A Puzzle in a Pear Tree Parnell Hall Bantam December 18, 2007 The Chicago Sun-Times crowns Parnell Halls Puzzle Lady mysteries a joy for lovers of both crosswords and frothy crime detection...Cora Felton is a lovable and unique sleuth. Now the crime-solving powers of the inimitable Cora and her clever niece, Sherry Carter, are put to the ultimate test as they square off against a yuletide killer who hides within the white-and-black shadows of an acrostic....A Puzzle In A Pear TreeTis the season to be jolly, but Cora Felton, shanghaied into The Twelve Days of Christmas as a most reluctant maid-a-milking, has every right to feel like a grinch. When someone steals the partridge from the pear tree and replaces it with a cryptic puzzle she has no hope of solving, its almost more than the Puzzle Lady can bear. But then smug crossword creator Harvey Beerbaum solves the acrostic, and it turns out to be a poem promising the death of an actress. This is more like it! Could the threat be aimed at Cora and her thespian debut? Or at Sherry, one of the ladies-dancing? Or at Sherrys nemesis, the pageants predatory lead, Becky Baldwin? Cora and Sherry barely have time for a mystery, what with trimming Christmas trees and buying Christmas presents, but rehearsals go on, under police protection--until a killer strikes elsewhere in a most unexpected manner.Ordinarily Cora Felton would be delighted to have two murders to solve. But this time she finds herself vying with a visiting Scotland Yard inspector who appears to have an all-too-personal stake in solving the crimes. Cora does too when her own niece becomes a prime suspect and the murderer strikes again. Is someone trying to shut down the Christmas pageant? Cora would be only too happy if that were the case, but she fears the secrets lie deeper. Now she is interviewing witnesses, breaking into motel rooms, finding evidence, planting evidence, and having a merry old time. In fact, she would be perfectly happy--if this wasnt turning out to be a Christmas to die for!From the Hardcover edition. About the Author Parnell Hall is the author of the acclaimed Stanley Hastings mystery novels and the Steve Winslow courtroom dramas, as well as three previous Puzzle Lady mysteries, A Clue for the Puzzle Lady, Last Puzzle & Testament, and Puzzled to Death. Nominated for the Edgar, the Shamus, and the Lefty Awards, he lives in New York City, where he is working on his fifth Puzzle Lady mystery, With This Puzzle I Thee Wed.From the Hardcover edition. About Iceberg The Iceberg Reader revolutionizes the reading experience, making it easier than ever to browse, buy and enjoy books. Features - Attractive interface provides a natural reading experience with full pagination. - Table of Contents incorporates one click navigation. - Vertical and horizontal page orientation. - Adjust font size with a pinch, text reflows automatically. - Search the text within a book. - Create margin notes with user notation. About Scrollmotion ScrollMotion, creator of the Iceberg Reader, is a content technology company based in New York City. For more information, visit www.scrollmotion.com. Support If you have any technical problems please email us at icebergsupport@scrollmotion.com before you post a review.
