"Superb mystery."

Reverend Kathryn Koerney's eagerly anticipated volunteer position as a guide to historic Oxford is tragically altered when her cousin is murdered in his own research job at Datchworth Castle. As a way to face her anger and loss, she takes her friend and Chief of Police Tom Holder to visit and commiserate with the castle residents. Instead of talking to the Oxford constabulary and quickly retreating into her own grief, Kathryn discovers herself in the midst of an intergenerational web of loyalties and half-truths.

Evoking a feel of Rickman's Merrily Watkins series, THIEVES BREAK IN goes beyond a genre mystery. Instead, with an intriguing use of flashbacks twining together as plot development and exposition, the tale takes on a life of its own to create an intense drama. This is an excellent book in which to submerge yourself as the autumn grows chillier.

Reviewed by Vicky Gilpin
Posted October 20, 2004

Summary

The Reverend Kathryn Koerney is looking forward to guiding a group of her New Jersey parishioners through historical Oxford, England. She's also eager to visit her cousin, Richard, who works for a baronet at Datchworth Castle. But just before she departs, Kathryn gets word that Richard has fallen to his death from a castle tower. The police are calling it murder--yet they don't have a single lead. Fortunately, her friend, Chief of Police Tom Holder, is anxious to accompany her to the scene and lend his expertise. Secretly smitten with the divine lady priest, there's nothing the crime-deprived, unhappily married cop would like more than to conduct an investigation with her by his side. But his enthusiasm quickly fades when a certain marquis captures Kathryn's attention. Datchworth has a wealth of secret treasures--and dark secrets. And when Kathryn stumbles upon what could be the most sensational find of the century, Tom and Kathryn are caught in a web of greed and madness that will require all their courage and faith--not just to save their friendship, but their lives.