The Blank Canvas

Selling art turns out to be a dangerous occupation in Ebisch's absorbing third mystery featuring advice columnist Laura Magee (after 2012's Breaking the Rules). Pushing 30, Laura Magee doesn't know what to do with her life; for the moment, she is in the ironically named seaside community of Safe Harbor, N.J. All hell breaks loose after she sells a painting by Rafferty, a modern artist. The purchaser is run over, and Laura is attacked by a knife-wielding woman. She also meets the attractive Mike Rogers, and befriends young Angie Tortelli, who works nearby. Complicating things is the arrival of her college boyfriend, Lawrence Brewster "Brew" Stoddard, seriously damaged after years in the military. Laura is an interesting character%E2%80%94honest, introspective and reasonably brave. She also makes errors in judgment%E2%80%94agreeing to double date with the whiny Angie, for one. The art background is as complex and as well delineated as the characters. (Apr.)