288 pages

4 stars

Josie Prescott and her husband Ty have just purchased a new home. It's a grand old place and they fell in love with it. Soon, Josie is contacted by the two nieces of the former owner. The elderly woman has misplaced and antique trunk and its contents.

Josie agrees to look for it and begins to search the house. She finds the trunk in an old dumbwaiter. When Josie meets the owner Maudie doesn't at all seem like the pre-dementia patient that the nieces led her to believe. Maudie and Josie hit it off and spend time together. Josie offers to appraise the trunk and its beguiling Egyptian-appearing cat and presentation box, but offers some other appraisers to Maudie as well.

So begins an intricate and fast-paced mystery complete with murder, lies, deception and enjoyable characters.

This is a delightful cozy mystery. The plotting and writing are very well done. The characters are certainly interesting. I liked Josie, Tom, Zoe, Ellis and the rest of the gang. They were genuine and likable. I especially liked Maudie and I have a secret hope that she will appear in future episodes of Josie's adventures. Ms. Cleland is a master at setting a scene and pacing. I read this book straight through. I was hardly aware of time passing. More please, Ms. Cleland!

I want to thank NetGalley and St. Martin's Press for forwarding to me a copy of this very engaging book for me to read, enjoy and review.

Years ago I stumbled onto Jane Cleland’s first book in the Josie Prescott Antiques Mystery series, Consigned to Death. I have been a fan ever since.

Cleland writes consistently good, well written, and well researched mysteries. I have learned so much about antiques, appraisals and artwork from this series. Over the years I have enjoyed reading about the growth of Josie’s business. I also have enjoyed her increasing circle of coworkers and friends and to see love blossom for Josie.

Hidden Treasure has the requisite mystery surrounding an antique. This time it is an Egyptian cat sculpture and presentation box which is beautifully shown on the book cover. There is also some drama with Josie’s friend and neighbor Zoe who is conflicted about her daughter’s decision to join the military. In addition, Josie is undergoing a house rehab. All these stories are brought together by Cleland’s intelligent and thoughtful writing with enough credible red herrings to make this another great installment in the series.

Thank you NetGalley and St. Martin’s Press for the ARC

It's a treat to read a new story in Cleland's fine series about antiques dealer Josie Prescott. Readers have followed Josie through many adventures and professional, as well as personal, successes. This story finds her investigating an antique trunk with a mysterious, jewel-encrusted Egyptian case and cat sculpture. As always, Cleland gives readers plenty of authentic and fascinating details about the antiques business, and, in this case, information about Eygptian treasures. There is, of course, a murder. The mystery and the investigation are always interesting and page-turners, though my main puzzlement remains why Josie continues to be partners with an obnoxious reporter and why that relationship is allowed by the police chief. I think that is the main weakness in this series. However, Cleland's excellent and easy writing style and her ability to combine the antiques business with murder investigations provide readers with satisfying, exciting, and informative stories. The series is highly recommended for all mystery collections.

Hidden Treasure by Jane K. Cleland (Josie Prescott #13) 4 stars

It has been two years since "Antique Blues" Josie Prescott #12. Josie is now happily married and is a new homeowner of the Gingerbread House - a Victorian with wonderful detailing and a mystery. The former owner of the Gingerbread House, Maude Wilson, is now living in an assisted living facility. Her two nieces insist that she is getting forgetful and left a valuable trunk in the home. Josie manages to find the trunk and is intrigued by the contents. Some communications with one of the nieces result in Josie discovering her body in Maude's room. The mystery is who killed the niece. Josie is presented with multiple suspects with motives and a missing Maude.

What always keeps me coming back are the fine details about antiques and the characters themselves. I was surprised by who did it and enjoyed the book very much. I hope that it will not be another two years for the next Josie Prescott.

Thank you Netgalley and St. Martin's Press for this ARC.

Not a bad cozy mystery. Set in a charming New Hampshire seaside town, the owner of a prosperous antiques firm does some courtside sleuthing. At the center of all the action is an old travel trunk and a family heirloom, possibly valuable. Lots of lies and misrepresentation take place, but a happy ending might be possible.

The one character trait that really bugged me was the main character's sharing so information that only the police should have with her reporter friend; this totally goes against common sense! There was a decent bit of irrelevant physical description/detail that I found l unnecessary and distracting but I just skipped over it. Overall, not my favorite genre but certainly good enough to keep me busy for several hours during a stay-at-home order.

Josie Prescott and her husband Ty have closed on their dream home. Little did Josie know how the purchase of the Wilson’s old family homestead would connect her to the family going forward. When Josie discovers an old trunk with some family heirlooms in it, she returns it to the seller, but finds that the woman’s nieces seem hell bent on getting their hands on it. Going to meet the seller after she is asked to sell one of the items in the chest, Josie finds one of the niece’s dead in her aunt’s room and the aunt is missing.

Feeling personally connected to the senior aunt, Josie searches for the missing woman and is attacked as she follows her instincts. Will Josie find the killer and the missing treasure, or will be buried and forgotten by the killer?

This is the first book I have read in this 13 book series and I am thrilled that I found my own hidden treasure of 12 books I can binge on in a new, to me, series! Well written and an exciting culmination on top of a solid whodunit!

This is one of my favorite cozy mystery series and was so excited to visit this small town and the characters again. It was a well-written mystery and I loved seeing where the characters were at.

cozy-mystery, murder, amateur-sleuth, suspense, small-business, small-town

This is the first I've read in this series but it was easy to gather relevant relationships and threads so I wasn't lost in any way. There is a large contingent of characters in this one and the descriptives are excellent not only of the physical but also the undercurrents. There are a couple of characters who are so untrustworthy I would have kicked them to the curb a fourth of the way in. Oh well, in general it was a good solid plot complete with twists and red herrings as well as insights into the antiques business. I loved it!
T requested and received a free ebook copy from St. Martin's Press/Minotaur Books via NetGalley. Thank you!

Engaging cozy mystery with an unusual, interesting setting and sympathetic protagonist. Plenty of suspects, many motives, and fascinating facts about gems and collectibles in this story about the disappearance of an opulent antique. Recommended.

Many thanks to NetGalley for the ARC in exchange for an honest review.

This installment was alright. I love the series and subject matter but thought this was a bit similar to others in the series. The author does amazing research and delivers a fabulous look at the world of antiques.

An interesting mystery series that I’m liking more with each book. Josie, owner of Prescott antiques and her new husband Ty have purchased the home of their dreams. Josie is asked by the previous owners nieces if they might explore her house because they’re sure their aunt left a valuable trunk behind. When Josie finds the items she refuses to return them to anyone but Maudie, the owner of the trunk. Maudie and Josie become fast friends and her nieces are angry they were thwarted out of the treasure. Of course a murder happens, Maudie goes missing, and Josie once again is embroiled in the middle.

This is a terrific book, filled with characters that I cared about, a beautiful setting and the added benefit of antique lore. Josie and her husband Ty have just bought their first house together. Before they can move in, the niece of the former owner, Maudie Wilson, asks Josie if Maudie has left a trunk behind. Josie finds the trunk and inside of it finds a potentially valuable Egyptian statute. Josie and Maudie soon become friends, and when the statute is stolen, Maudie's nice is murdered and Maudie disappears, Josie is on the case to try and find her friend and recover the statute. This is a fast paced, entertaining story and I highly recommend it.

I have been a fan of this series from the beginning. Josie is such a strong, confident character, that I feel an immediate connection whenever I read one of her books.
I really liked Maudie, who is a very essential character in Hidden Treasure.
The storyline captured my interest, and the side story with Zoe and Emma was excellent.
Fans of this series will be lining up to grab their own copy.