Alix London, after not hearing from Ted Ellesworth for much longer than she expected, gets a call from him at last.

He wants her to do another job for the FBI, and this one is undercover. Well, not really, he says. She'll be going on a luxury cruise with a Greek financier and art investor. The Greek tycoon, Panos Papadakis, is auctioning off twenty-three highly valued art works, and he wants someone to talk to his guests/customers about art in general and these works and artists in particular. The FBI wants her to just listen for any tidbits about his fractional investment scheme, which they suspect of being in reality a Ponzi scheme. What could be easier?

But Alix hasn't been aboard much more than an hour when she recognizes--though for reasons she can't immediately pinpoint--that the Manet in the auction is probably a fake, and is almost immediately hit on the head. With Panos and his American wife Gabby, as well as some of the boat's security, standing over her as she regains consciousness, she incautiously blurts out her suspicions.

Oh, and the Manet has been slashed, too. It won't be in the auction after all.

The cruise gets stranger and stranger, with some very interesting people included among the tiny number of people invited to join the cruise and be physically present for the auction. It gets even stranger when Ted arrives, posing as the nephew of a countess who was invited but hurt her knee and couldn't make the trip. If Ted is going to be there, why was Alix needed?

Alix is enjoying the luxury, and even making friends with Gabby and a few others on the cruise, but the real questions are, a)what's wrong with the Manet (other than the slash), b)what's with Ted's onIagain/off again behavior, and c)just what is her (supposedly) ex-art forger father's "new undertaking"?

It's an engaging story, an interestingly convoluted plot, and not too heavy. I like Alix, and increasingly her dad. Overall, it's a fun read or listen.

Recommended.

I bought this audiobook. ( )

Alix London, daughter of an art criminal, works for the FBI and is investigating an art forgery/ponzi scheme ring. She's an art expert and is aboard a yacht as a lecturer. One of her colleagues shows up as well, undercover as the designated bidder for an invited guest who cannot make the Greek isles tour. The murder is secondary to the art crimes. I made the mistake of reading this second installment before reading the first and feel I missed out on character development needed to appreciate the series. I didn't enjoy this installment enough to want to read the earlier or later installments in the series. I prefer "murder mysteries" so it just did not hold my attention. Fortunately it was short enough to finish. ( )

Synopsis: Alix has been asked to join a cruise through the Mediterranean. All she has to do is give a few lectures about the paintings being shown, break up a forgery ring, and help catch a killer.
Review: This is an interesting story that continues with the art forgery theme but brings in the Mafia as a tough of suspense. I enjoyed the tale. ( )

Interesting characters and setting. All set for a great read, but somehow the spark wasn't lit and the finally resolution was a stretch. ( )

Although this is the second Alix London mystery, A Cruise to Die For is my introduction to the character. Having a "reformed" con man and forger for a father is a double-edged sword. On the one hand, this makes her much cannier than most to the world of art fraud, and I enjoyed the ways in which her father could help her. However, her father's eight years in prison means that Alix has had to start from scratch to rebuild her own life and reputation. This situation could add a lot of interest to the books in this series. The setting of a luxury yacht in the Aegean certainly doesn't hurt, and the insider's look into the world-- and business-- of art is a fascinating one. If you're thinking that I'm about to say "but..." you would be correct.

The moment Alix steps aboard the yacht and takes one look at a painting, her reaction is just too naive to be believed for someone who's undercover and has been warned of what's going on. She also tends to be so conventional that it's difficult to become very interested in her as a main character. (For interest, her father wins the contest, hands down.) This book is well-written and has a smoothly flowing storyline. Unfortunately the story and the characters just don't have that spark that kindles a reader's interest and makes them keep turning the pages. ( )