In Sterling Glass's line of work, it's not unusual to unearth a few family skeletons among the family heirlooms she appraises. But when she's called in to determine the worth of a diamond brooch found tucked inside an oven mitt over at the Salvation Army thrift store, and when the appraisal of an extremely modest estate turns up an 1810 Paul Storr tea urn — hidden inside a blanket and worth at least fifty grand—things just don't add up.
Sterling, never one to let go of loose ends, starts asking questions and uncovers a plot involving a slew of antique pieces, the oldest families of Leemont, some sophisticated scammers, crooked antiques dealers, and shifty people at the best New York houses.
Stealing with Style introduces a writer of great wit and a grand sense of the mystery hidden in our most treasured possessions....

Hired to assess the value of broken and missing antiques following a suspicious burglary at a Virginia manor house, intrepid appraiser and amateur sleuth Sterling Glass finds that her job is more complicated than she’d anticipated. The antiques, she realizes, are not always what they seem: some are worth tens of thousands, others are well-done replicas.

Whether the well-traveled and well-heeled couple who once owned Wynderly could have been trafficking in fakes is what Sterling must unravel from the secret rooms, hidden treasures, uncovered diaries, and convoluted trail of paperwork and provenance. As our sharp-witted heroine sifts through details doled out by the museum's curators, board members, and the town's local residents, she discovers that objects, unlike people, do not lie.

The Big Steal is a delightful mystery that enhances readers' antiques acumen and provides an easy guide to identifying the most popular styles and periods in an illustrated appendix.
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