Collar Robber: A Crime Story Featuring Jay Davidovich and Cynthia Jakubek

Art fraud, big money, dubious ethics, and calculated risk fill this intricate crime story from the pseudonymous Locke, who unites the protagonists from her two previous novels, Jay Davodovich (Jail Coach) and Cynthia Jakubek (But Remember Their Names). Jay, an insurance loss-prevention specialist, aims to help the Pittsburgh Museum of Twentieth Century Art fight a $50 million claim of illegitimate sale made by the heirs of the man who sold them a painting under Nazi pressure in 1938. Lawyer Cynthia has a client, Willy Szulz, with paperwork for the sale proving the price the museum paid was fair. Meanwhile, another client of Cynthia’s, Sean McGeoghan, wants museum counsel Tally Rand to facilitate a Catholic annulment of Tally’s marriage to Sean’s intended. Readers should be prepared for characters with anti-Semitic, racist, and misogynistic tendencies. While the plot pieces fit together well, there’s not enough glamour in a novel that’s more about dollars than about art. [em](May) [/em]