Book Review: A Killer Collection by J. B. Stanley (Collectible Mysteries #1)

Stars: 1 out of 5

Pros: It's only 200 pages

Cons: Everything else

The Bottom Line:

Plot and characters?

Nothing works in this novel

Best just to skip it

Don't bother Collecting This Debut

The recent trend in cozy mysteries seems to be antiques. There are currently several series with this theme and it seems like a couple more pop up every year. One of last year's entries was A Killer Collection by first time author J. B. Stanley. It disappointed me on every level.

As a writer for Collector's Weekly magazine, Molly is being exposed to all kinds of new art. This particular day, she is accompanying her mother to a kiln opening for a Southern potter. Basically, the artist sets his pieces out and a free-for-all ensues as everyone tries to grab what they want. While her mother gives her tips on what to expect, super collector George-Bradley Straunton arrives.

George-Bradley is hated by all the pottery collectors in the region for his lack of regard for anyone else. So when he drops dead, it's hardly a surprise. The police quickly rule it natural causes, but Molly isn't so sure. Poking around, she finds plenty of motives and proof it was murder. But who had the opportunity?

First, let's get the good out of the way. The book is a fast read because it's only 200 pages. Now that we've got that out of the way, let's get down to trashing the book, shall we?

The plot moves along sluggishly with frequent interruptions to talk about the antiques or potters. We actually stop the action for an auction at one point. Even the romantic sub-plot was rather boring, mostly because it was complete predictable. And don't get me started on the climax. I absolutely hated it. I have never felt like throwing a book across the room, but I did when I read the end of this one.

So, for the book to be good, it would need to rely on the characters. And here, the book falls flat as well. The most interesting character was the stereotypical gay guy. The rest left much to be desired. Molly is ok, but we really don't even understand her desire to look into this murder. Everyone else is a one note cardboard character, even the victim. He was a creep, and that's about all we can say about him.

And the writing is the third strike against the book. It's painfully obvious this is a first time author. The writing feels clunky. Often, transitions between scenes, especially flashback and present day, are confusing. There's very little life to it. The whole time I was reading, I felt like I was on the outside looking in instead of part of the action.

Ironically enough, I read the first book in the author's other series last month and thought it was okay but average. After how disappointing A Killer Collection was, I decided to avoid the author completely.