Antique Discovery
By Eileen Harris
Publisher: Wings ePress
Published: Feb. 12, 2013
ASIN: B00BFIQW7G
Amazon Synopsis:
A vacation
becomes complicated by murder, discovery, and friendship. Danger lurks in too
many directions. Alicia and her friends will have to stay alive and sort
through the clues carefully if they want to save an innocent friend and prevent
the destruction of an historic treasure.
Book Links
~ Excerpt ~
When the ranch faded out of sight, I began to get nervous. There
was always the chance of an accident. The horse could step in a gopher hole and
stumble, or a million and one other problems could arise, but those
possibilities weren't bothering me. I had the unnerving feeling I wasn't alone
out here. The nervous tension didn't feel natural. It was more like a warning
from outside myself. As I had this thought, I could feel that the red pendant
was much warmer than normal. If it got much hotter, it would burn me. If the
necklace was an early warning system, that would be great, but from the things
the shaman had said, I didn't think it would turn out to be that simple.
The dips, rises, and dry washes could hide someone from view, but
they'd have to know the desert like a native if I couldn't catch a glimpse of
them. I could have chalked my fears up to knowing the ranch was empty or that
the isolation had spooked me. I could have, but a little voice in the back of
my mind kept asking, “Did the pendant spook me or had it warned me of danger?”
I didn't know, but I turned the horse around and let him pick his own speed on
the return ride. He chose an all out gallop, and he was so fast I felt almost
like I was flying.
A full hour had passed for Nick to take care of his meet-and-greet
responsibilities by the time I rode the horse into the stable. David was still
there. When he turned and saw us, his jaw dropped. He said, “Wow, that's the
last sight I ever expected to see.”
I said, “What are you still doing here? I thought you'd be out
partying by now.”
I climbed down off the horse and began gathering the equipment I
needed to groom Star. David said, “Let me do that. Star has decided to tolerate
me again, and it is my job, you know. Besides, you're all cleaned up for the
party, and I still have to get ready. I'm just finishing up here, so I'll rub
down the horse and take him back to the pasture. You go have fun, and I'll see
you out there later.”
I thanked him and said, “By the way, what do Cobber and Corker do
since the cattle drive is over? I haven't seen them back at the compound.”
“You'd be surprised. Their work is never done. Cattle are always
grazing somewhere on the ranch, and the dogs keep them more or less in the same
area. Those guys are pretty good at running off any predators too. There's
always a cowboy or two who stay at the line shack closest to where the cattle
are, and they keep an eye on both the herd and the dogs.”
My curiosity satisfied, I thanked him again and went to find Nick.
I saw him talking to the cooks. The barbeque was almost ready to
serve, and as I got closer the smell made my mouth water. Standing beside Nick
was Laudine. She was wearing a yellow skirt and a white blouse with a
multicolored ruffle. She looked about thirty years old. I said, “Don't you look
great today? What are you doing hanging around the cooking on your day off?”
“I'll have you know the absolutely perfect barbeque sauce being
used today is my own special recipe. You didn't seriously think I'd leave all
the cooking to a bunch of cowboys, did you?”
One of the cooks at the grill said, “Hey, watch it, lady, or we'll
have you out at the cook wagon on our next roundup.”
I laughed at their banter and said, “I should have known. If this
food tastes as good as it smells, we are all in for a treat.”
We weren't quite ready to eat yet, so we rounded up Lawrence and
walked out behind the recreation room to check out the activities. I rounded
the corner and stopped dead in my tracks. I said, “Good grief, I had no idea a
full carnival was camped out here. This is as big as most carnival midways,
including the rides!”
Nick said, “We try to have something spectacular and different
each year. This not only looks like a carnival, it actually is a carnival. The
owner is a friend of Lawrence's, so he set this up.”
I said, “Lawrence, you have hidden talents. How in the world did
you ever become such good friends with a carnival owner?”
“It's a long story and a good one, but I don't think we have time
for it today. One night when we're sitting around a good fire, I'll tell you
about the first time I ran into Hannibus Carson. Right now I challenge you all
to a game of breaking balloons.”
Nick was picking up the tab for the carnival, and all the games
were free to party-goers. We began by throwing darts and progressed around the
circle of booths. I love carnival food and was tempted to eat at all the food
booths we passed, but I resisted in anticipation of the barbeque. Hopefully I
could try these goodies later. It wasn't long until we'd worked up an appetite
and headed back to the food tables. We loaded our plates with barbequed ribs,
potato salad, homemade French fries, and anything else that struck our fancy
from the dozens of choices. One of my favorites was the cowboy beans, usually
made with pinto beans, but the cook wasn't above throwing in any other type of
beans he happened to have around. I knew this dish always had ham or bacon for
flavoring. I didn't know what else they added, but I planned to ask before I
went home. I wanted to be able to make this dish myself when I got a craving
for the delicious smoky taste.
Once our plates were full, we found table space in the rec room
and settled down to some serious eating. Laudine and I only managed to get
through our first plateful, but when Nick and Lawrence went back for seconds,
we had them bring us peach pie for dessert. Each piece was a huge slab, and
Laudine and I could easily have shared one, but when the men brought us each a
piece of our own, we ate every bite. The peaches were fresh from a local
grower, the crust flaky, and the juice still slightly warm. All the food I
tasted seemed way above the normal quality for a gathering of this type. When
we couldn't hold another bite, our friends went off to visit with Hannibus
Carson and Nick and I decided on a walk to help digest the food. People were
still coming up to talk to Nick, but now it was just friendly chatter. We
strolled around from group to group, and sooner or later I saw almost everyone
I knew. Betty and Cameron had been in the rec room while we ate. I saw David
and Cody together at the carnival surrounded by a group of flirting girls.
Becky Cloud, the assistant cook I'd met in the restaurant break room, stood
close to David, smiling up at him like he'd hung the moon. The sheriff and his
wife were piling plates with food, and the Herreras were still competing, but
this time it was at one of the games on the midway. I saw Hwan with a tall,
good-looking guy and steered Nick their direction. She introduced her friend as
someone she had met in one of her classes at the university. I only caught his
first name, which was Tony. Hwan was stunning in jade green jeans and a
shimmering pearl-colored top. As we were moving to the next group, Reed walked
up to chat with Hwan. Olivia Denning was there wearing a beautiful pleated
squaw dress and barely resembled the efficient head housekeeper I'd met
previously. Both the guests and the employees seemed to be having a great time.
Even the Banner twins were here with a group of kids their own age and were
behaving like normal teenagers.
It was just getting dark when we heard the band start its first
number. We decided to have a go at dancing. Nick assured me it wouldn't hurt
his leg. We'd danced together a few times before, and we both loved it. The
second number was a two-step and we were doing pretty well when I stumbled
slightly and said, “Oh, damn, you need to come outside with me now.”
Nick and Ali take a
wonderful vacation on his dude ranch thinking it will be a great time to get
away from it all and relax, but as usual, trouble seems to follow Ali wherever
she goes.
Ali’s last
prediction from the magic clock told her that she would find the guns on the
third of September which is during her vacation, so this time she takes the
magic bottle with her just in case it might be helpful. As before, the clock is
bang on, and she does find the guns, but what it means she doesn’t know. What
she does know is that there is trouble on the dude ranch because there are very
few clues as to who the killer might be for the guest they have just found
murdered.
Relaxing is the last
thing I would categorize Ali and Nick’s holiday as with so much going on all at
once. Lots of twists and turns in the plot made it difficult to tell from which
direction the next problem would come. Was there more than one thing going on
or were they dealing with two or more dangerous issues?
I loved the way that
Nick patiently dealt with a couple of the guests at the ranch that was causing
havoc with not only the other guests, but all the staff. Rather than refund the
family’s money and send them away, he had a solution which worked out better
for all involved. His thinking was outside the box and creative. I also liked
the little hints that were dropped in the story that were dropped for future
possibilities for Ali and Nick.
The developing
relationships between the characters are growing ever more interesting and I
can’t wait to find out what caused that interaction between Ali and the other
character (no spoilers here). I know we’ll find out more in later books. Even
the swirling bottle had something to say about it.
This series keeps
getting better and better with every book. With each one I get more invested
with the characters and I’m left eagerly waiting for the next installment. Antique Discovery was a fast-paced read
that mystery lovers will surely enjoy. Though it could be read as a stand-alone
novel, my suggestion would be to start at the beginning of the series in order
to get the most out of the books. I rated this book 4 stars out of 5.
Thank you to the
publishers for providing this book in exchange for a fair and honest review. A
positive opinion was not required. All thoughts are my own.
About the Author:
From living off the grid in the Arizona
desert, Eileen has moved to the woods of upstate New York. She has authored a
standalone adventure novel called Desert Shadow. She is also the author of
Alicia Trent Series. The Black Cane : Dowager Diaries Book 1 is her latest
release.
Author Links
No comments :
Post a Comment