An Applewood Mystery
Death in theGallery
Some masterpieces conceal more than paint.
When murder interrupts an exhibition, every curator, donor, and collector becomes a suspect inside the town’s most beloved museum.
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Explore More MysteriesThe Story
Some artifacts preserve beauty. Others hide secrets worth killing for.
Art collector Vincent Mallory is shot dead during a gala at the Applewood Museum, and the quiet town is left reeling. Was it random, or planned with precision?
Historian Emily Carter doesn’t trust the official story. With help from Henry Ellis, a sharp-witted innkeeper, she starts digging through Mallory’s rivals, and the grudges he left behind.
What begins as a murder investigation soon uncovers a web of greed, jealousy, and lies hidden behind the gallery's elegant walls. Only one secret is worth killing for.
Setting
Three rooms inside the Applewood Museum
The Exhibition Hall
Marble floors and careful lighting. Opening night was meant to be the museum’s finest hour.
The Curator’s Office
Where every acquisition is logged, and where one file quietly stopped matching the wall.
The Restoration Studio
A place for careful hands. Someone here has been far less careful than the rest.
The Cast
Under suspicion
Lauren Marble
A rival art dealer with a long-standing, very public feud with Vincent.
Jonathan Wells
Still furious over an artifact Vincent stole from him.
Dr. Evelyn Pierce
Vincent plagiarized her research. She never forgave him.
Daniel Ashford
Vincent's ex-business partner, vanished from view after their falling out.
Margot Bellamy
Their breakup was anything but amicable.
What Readers Notice First
“A cozy mystery with real bite. I did not see the ending coming, and I read a lot of these.”
Verified Reader
“The museum setting is used so well. It feels like its own character.”
Marguerite H.
“Clever clues, a fair mystery, and a cast I wanted to keep spending time with.”
Happy Buyer
Meet the Author
Steven T. Duff
Steven writes mysteries built on quiet suspense and a fair puzzle: every clue in plain sight, every red herring earned.
Death in the Gallery is a standalone Applewood mystery. No prior reading required.
Free Sample Chapters
Step into the gallery, on the house
The first two chapters, delivered to your inbox. Read at your own pace.
Own the Book
Bring the gallery home
Available now in ebook, with more formats added here as they release.
Questions
Before you visit the museum
Do I need to read anything else first?
No. Death in the Gallery is a complete standalone Applewood mystery.
Is it a clean mystery, or graphic?
Clean. Expect a fair puzzle and cozy-mystery pacing rather than graphic content.
What formats are available?
Ebook now, with paperback and audiobook to follow. See the purchase section above.
What do the free chapters include?
The complete first two chapters, sent to your inbox so you can meet the museum before you decide.
Every frame holds a story. Only one is worth killing for.
Watch the trailer, read the first chapters free, and step into the gallery today.