Without Reserve

As he did in Under the Hammer , Harton gives his own name to a fictional protagonist whose (mis)adventures as a London-based auctioneer draw on the author's experiences over 25 years in the profession. The book's expert pacing and Harton's keen wit make his story much more than a novelistic recapitulation of a career in the antiques business--although it certainly could serve as a primer on collectibles as Harton delves into the fine points of vintage furniture, British landscape painting, ceramics and assorted objets d'art. Most of the 22 chapters in the densely packed narrative are self-contained anecdotes describing the auctioneer's encounters with clients who range from classic British eccentrics to the nouveaux riches and famous. The overall tone is comic; verbal humor predominates, enlivened by an occasional bit of slapstick that inevitably results in something valuable being broken or destroyed. More serious subplots involve burglaries and scandal, and there is even a Dickensian touch of pathos when a dying widow is forced to sell the dearest possessions of her married life. Good fun for art-lovers everywhere. (Jan.)