Monet Talks
By Tamar Myers
3.5/5
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About this ebook
Charleston antiques dealer Abigail Timberlake Washburn is thrilled by her recent estate auction purchase of a spectacular bejeweled birdcage from India, but not so much by its occupant, a mouthy mynah named Monet. Still, her customers at the Den of Antiquity seem charmed by the insufferable birdbrain, so Abby figures she's stuck with him. That is, until she finds a stuffed starling resting on his usual perch with a ransom note demanding a real Monet (the painted variety) in exchange for her purloined pet.
Since she doesn't happen to have a priceless masterpiece on hand -- and since a mynahless existence isn't all that distasteful a prospect -- Abby figures she'll let the thief keep the annoying avian. But when her mama Mozella is abducted by the craven birdnapper, Abby must leap into the fray to rescue mater and mynah alike ... before the feathers really start to fly!
Tamar Myers
Tamar Myers is the author of the Belgian Congo series and the Den of Antiquity series as well as the Pennsylvania-Dutch mysteries. Born and raised in the Congo, she lives in North Carolina.
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Titles in the series (14)
The Glass Is Always Greener Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5Death of a Rug Lord Rating: 3 out of 5 stars3/5Monet Talks Rating: 3 out of 5 stars3/5The Cane Mutiny Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Poison Ivory Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Splendor in the Glass: A Den of Antiquity Mystery Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Tiles and Tribulations Rating: 3 out of 5 stars3/5Nightmare in Shining Armor: A Den of Antiquity Mystery Rating: 3 out of 5 stars3/5A Penny Urned Rating: 3 out of 5 stars3/5So Faux, So Good Rating: 3 out of 5 stars3/5Baroque and Desperate Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Larceny and Old Lace Rating: 3 out of 5 stars3/5The Ming and I Rating: 2 out of 5 stars2/5Gilt By Association Rating: 3 out of 5 stars3/5
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Reviews for Monet Talks
35 ratings6 reviews
- Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5I couldn't guess whodunit, next one please.
- Rating: 2 out of 5 stars2/5At an auction, Abigail Washburn outbids several other buyers to buy a fancy birdcage modeled after the Taj Mahal -- complete with a talking mynah named Monet in residence. Abby schleps the $10,000 birdcage and its occupant to Den of Antiquity, her Charleston SC antique store, where Monet manages to charm Abby’s upscale customers … but not for long. First the talkative bird is kidnapped, then Abby’s mother is – and the villain wants a real Monet painting as a ransom. Unfortunately, Abby doesn’t have a Monet. She’s not so worried about the bird – she found the creature annoying – but Abby IS worried about her mom. Thank goodness her former-detective husband Greg is out of town, so Abby can sleuth to her heart’s content without his interference. She starts her investigation with the people who outbid her at the auction. Comic mysteries are meant to be lighthearted and non-taxing – without hard-edged realism – and I am usually positively pre-disposed to them. (The last of the Den of Antiquity mystery I reviewed was fun to read and I gave it three quills.) However, I believe comedy is more than snappy dialogue and screwball characters – which I’ll admit Monet Talks has in spades. But even a humorous mystery needs a semi-plausible plot, and characters that are sufficiently developed to allow me to know and care about (or dislike) them. Unfortunately, Monet Talks had neither. Abby’s constant references to her and her “minimadre’s” petite size were quite annoying. The too-clever patter and frenetic pace were headache-inducing. Someone from Charleston would probably find references to the city’s many charms endearing, and antique lovers might be interested enough to keep reading, but maybe not. Review based on publisher- or author-provided review copy.
- Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Even though I had to skip from books 3 to 12 I was not lost at all by missing the few in between. I admit this one was a little slow at first, but picked up and I enjoyed reading it. I will go back and read the ones I have missed as I love this series.
- Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5#12 in this mystery series, Abby Timberlake, owner of the Den of Antiquity antique store, fighting off some very high bidders, has purchased at auction the world's most beautiful birdcage. Built in the form of the Taj Mahal, it arrives with a mynah bird named Monet. Monet turns out to be quite a one bird show, he can not only voice obscure phrases but he can switch genders (in voice) without a break. First Monet disappears, then people start to disappear. But if there is something about the birdcage that someone wants, why take the bird? Tamar Myers is well-known for her off-beat comic heroines in her series'. This almost tops it in content. Although maybe not quite as laugh out loud as earlier books, it is still giggly humorous. But then, after crashing a high society party, one of the main characters, who usually plays a truly priceless part for Abby to bounce off of so gleefully, is quickly among the missing.This is how the story begins and Ms. Myers soon has us all embroiled in guessing and suspecting, also wondering why everything keeps coming back to the bird. There are serious accusations to sort out and downright hilarious ways in which four-foot-nine Abby goes about investigating. It takes her awhile to realize there is more to this crime than stealing the bird because she can't understand the phone calls she's getting. It's not really until she gets a package that fear takes over. Her friends the Rob-Bobs stay right with her almost every complaining step of the way... usually Rob complaining about Bob's "epicurean" cooking. All in all, another entertaining cozy mystery from Myers and certainly different.
- Rating: 3 out of 5 stars3/5Antiques dealer Abigail Timberlake Washburn outbids several people to buy a birdcage shaped like the Taj Mahal. With the cage is a Mynah bird named Monet. At first, Abigail cares more for the cage than the bird, but she soon grows to like the bird and is upset when Monet is birdnapped. The kidnappers demand a real Monet in exchange for the feathered version. Abigail doesn't have the real Monet, but the kidnappers soon strike again, this time kidnapping Abigail's mother, Mozella. Abigail works frantically to figure out what the kidnappers are really looking for as well as where they have hidden her mother. This is a very funny book. Readers may be laughing so hard they may not notice that the book is long on humor and short on plot. The "mystery" of Abigail's mother and bird being kidnapped is ignored for long stretches as Abigail encounters one eccentric character after another. While the regular characters of C.J. and the Rob-Bob's are always amusing (although jokes about Bob's cooking are overdone), minor characters such as FBI agents that Abigail nicknames Moldy and Scowler, seem thrown in the book just for the pun of it. I'd like to see less emphasis on the eccentric characters and more emphasis on the plot. This is a light but amusing series.
- Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5this series is always fun