Earth Colors

Earth Colors by Andrews, Sarah. mass_market edition. ISBN: 9780312997700.

Unemployed professional geologist and sometime FBI consultant, Em Hansen desperately needs work. So when her best friend Faye tells her that she knows someone who could use Ems expertise as a geologist to authenticate a painting, she jumps at the prospect. The painting is by the famous painter of the American West, Frederic Remington, and Ems client has had it in his family for years. But he believes its a fake and wants Em to use her forensic skills to analyze the pigments to prove it. Since pigments are just ground-up minerals, its a perfect task for a geologist like Em. Although Em doesnt quite trust Fayes friend, she sets aside her doubts and takes the case. Following the paintings trail takes her from Wyoming to Utah to Washington, D.C., and Pennsylvania, and then it takes an unexpected sinister twist, putting Em on the trail of a murderer too. Suddenly shes the only one who can find out whats going on in time to save several lives, including her own.