Two o'clock in the morning is the perfect time to be asleep. So when long-suffering Brandy Borne is rudely awoken by her eccentric mother, Vivian, and invited on a surreptitious shopping trip, the idea is less than tempting.

But if Vivian - Serenity's true-crime writing, septuagenarian super-sleuth - has a nose for sniffing out antiques, Brandy's sense of smell is just as good ... and trouble's on the wind.

A little light blackmail and one run-in with the police later, and Brandy and Vivian are the 'proud' owners of a selection of dead stock, liberated ahead of an upcoming warehouse sale from unsavory auctioneer Conrad Norris. Brandy's not convinced there's a fortune to be made in vintage toys, retro plates and pearl buttons - there's more mileage in their shop's new Halloween display, even though it's only August - but she supposes it could be worse.

It soon is. After the auction's taken place, Vivian and Brandy make an unnerving discovery. It's not just the stock that's dead - so is the auctioneer ...

This light-hearted, laugh-out-loud cozy mystery also features Brandy and Vivian's humorous tips for buying and selling antiques, along with a selection of tasty recipes.