Hidden Treasure: A Josie Prescott Antiques Mystery

In Cleland’s delightful 13th mystery featuring Rocky Point, N.H., antiques dealer Josie Prescott (after 2018’s Antique Blues), Josie and her new husband have purchased a Victorian house they plan to renovate. After the closing, the previous owner, elderly Maudie Wilson, realizes she may have left an old trunk in the house, though she doesn’t know where. Josie locates the trunk, which contains a jewel box and other artifacts, but when she goes to Mrs. Wilson’s apartment to return them, the woman is missing. Josie plans to feature the trunk’s discovery and its contents on the antiques TV show she hosts, until the jewel box and other artifacts, which she’s removed from the trunk, mysteriously disappear. A murder raises the ante. Besides the knowledgeable and compassionate protagonist, the cast includes numerous townsfolk who’ll be familiar to series regulars, each a distinct character. Full of red herrings, the twisty plot builds to a satisfying conclusion, and descriptions of the authentication process are a bonus. Antiques Roadshow fans will have fun. Agent: Cristina Concepcion, Don Congdon Assoc. (Dec.)