Sharon Fiffer's Jane Wheel Mystery Series

Lovers of cozy mysteries and The Antiques Roadshow (both US and UK versions) are bound to love this mystery series by Sharon Fiffer. It definitely deserves more attention!

Jane Wheel, recently estranged from her husband and laid off by her PR firm in Chicago, is making ends meet by working as a "picker" for an antiques dealer. As someone whose kitchen is loaded with Bakelite and vintage tea towels, who's never met a piece of McCoy pottery that she didn't like, this is perfect therapy. Trouble is, she keeps finding mysteries to solve along the way.

Jane's crime solving takes her from the Chicago area further south into Kankakee, Illinois, and readers are given many tips about garage sales, flea markets, estate sales, and collectibles. (I wouldn't be at all surprised if many don't go rummaging through their attics after reading one of these books.) But the information to be gleaned about collecting "stuff" isn't the only reason to read this series. The mysteries are solid, the setting takes me right back to growing up in Illinois, and there is an excellent cast of characters.

The books in the series are:

1. Killer Stuff (2001)
2. Dead Guy's Stuff (2002)
3. The Wrong Stuff (2003)
4. Buried Stuff (2005)
5. Hollywood Stuff (2006)

Click on the book cover collage at the top of this post to be taken to Fiffer's entry on Fantastic Fiction for more information on the books and buying options. If you like cozies and collectibles, you should enjoy this series!