Moonspender - Lovejoy, Bk 11 Author:Jonathan Gash East Anglia, Lovejoy homeland, is not all that far out of London. It is set beside the sea, with a long lovely coastline, but it encompasses lush green valleys and fine wooded areas. — And moonspenders. For, once upon a time, long, long ago, the early inhabitants of East Anglia buried treasures, Roman coins, silver plates, Celtic gold torcs and -... more »- well, a good many rare and valuable bits and pieces that treasure hunters have been searching for ever since.
Originally, and until quite recently, the treasure hunters just dug in a bit here and there with spades and trowels and buckets and such. Then the moonspenders came along, illicit night seekers hunting up and down the countryside with high-technology tools -- electronic metal detectors and their ilk.
Highly illegal, the forces of the law, the local country squires, and the government people were determined to stop the raiding. Not easy. Too often, far too often, they have been unsuccessful these days. The moonspenders may well number over 20,000.
Lovejoy, whose passion in life is antiques (he thinks girls are all right, too, of course) is an antique dealer (perhaps not always absolutely honest, but he does not approve of these moonspender types); antiques, especially East Anglia ones, are his territory. Lovejoy is a divvie (a divvie can spot a fake antique just like that). He has been asked to validate the source of recent rumors -- an important local "find" -- a genuine Roman bronze figure.
Lovejoy finds himself involved with some very nasty types, plus witches and a wedding. All very strenuous -- but nothing like the way he wound up -- as a figure on a national television program! A public figure!« less