The quiet life of Julie Simms, children's librarian, suddenly reads like a spy novel when she discovers her parents are art thieves. the thrilling bedtime stories her mother told her when she was little weren't imaginary: they were real. And they got both her parents killed. But Julie didn't know that when she compiled the tales into a newly published book for children. Now as government agents, art thieves and a sexy-but-too-curious new neighbor pop up at every turn, Julie is swept up into her parents' lethal legacy. At the heart of the mystery is a missing painting; Portrait of Isabella. Putting together clues from the past, Julie suspects her only shot at untangling the mess is to find the painting herself-before dying young becomes another family tradition.