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
A gallery that guards its own secrets
The Applewood Museum has one week left before its grand reopening when a body is found beside its newest acquisition, a portrait no one on staff can quite explain.
The painting arrived without much fanfare. The provenance papers, on the other hand, raise more questions than they answer. As the exhibition’s opening night draws closer, the curator, the museum’s largest donor, and a visiting appraiser all have reasons to want the truth kept exactly where it is: on the wall, and nowhere else.
What begins as an appraisal dispute soon becomes something far more dangerous. Every frame in the gallery holds a story. Only one of them 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
The Curator
Knows every painting in the collection. Cannot explain how this one arrived.
The Donor
Funded the exhibition. Has the most to lose if it never opens.
The Appraiser
Flew in to authenticate the piece. Left more unsettled than he arrived.
The Assistant
Saw something the night before opening. Has not yet decided who to tell.
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.