In a Strange City (Tess Monaghan Novel, 6) - Softcover

Lippman, Laura

Softcover

ISBN 10: 0380810239 ISBN 13: 9780380810239

Publisher: William Morrow Paperbacks, 2002

Synopsis

New York Times bestselling author Laura Lippman’s Tess Monaghan must put her PI skills to the ultimate test when she falls into the crosshairs of a psychopath who knows everything about her.

For the past fifty years on the birth date of Edgar Allan Poe, a person wearing a cloak has placed three roses and a half bottle of cognac on the writer’s gravesite. PI Tess Monaghan has never witnessed the event. But when John P. Kennedy, an eccentric antiques dealer, asks her to uncover the identity of the caped visitor, who he believes has duped him with the sale of an inauthentic antique, Tess decides to hold vigil on the night the cloaked stranger is expected to make an appearance. But the custom takes on a bizarre, fatal twist when two cloaked figures arrive. The imitator leaves his tribute and then makes his escape...after shooting the first visitor. 

Warning bells tell Tess to steer clear of this case. But when roses and cognac appear on her doorstep, Tess’s curiosity is piqued. She soon discovers that John P. Kennedy has vanished into thin air and much of what he told her was questionable. Then the identity of the shooting victim comes to light, and all clues seem to point to the possibility he was the target of a hate crime. But Tess isn’t convinced. What was his connection to the decades-long Edgar Allan Poe tradition and to the killer? When more cryptic clues are left at her home, Tess realizes that someone is watching her every move...someone who’s bent on killing again.

About this title

About the Author:

Since Laura Lippman's debut in 1997, she has been recognized as a distinctive voice in mystery fiction and named one of the "essential" crime writers of the last 100 years. Her books have won most of the major awards in her field and been translated into more than twenty languages. She lives in Baltimore and New Orleans with her family.

From AudioFile:

Every year, on January 19th, in Baltimore, a mysterious person visits the grave of Edgar Allan Poe, leaving cognac and roses. This year Private Eye Tess Monaghan is present, along with her boyfriend, Crow, and they hear the gunshot that kills the mysterious visitor, or does it? With much detail and digression, the story unfolds as Tess and the police seek to capture the killer before he kills again. Laurence Bouvard characterizes Tess with an even, careless lilt but portrays men with squeaky, cartoonish voices. The tinny sound and continually changing volume also detract from the mystery. M.B.K. © AudioFile 2003, Portland, Maine-- Copyright © AudioFile, Portland, Maine

About this edition

• Publisher: William Morrow Paperbacks
• Publication date: 2002
• ISBN 10: 0380810239
• ISBN 13: 9780380810239
• Binding: Mass Market Paperback
• Number of pages: 400