Rita Mae Brown and her feline co-author Sneaky Pie Brown are back chasing mystery with their unique circle of Southern sleuths. And though the changing colors of fall are a beauty to behold, this year the scattered leaves hide a grim surprise.
Autumn is in the air in the Blue Ridge Mountain community of Crozet, Virginiaβand all the traditions of the changing seasons are under way. Mary Minor βHarryβ Haristeen cleans her cupboards, her husband, Fair, prepares the horses for the shorter days ahead, and the clamorous barking of beagles signals the annual rabbit chase through the central Virginia hills. But the last thing the local beaglers and their hounds expect to flush out is a dead body.
Disturbingly, itβs the second corpse to turn up, after that of a missing truck driver too disfigured to identify. The deaths seem unrelatedβuntil Harry picks up a trail of clues dating back to the stateβs post-Revolutionary past.
The echoes of the Shot Heard Round the World pale in comparison to the dangerous shootout Harry narrowly escapes unscathed. Next time, it may be the killer who gets lucky. But not if Harryβs furry friends Mrs. Murphy, Pewter, and Tucker can help it. Lending their sharp-nosed talents to the hunt, theyβll help their mistress keep more lives from being lostβand right an injustice buried since the early days of Americaβs independence.
βAs feline collaborators go, you couldnβt ask for better than Sneaky Pie Brown.ββThe New York Times Book Review
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