by Kathleen Costa

Details at the end of this post on how to enter to win a signed copy of Bronzed Betrayals, and a link to purchase it from Amazon, and an indie bookstore where a portion of the sale goes to help support KRL.

Hunting Down Forgeries Since 2013
Beacham, Ltd, is a foundation founded by Laurel Beacham’s grandfather. It’s mission was to help link museums with artistic organizations and matching ones with funds to ones needing funds. But, through a change in circumstances, the Foundation has taken on more of a ‘recovery’ role improving the success of recovering artwork by bypassing excessive ransoms making them very popular with insurance companies, museum heads, and local and international law enforcement. Oh, and big crime syndicates, too.

Laurel has long since been a trust-fund baby without a trust fund due to her father’s mismanagement, so working for a living was a necessity, but she found she had a talent for it. Joining her in the London offices is personal assistant/longtime friend Cassie Dean, young tech geek Nico, and partner, either exasperating or heart-throbbing, Jack Hawkins. The art retrievals have become more perilous, hunting art forgeries and forgerers has become a priority, bodies are piling up, and relationships have evolved throughout this now five-book series. And along the way intriguing mysteries unfold about Laurel’s family and Jack’s past. All of this makes for a very engaging journey!

Bronzed Betrayals earns 5/5 Statuettes…Real? Fake? Great Fun!

“Anytime something is worth a great deal and desired by unscrupulous people, risk and danger go hand in hand,” Jack said.”…where there’s a sea, there are always pirates.”

Recoveries come in all shapes and personal peril. Some are easy…just walk in, take possession of the stolen artwork, and walk out. However others require a bit more finesse and planning. Laurel and Jack are using the cover as party guests to retrieve a small bronze Rodin bust misappropriated…ok, stolen, by a Russian oligarch. Laurel’s brief disappearance is set to be covered up by Cassie Dean acting as Laurel’s “doppelgänger.” However, the surprise appearance of nemesis Melanie Weems, a surprise in the safe, connections to a long sought after key criminal figure, and a dead body could put a crimp on the whole mission and land Laurel in jail or worse. Buckle up! It’s gonna be a bumpy ride…

Ritter Ames has brought fans the exciting fifth book in the continuing Bodies of Art Mystery adventure reminiscent of the television show White Collar for the artistic intrigue, but move over James Bond…Laurel can “kick it” too! I started the series with book one, Counterfeit Conspiracies, totally engaged as the series steadily revealed many connections and secrets of a professional and personal nature. Bronzed Betrayals is “edge of your seat” exciting, well worth reading, but if you are just learning about this series, you’ll benefit greatly by reading from the beginning. Each book has an engaging story to tell with some satisfying conclusions, but in Bronzed Betrayals you may find references and details from the previous books that might be considered “spoilers.” This series is like a well-crafted mini-series as each subsequent episode builds on the previous adventure. Newbies, don’t shy away!

For this fifth book, Ritter’s well-written narrative provides excellent descriptions of the various settings, object d’art, and predicaments leaving you awed. However, she doesn’t rely just on the first-person narrative, her dialogue is clever when the art world and criminal enterprises are discussed and endearing when Laurel and Jack discuss their budding romance. The suspense has been heating up over the series with more kidnapping/murder attempts, electrifying perils, and marvelous “Oh my!” revelations. The characters have shown growth in skill and working better as a team, and the added romantic entanglement between Laurel and Jack is a nice respite from the action.

Alert! Don’t misconstrue my comments and insights as anything but excited enjoyment. Start here with Bronzed Betrayals or “Let the Binging Begin” with all of the books in order. The Bodies of Art Mystery series is a clever roller coaster of excitement! You’ll be hooked!

Be a Big Ritter Ames Fan!
Facebook – Ritter Ames Books
On the Web – Ritter Ames
Goodreads – Author Ritter Ames

Check out other Henery Press mysteries on their website.

To enter to win a signed copy of Bronzed Betrayals, simply email KRL at krlcontests@gmail[dot]com by replacing the [dot] with a period, and with the subject line “bronzed,” or comment on this article. A winner will be chosen August 11, 2018. U.S. residents only. If entering via email please include your mailing address (so if you win we can get the book sent right out to you), and if via comment please include your email address. You can read our privacy statement here if you like.

Check out other mystery articles, reviews, book giveaways & mystery short stories in our mystery section. And join our mystery Facebook group to keep up with everything mystery we post, and have a chance at some extra giveaways. Check out our new mystery podcast that launched on June 5.

Use this link to purchase the book & a portion goes to help support KRL & indie bookstore Mysterious Galaxy:

Bronzed Betrayals (Bodies of Art Mystery #5)

You can also use this link to purchase the book on Amazon. If you have ad blocker on you may not see the link:

Kathleen Costa is a long-time resident of the Central Valley, and although born in Idaho, she considers herself a “California Girl.” Graduating from CSU-Sacramento, she is a 35+ year veteran teacher having taught in grades 1-8 in schools from Sacramento to Los Angeles to Stockton to Lodi. Currently Kathleen is enjoying her retirement revitalizing hobbies along with exploring writing, reading for pleasure, and spending 24/7 with her husband.

Disclosure: This post contains links to an affiliate program, for which we receive a few cents if you make purchases using those links. KRL also receives free copies of most of the books that it reviews, that are provided in exchange for an honest review of the book.