The Pot Thief Who Studied Pythagoras

This is the first book in a humorous mystery series featuring a New Mexico pottery dealer who has a side job as an amateur sleuth. Hubert Schuze studied math in college and is familiar with Pythagorus and his theorems. Hubie uses his knowledge of math when creating his own pots, most of which are duplicates of ancient pots.

The publisher's summary:

A dealer of ancient Native American pottery, Hubert Schuze has spent years combing the public lands of New Mexico, digging for artwork that would otherwise remain buried. According to the US government, Hubie is a thief—but no act of Congress could stop him from doing what he loves. For decades, Hubie has worn the title of pot thief proudly. Outright burglary, though, is another story.

But an offer of $25,000 to lift a rare pot from a local museum proves too tempting for Hubie to refuse. When he sees how tightly the relic is guarded, he changes his mind, but the pot goes missing anyway. Soon a federal agent suspects that Hubie is the culprit. After things take a turn for the serious, Hubie knows he must find the real thief quickly, or risk cracking something more fragile than any pot—his skull.

Hubert used many Pythagorian measurements in order to plan his heist. Hubert is not only a math major but he is also a treasure hunter turned pot thief. He is only considered a thief because of a new American law disallowing archeologists and other diggers from keeping things they find. Hubert doesn't dig on Indian lands or private property, but he feels that he's part of the public, so public land finds belong to him too! He runs a pot store in New Mexico selling his great finds.

This book is a humorous, intellectual mystery full of stories about Pythagorus' life and theories. Hubert and his friend Susannah have intellectual discussions on this mathematician while they enjoy their daily evening drinks. The book is a great start for this new cozy mystery series.