Molly is an antiques dealer, rebuilding her life in Carmel, California, in the aftermath of her ex-partner / fugitive husband's antique scams in New York. Her new antiques business is on solid enough footing that she can now focus on expanding her horizons and rebuilding her nest egg. Carla Jessop's commission to redecorate the tasting room of her family's winery looks like a perfect opportunity, despite the expected problems with Todd, her control freak jerk of a husband. Molly knows that Carla is strong-willed enough to deal with him, and, hey, no job is really perfect.

Then Todd is murdered only a few days after he pushed Molly to the point of throwing a glass of wine in his face (with local gossip claiming she also threatened to kill him), which came after he'd tried to scam her into blowing a lot of money on a bogus commission. Nobody liked Todd, but recent history makes Molly the leading suspect.

The prior book was my least favorite in the series, so it was great to find the author back on track here. There are a wealth of subplots and interesting, three dimensional characters, with lots of information about antiques (and warnings about would-be antiques) painlessly passed on to the reader. The writing is crisp and vivid enough that you feel you know Molly's Carmel and its people as well as she does. A thoroughly enjoyable read - cozy enough to be non-disturbing for wimps like me, but with enough depth to satisfy any kind of mystery fan. Recommended.