I love a good detective mystery. Unfortunately this was not one of them. Her attempt at humor was tedious. I have read other fluff mysteries, but not one that was as hard to finish as this was. I did finish reading it, but by the time I got to the end, I did not care who was the villain or about Thea's love life.

I loved the characters in this book, and the layers of information we learn about Thea's home town. The messy, lovable heroine kept me laughing and rooting for her- whether for her safety, sorting our her life, hoping she would find romance, or the mystery itself. I usually read any-and-all fiction, not limiting myself to genres. However, I often read less mysteries, and less Christian fiction. I reached for this book as one of my light reads, and found myself being pulled into Thea's world,and not putting the book down. Unlike some Christian fiction the faith experience was seamless, real, and made me think while having a fun read.

I thought the book was very poorly written. Even before I realized it was a Christian fiction book, I was disappointed in the quality of the writing.

If I would have known my publishing houses, I would have realized earlier that this is a Christian Fiction murder mystery. The book implies that it would be a cozy, with the mention of quilts, cats and tea, but I really didn't get that feel from the book.

Thea James owns an Antique shop in a small town and when the local homeless man brings in a valuable Roseville vase with a list of women's names on it Thea is curious, but when two of the women are either injured or missing, Thea's investigation skills kick into full gear.

The story is quite slow moving and is centered around Thea rediscovering her faith and finding a new man then in actually moving the mystery forward. The ending seems abrupt and convoluted. Didn't really appeal to me.

`A Vase of Mistaken Identity'
Author: Cathy Elliott
Reviewer: Shari Van Baale

We are introduced to our heroine, Thea James, in the middle of the night, as she awakens suddenly to the sounds of sirens nearby. As it turns out, the sirens are a portent of a series of tragedies to come. Thea owns a family antiques business, The Antique Emporium, in Larkindale, California. When we find Thea away from the store, she is probably either at home with her beloved cat Betty, quilting, spending time with her sister Rosie, with her Gram, or with her Mum. Mum, although not a Brit herself, did marry one, and quickly adapted the appropriate dialect, and all the intricacies of that lifestyle, including enjoying a proper cup of English tea. Thea's Mum is a devoted Christian, and longs for her daughters to follow suit, as her Christianity anchors her in life, and helps her to ride out the storms of life with strength and assurance. It is no wonder that she wants this for her family as well.

One day, a friend of Thea's, fondly referred to as `picker Pete, brings her the usual new box of `goodies', which Thea always pays him for, even if it's just rags and junk. Well this time, there is a bit more to the treasure than just rags...there is an antique rosewood vase, worth quite a lot of money. Curiously, inside the neck of the vase is a slip of paper with several names on it - one of which is Thea's! As she peruses the names on the list, she discovers that they are or were all friends of hers. But what could this possibly mean? She wonders. Then it is discovered that the first name on the list, her friend Hattie, was indeed the reason for the late night sirens - this poor girl was murdered! Is Thea next? And what about her sister Rosie, who is also on the list? Before she can begin to come up with any answers, Thea finds herself being followed one night by a vehicle with only one headlight - but who? She doesn't have any enemies...does she?

Before Thea can get far with the list, she discovers that her cottage has been broken into, and the vase is missing! Thea's dear Uncle Nick, a former police officer, insist that she stay with him and his wife for a couple of days while the cottage locks are changed...and because they just love having her over so much. Soon, Thea finds out that her friend Molly, also on the list, has gone missing. Her mother isn't so sure - she just thinks that the girl is out on a long partying binge again, leaving the girl's children with her mother to babysit. Thea decides to take Gram with her to see Molly's ex-husband and get the lowdown on Molly's possible whereabouts. The husband, however, isn't much help, but Thea realizes that he likely really doesn't have a clue where she is.

Thea's co-worker Lyndi, admits to `borrowing' the vase for her job interview, but insists that the door was already open when she went in to get it. OK, so if she didn't break in, who did, and why? This story is full of questions, and they are all answered in due time, with an enjoyable journey all the way. All throughout the story, an undercurrent of Christianity runs, and it finally carries Thea to a point of self-examination and honesty as to how she feels about God. This is a delightful story with several twists and turns, and keeps your interest the whole way through. I think the author did a wonderful job in creating both 3-D characters, a well-developed storyline and surroundings. The author is a library Info Tech at a community college in northern California, who also likes to collect antiques, is a quilter, an ardent reader, a musician and a mom. She loves to write in her spare time, and I think she does a superb job at it. I hope to read more books authored by her, and I would encourage anyone who loves a good mystery to pick this one up and have a great read!