New London, Connecticut - The City of Steeples
The popular art gallery, the Dahlia, had 300 guests celebrating the resident artist’s show. Marilyn Maroney carefully placed her extravagant, life-sized sculpture of Athena, the warrior goddess, on the third-floor balcony overlooking Bank Street—the party ended by midnight with a fog blanketing the City of Steeples from the Thames River. In the morning’s light, Georgi Algarve, a flamboyant sommelier, sweeps the front sidewalk of his wine bar, the Vinho Verde. A glint from Athena's golden shield catches his eye; in a glance, he sees an oddity. Shocked, he lets out a blood-curdling scream. His beautiful friend, Marilyn, is dead. Impaled by Athena’s spear.
Prominent Detective Dan Morrison investigates and relies on the details of death from the uniquely captivating medical examiner, Dr. Angela Storm. When a second artist is abducted, Georgi and his sleuthing friend Roxanne Samson use their connections in the art community to assist. Morrison’s slippery investigation proceeds into an art world labyrinth of glamor and grit with dealers, agents, buyers, and thieves. Truth staggers the imagination when the mastermind lures the detective into a devious game for the love of art.
