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Artifact A Jaya Jones Treasure Hunt Mystery Book 1 edition by Gigi Pandian Literature Fiction eBooks

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Artifact A Jaya Jones Treasure Hunt Mystery Book 1 edition by Gigi Pandian Literature Fiction eBooks

After reading "Other People's Baggage" with the prequel (Fool's Gold) to this series with Jaya Jones, historian, as the protagonist sleuth, I was looking forward to this book. Also, Ms. Pandian is a local author so I like to support those when I can.

The story is an excellent read and moves quickly with clever twists and turns. It establishes Jaya's bonafides, sets the stage, and off we go on quite a wild ride through Anglo-Indian history and a Scottish archeological dig! Through it all, Jaya keeps her cool (in the time-honored tradition of Amelia Peabody). Tying together the history with the plot development is ingeniously done and the characters are well-rounded, realistic, and believable. An excellent start to a series that now contains five books.


Tags : Artifact (A Jaya Jones Treasure Hunt Mystery Book 1) - Kindle edition by Gigi Pandian. Download it once and read it on your Kindle device, PC, phones or tablets. Use features like bookmarks, note taking and highlighting while reading Artifact (A Jaya Jones Treasure Hunt Mystery Book 1).,ebook,Gigi Pandian,Artifact (A Jaya Jones Treasure Hunt Mystery Book 1),Henery Press,Fiction Mystery & Detective Cozy,Fiction Mystery & Detective Traditional British

Artifact A Jaya Jones Treasure Hunt Mystery Book 1 edition by Gigi Pandian Literature Fiction eBooks Reviews

Opening lines

"The door of the house swung open before I had a chance to knock. It was almost midnight. The woman in front of me was fully dressed and held a cup of coffee in her hand, which I hoped for her sake was decaffeinated. Her face was in shadow as she stood in the door frame of the San Francisco Victorian, but the dim porch light must have illuminated all of me down to my toes, for I heard her breath catch.
"'Is that blood on your shoe?' Nadia asked."

It's not blood, of course. It's sauce from an Indian curry. Jaya is an historian and university professor who plays the tabla drum and tonight she played in an Indian restaurant. Nadia is her Russian landlady who had called about a package for Jaya. The stamps are British, the return address is a Scottish inn, and the contents are a shock -- a huge rough-cut ruby in a gold bracelet with dirt on it.

The jewel is wrapped in a handkerchief embroidered with initials RCC -- Rupert Cedric Chadwick. That's Jaya's second shock of the evening. She's carrying in her messenger bag a newspaper clipping about the death of Rupert Chadwick, a former lover killed in an auto accident in Scotland. Retreating to her apartment, Jaya opens the package again and finds a sheet of paper stuck to the top.

A note from Rupert reads "Jaya, love. I'm sending this artifact to you for safekeeping. And for your help. I'm onto something. But somebody knows it. It's not safe for me to hang onto this at the moment. You'll know what to do. Ring me on my mobile and I'll explain everything. You're the only one I can trust. xox Rupert."

If she needed proof, there it was. Rupert's car crash was no accident, but murder, and it must have something to do with the bracelet. An old friend refers her to Lane Peters, a grad student at Berkeley whose field of study is Indian art history.

Lane identifies the piece as a legendary bracelet from a collection lost since the days of the Mughals. Jaya's Internet search for the Scottish inn listed as Rupert's return address turns up information on an archaeological dig for Pictish sanding stones less than a mile from the inn. It sets up this story which takes Jaya and Lane to Scotland in a search for Rupert's killer and the Rajasthan Rubies, "an Indian treasure wrapped up in a Scottish legend."

The story is chock full of colorful characters, including the crashing sea itself. As Jaya describes it "I couldn't see the ocean as I set out on the path, but I could smell it. It was different from the smell of the Pacific Ocean in San Francisco, with the thick salty sensation blowing by with the fog, or the Arabian Sea along the coast of Goa, with its fruity scents wafting by in the warm breeze. Here along these remote cliffs was the crisp scent of untouched northern wind."

The land of banshees, bogarts and kelpies delivers more surprises. Nothing is quite what it seems to be and danger follows Jaya and Lane as they go about "saving history one artifact at a time." It all comes down to a white-knuckle ending.

In her Author's note, Pandian writes "It is entirely possible that the story in Artifact may have played out in unrecorded history ..."
Artifact by Gigi Pandian
The First Jaya Jones Treasure Hunt Mystery

Artifact is the first in the Jaya Jones Treasure Hunt Mystery series. Jaya Jones is a unique heroine. Half Indian she embraces her culture finding release from the stresses of the day by playing the tabla (an Indian drum). Small in stature she's nonetheless a formidable character; her father enrolled her in every martial arts class available. Jaya is well able to take care of herself.

As capable as Jaya is, she is more distressed than even she thought possible after she learns of the death of a former lover. When she receives a package from him containing a piece of ancient Indian jewelry she realizes his death can't be an accident.. Her search for the truth leads her to Lane Peters, then on to Scotland where she meets with old "friends" on an archaeological dig. What would Indian jewelry have to do with Pictish stones and faerie mounds? Jaya Jones will help us find out!

Gigi Pandian gives us an intriguing mystery loaded with fascinating historical truths and delightful characters. The question of who to trust and the romantic possibilities add to the thrill of the mystery. I'm entranced by this new to me series and can't wait to read more.
This book is about Professor Jaya Jones who lives and works in San Francisco. One day she receives a mysterious bracelet from her ex-boyfriend with a cryptic note about it being an artifact and he needed her help. She soon finds out that her ex died in a car accident shortly after mailing the package from Scotland. Jaya doesn't believe that this is a coincidence, especially when someone breaks into her apartment and she feels like she is being followed. To get herself out of danger and prove her ex was murdered, Jaya must solve the riddle of the ruby bracelet.

I loved this book. I wasn't sure going into it, but I am so glad I gave it a chance. Jaya is such a fresh character, and the supporting characters all are unique and well thought out. One of the other main characters, Lane, is very well written, but his past is a little hard to believe. The plot is a little hard to follow, because I did not know most of the history they were discussing, but the author does a great job of explaining it without info dumping on you. If you like adventure, mystery, romance, and humor, I recommend this book.
First in the series of the Jaya Jones mysteries. Tons of plot twists which were great. The heroine had a couple of interesting quirks including being a historian known as "Dr. Jones" (a nice connection to Indiana Jones adventures). Constantly wanting to eat got a bit annoying after a while but the high heels make for a great quirk for a very short heroine and she uses them well. I really think she could be another Elizabeth Peters. The author is a really good storyteller. It is an easy read so perfect for the beach. Though the two 'old geezers' was written with such heavy accents it slowed down the pace as I had to try to figure out what they were saying as what they had to say was key to the plot. Will I continue reading this series? ABSOLUTELY.
After reading "Other People's Baggage" with the prequel (Fool's Gold) to this series with Jaya Jones, historian, as the protagonist sleuth, I was looking forward to this book. Also, Ms. Pandian is a local author so I like to support those when I can.

The story is an excellent read and moves quickly with clever twists and turns. It establishes Jaya's bonafides, sets the stage, and off we go on quite a wild ride through Anglo-Indian history and a Scottish archeological dig! Through it all, Jaya keeps her cool (in the time-honored tradition of Amelia Peabody). Tying together the history with the plot development is ingeniously done and the characters are well-rounded, realistic, and believable. An excellent start to a series that now contains five books.