Painted Truth: An Alix Thorssen Mystery (Walker Mystery) - Hardcover

McClendon, Lise

Hardcover

ISBN 10: 0802732712 ISBN 13: 9780802732712

Publisher: Walker & Co, 1995

Synopsis

Alix Thorssen finds her attentions divided between the dangerous worlds of kayaking and art when the greed, jealousies, and machinations behind a gallery showing violently and unexpectedly explode in murder

About this title

From Publishers Weekly

Set in Jackson, Wyo., where the Old West merges with upscale art galleries and white-water rafting concessions, this lightening-fast adventure has enough false trails to stock a national park. Introduced in The Bluejay Shaman, the self-mocking narrator Alix Thorssen ("semiprosperous art dealer, so-so kayaker, single girl, thirty-something") faces upheaval and betrayal on all sides. Her gallery and her partnership with the wildly appealing Paolo Segundo seem to be at a crossroads. When a neighboring gallery goes up in a spectacular blaze and the body of a local artist ("He was big in the seventies") is found inside, Alix is drawn into the case as an appraiser and finds herself wondering why the police were so quick to label the crime arson/suicide. Of course, she's right. But not as right as she thinks; what she doesn't know nearly kills her and does kill someone close to her. As Alix pursues an investigation that ultimately pits her professional self-interest against her ethics, the plot, which relies on speed more than finesse, takes a skid here and there. But Alix, fueled by endless cups of coffee and a lot of angst, more than makes up for the shortcomings.
Copyright 1995 Reed Business Information, Inc.

From Booklist

McClendon's Alix Thorssen series is distinguished by its setting (Jackson Hole, Wyoming) and the occupation of its amateur sleuth, art gallery owner and part-time insurance investigator Alix Thorssen. A fire destroys a gallery owned by one of Alix's friends, and Alix is called in to evaluate the loss. But the stakes change when the smoldering ashes yield up not only evidence of arson but also a body that's been burned beyond recognition. At first, the body is assumed to be that of artist Ray Tantros, but then a very-much-alive Tantros is sighted hiding out at his remote cabin. Before Alix can question Tantros, he turns up dead--for real, this time--and Alix is left to solve the case. Though Alix makes an appealing heroine, she doesn't really stand out from all the other strong-willed, relationship-shy female crime solvers, professional and amateur, populating the field these days. Still, the novel features competent writing, a good premise, and an atmospheric setting. That will be enough for many readers. Emily Melton

About this edition

• Publisher: Walker & Co
• Publication date: 1995
• ISBN 10: 0802732712
• ISBN 13: 9780802732712
• Binding: Hardcover
• Language: English
• Edition number: 1
• Number of pages: 243