Now he's switching course again, this time presenting what can only be termed a disreputable Jessica Fletcher: Miss Cora Felton, famed from coast to coast for her popular crossword puzzle column syndicated in many newspapers. Closer to home, however, Cora's as well known for her hard-drinking, chain-smoking ways. When one starts to look more closely, there's a real possibility that she doesn't even write her own puzzles and that she may be something entirely different from the public's perception of her.

But one will have to read A Clue for the Puzzle Lady to learn the whole truth. In the meantime, readers will also enjoy the small-town Connecticut ambiance and the challenge of trying to figure out what the two female murder victims have in common, aside from the fact that both have been found in the town's cemetery (where the bodies usually come in coffins) and that on their person are what appear to be crossword clues.

What are known in the trade as "cozies" generally are not my cup of tea, as it were, but I'm on record as being a longtime admirer of the author--as well as not being averse to a little-old-lady sleuth with a highball, instead of knitting, in her hand. --Otto Penzler