Book Review: The Color of Death

Reviewed By: Harriet Klausner

The Color of Death     Amazon US HC Amazon Canada HC
Elizabeth Lowell
Class/Genre:   Mystery   Romance
Morrow, Jun 2004, $24.95, 400 pp.

In Glendale, Arizona, gem cutter Kate Chandler is ecstatic because collector Arthur McCloud hired her to cut the Seven Sins sapphires. Her brother Lee Mandel delivers the gems to its owner, but in Florida he vanishes. Kate is frantic, but the police believe that Lee absconded with the goods and a girlfriend to the Caribbean. Kate disagrees if for no other reason than her sibling was in love with Norm Gallagher and would never desert his mate.

Five months later, Kate continues to search for her brother while attending gem shows to see if she can find the Seven Sins. Undercover FBI Agent Sam Groves sees Kate pull a switch at a Phoenix shows and takes her with him. As they become acquainted and he realizes how much she detests the bureau for not looking for Lee, they fall in love and begin teaming up to stop an illegal dangerous gem ring that is as smooth as Teflon and seek what happened to her brother.

This is an entertaining FBI romance that grips readers when Sam watches Kate perform a sexy sleight of the hand. The story line keeps the audience attention as the duo fall in love, but officialdom keeps them together by “punishing” Sam. Though the perpetrator seems too coincidental and out of left field, fans will enjoy this delightful tale in which the hero faces exile to Fargo rather than accolades (excrement rolls downhill while acclaim remains in the stratosphere).

Harriet Klausner

Reprinted with permission. Do Not repost without permission from the author, Harriet Klausner