Eighth Commandment

Sanders's legion of fans will be disappointed by this caper/suspense tale that is clearly a lesser effort by the bestselling novelist. Six-foot-two and every inch of her honest, Mary Lou ""Dunk'' Bateson is a coin appraiser at a New York auction house. She is forced to become an amateur detective when a prized Greek coin disappears from a collection that has been transferred to her company for auction. First treated as a prime suspect, Dunk determines to clear her name by ferreting out the real thief. In the process, she finds two interesting suitors in the cop and the insurance investigator who are assigned to the case, as well as encountering the bizarre family of Archibald Havistock, owner of the purloined coin. As she meets the Havistock household, Dunk uncovers scandal and perversity in the family closet, providing her with plenty of suspects. More lighthearted than Sanders's lurid crime novels, this is nonetheless far from a compelling spellbinder. Literary Guild selection; first serial to Cosmopolitan. (June 5pLYING IN STATE