Rating: 
Summary: Entertaining
Review: Abby Timberlake returns from a cruise to find that the Den of Antiquity has been cleaned out by burglars. Her mother finds a bright spot, a supposed image of an angel on one of the very empty walls. Abby has no time for this nonsense, having been invited by a young hunk with a Jag on a sort of treasure hunt in the low counrty. CJ is invited along to help his brother. Alas, a slutty maid ends up dead and CJ confesses to the crime. Abby knows her looney friend couldn't kill anyone and sets out to prove it.This mystery provides the usual weird cast of characters, pluse a whole new bunch of crazies. Georgetown makes Charlotte seem sane. This mystery is alot of fun, I didn't even care who committed the crime.
Rating: 
Summary: Abby participates in Dysfunctional Family Games
Review: Abigail Timberlake, owner of the Den of Antiquity, has her store robbed of all of its contents. A timely offer from Tradd, the handsome son of a wealthy family, includes a request for her presence at his grandmother's house to help advise him about her antiques during the course of a family game. She becomes acquainted with Tradd's siblings, none of whom appear to approve of her appearance in their game. Before long there is a murder, and Abby is in the middle of finding out which member of this avaricious family is responsible. In this book, author Myers continues to develop the characters of C.J., Abby's neighboring antique store owner, who is famous for her long, pointless stories, and Abby's mother who rebounds from her unsuccessful attempt to become a nun in the last book, to finding a holy image in Abby's store. Again, Myers creates a humorous and enjoyable book and manages to have the murderer be the one you would least expect.
Rating:
Summary: Abby participates in Dysfunctional Family Games
Review: Abigail Timberlake, owner of the Den of Antiquity, has her store robbed of all of its contents. A timely offer from Tradd, the handsome son of a wealthy family, includes a request for her presence at his grandmother's house to help advise him about her antiques during the course of a family game. She becomes acquainted with Tradd's siblings, none of whom appear to approve of her appearance in their game. Before long there is a murder, and Abby is in the middle of finding out which member of this avaricious family is responsible. In this book, author Myers continues to develop the characters of C.J., Abby's neighboring antique store owner, who is famous for her long, pointless stories, and Abby's mother who rebounds from her unsuccessful attempt to become a nun in the last book, to finding a holy image in Abby's store. Again, Myers creates a humorous and enjoyable book and manages to have the murderer be the one you would least expect.
Rating:
Summary: 'Desperate' is Delightful
Review: Another page-turner by Ms. Myers, who has taken the top slot as my favorite author this past year. Abby takes part in a "find the missing antique" game weekend, given at a wealthy woman's mansion. Someone ends up dead, and poor "C.J." - an ongoing character who is at times hilarious - confesses. Abby meets a new boyfriend, quite different from the drop-dead gorgeous types she always seems to get - a character I hope remains in the series in whatever capacity is his fictional fate. It's starting to get just a little bit unbelievable that Abby keeps getting these fabulous looking guys one right after another. This deviation from her usual path makes it a little more down to earth. I have to say I don't like Abby as much as I do the heroine of Ms. Myers' "Pennsylvania Dutch" mysteries, Magdalena Yoder. She is a little on the nasty side more times than I care for. She gets sympathy for her husband having left her and taken everything from her. Maybe that's why Ms. Myers makes her a little tough. In any event, this book does not disappoint. It's worth every penny.
Rating:
Summary: An OK Story
Review: As long as you don't get into a Tamar Myers book expecting great literature, and as long as you can ignore glaring editorial mistakes and misses, you can enjoy reading one of her mysteries. I like the Abigail Timberlake series a bit more than Magdalena Yoder because Abigail is a little less abrasive, and I find there's not as much background repetition in these books like there is in the Penn-Dutch series. This book is a fun read as we see Abby coming home from a holiday to an empty shop (she was robbed while she was out of the country). So in order to regroup she and her wonderful friend CJ go to a manor house for a weekend of parlour games. They come across a truly disfunctional family, and while there the maid is found dead in her bed. This sends Abby on a quest to find a killer, since CJ has been arrested for the murder. The best part of this book is CJ herself. She's a wonderful character. The worst part is the ending. It seems hurried and doesn't make a lot of sense. But Abby unmasks the killer, and saves CJ so all's well that ends well.
Rating:
Summary: An OK Story
Review: As long as you don't get into a Tamar Myers book expecting great literature, and as long as you can ignore glaring editorial mistakes and misses, you can enjoy reading one of her mysteries. I like the Abigail Timberlake series a bit more than Magdalena Yoder because Abigail is a little less abrasive, and I find there's not as much background repetition in these books like there is in the Penn-Dutch series. This book is a fun read as we see Abby coming home from a holiday to an empty shop (she was robbed while she was out of the country). So in order to regroup she and her wonderful friend CJ go to a manor house for a weekend of parlour games. They come across a truly disfunctional family, and while there the maid is found dead in her bed. This sends Abby on a quest to find a killer, since CJ has been arrested for the murder. The best part of this book is CJ herself. She's a wonderful character. The worst part is the ending. It seems hurried and doesn't make a lot of sense. But Abby unmasks the killer, and saves CJ so all's well that ends well.
Rating: 
Summary: Den v.s. Dutch Country
Review: I read where someone thought the stories by Tamar about Dutch Country were superior to the Den of Antiquity series. I feel just the opposite. The secret to liking one or the other probably lies in where you live (North Carolina) because my friends and I enjoy the Antiquity series more-- simply because we relate to this part of the country and the culture here. Whatever you prefer, Tamar Myer is an excellent, entertaining writer that you can curl up with and enjoy some good laughs, along with intriguing plots. I give her mysteries five stars, although T.J. does get a bit tiresome at times!
Rating:
Summary: One of her best!
Review: I've never written in about an author before, but I have to now -- Tamar Myers has done it again! "Baroque..." is another 'can't-put-it-down' mystery. Her excellent writing style and great sense of humor had me chuckling all the way through Abby's treasure hunt at the Latham mansion. (And I learned a bit about antiques along the way! Always a bonus!) How do you keep doing it, Tamar? I wish both her book series ('Amish' and 'Antiques') would come out more often -- it's hard to wait between publishings. (And I'm particularly anxious to see her African story at the booksellers sometime soon.) Keep it up, Tamar!
Rating:
Summary: Middle of the road.
Review: Tamar Myers, Baroque and Desperate (Avon, 1999) I've been an ambivalent fan of Tamar Myers for a while now. I'm never quite sure what I'm going to get with one of her books. I've finished Baroque and Desperate, the fourth Den of Antiquity mystery, and it's done nothing to change my perceptions either way. The book opens with fearless detective and antique shop owner Abigail Timberlake getting back into town after a vacation to find that the Den of Antiquity has been robbed. Well, robbed may not be the word for it; the shop is as clean as a whistle. Everything, including the cash register, the wastebaskets, and even the shelving is gone. Just as she's starting to wonder what's going to happen in her life, a guy sitting next to her on the plane home shows up at the store with a proposition. His grandmother, a very rich, very eccentric woman, has hidden an antique worth at least a hundred thousand dollars somewhere on her estate. He needs a professional eye to help him. Desperate for a quick buck to save the business, she agrees. (Don't worry, folks, the intrepid sidekick, not to mention Dmitri the cat, come along for the ride.) If you've read a Tamar Myers mystery before, you know what to expect. The wit is fresh, the puns are awful, the mystery is fun (albeit capped, always, with the annoying "ah, and here's how I did it!" section). She does go a bit overboard here with her descriptions of C.J.'s insanity (there must be at least four dozen variations on "one king short of a full deck" here, and it gets annoying after a while), but everything else seems to be clicking on all cylinders. So Baroque and Desperate ends up getting the same lukewarm recommend as most of Tamar Myers' catalogue. I keep waiting for the book that will push me one way or the other; looks like I'm going to continue waiting. ***
Rating:
Summary: Stylish, but lacking
Review: There were many elements I enjoyed about this novel; the main one: the language. Author Tamar Myers has a wonderful sense of wordplay and wit that makes many passages a joy to read. However, in my opinion, this element detracts from the rather flimsy plot: returning home from a vacation, protagnist Abigail Timberlake finds her business -- the Den of Antiquity antique store -- burgled, and her finances in shambles. Depressed, she accepts an offer from Tradd Latham, part of an old Southern family with loads of money, not to mention the requisite odd relations, to join him for a possibly profitable adventure. The plot concerns a contest, in which participants have to find a specific antique hidden by the family matriarch. What's found first, however, is a dead body: the sluttish maid. Abigail's dim friend, CJ, confesses to the murder, and that sends Abigail, Tradd, and a host of other colorful characters looking for the real murderer. The resolution of the plot is standard, with the wit overshadowing everything (favorite witty moment: Tradd's number of children sprinkled throughout the community, referred to as 'Traddpoles'). Entertaining, but not for the hardcore mystery fan.
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