal behavior. LIE LIKE A RUG is an amusing, very entertaining investigative tale because the heroine is so real she insures the plot remains genuine. Ryan is a great character who even hooks Ginger in his nasty way of dissing people. The rest of the support cast rounds out Ginger's latest adventure by reacting to her actions so that she seems even more like a person rather than a character. Donna Huston Murray continues to furnish pleasant novels filed with ginger that engross the reader's interest from start to finish.Harriet Klausner