Book Review: Tartan, Treasures and Trouble (Dotty Sayers Antiques Mystery, #12) by Victoria Tait

Tartan, Treasures and Trouble by Victoria Tait
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

Dotty’s return to the Cotswolds is marred by murder!

Tartan, Treasures and Troubles is the 12th book in veteran author Victoria Tait’s awesome cozy Dotty Sayers Antiques Mystery series and picks up with Dotty’s return to the Cotswolds and her home at Meadowbank Farm and job at Akeman’s antiques business. She and her best friend, Sergeant Keya Varma, have teamed up to host a traditional Burns night dinner at the Waterwheel Café at the auction house, but the sudden death of one of the attendees was very much NOT on the menu.

Dotty has become a serious and settled young woman, and she’s dealing with some very big issues during this story. Her father’s cancer has progressed, and the doctors have judged it to be inoperable, so every time she visits with him may be her last. The anguish when she learns of his prognosis is palpable. Dotty is also still uncertain about her relationship with Zach, and he is having a difficult time grappling with his findings of this family’s history. Still, there is a treasure to be found.

The plot is well-paced, incorporating multiple storylines with Dotty’s and Keya’s plans for their Burns night celebration, which is fast approaching. As Dotty picks up her life in the Cotswolds again, the story blooms with the names and appearances of many characters from the previous books in the series. It promises to become quite a reunion with people coming out for the Burns night dinner. Having read the earlier books may make sorting all these characters out somewhat easier. hen a character close to those central to the series dies suspiciously in front of everyone at the dinner, other familiar faces make their way onto the suspects’ list, so there are plenty of red herrings to cross off on the way to a surprising resolution. Sharp-eyed armchair detectives may be able to settle on the correct perpetrator in advance as the clues are there.

I recommend TARTAN, TREASURES AND TROUBLE to cozy mystery readers, especially those who have enjoyed the previous books in the series.

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