The Way Through the Woods (Signed first edition, first impression)

On holiday in Lyme Regis, Chief Inspector Morse has decided to go without newspapers. But in the hotel he finds himself seated opposite a woman who is anxious to conceal her charms. She is intent only on reading her paper, and Morse cannot help but notice an intriguing headline on the front page.

"Cunning...Your imagination will be frenetically flapping its wings until the very last chapter."
THE WASHINGTON POST BOOK WORLD
Morse is enjoying a rare if unsatisfying holiday in Dorset when the first letter appears in THE TIMES. A year before, a stunning Swedish student disappeared from Oxfordshire, leaving behind a rucksack with her identification. As the lady was dishy, young, and traveling alone, the Thames Valley Police suspected foul play. But without a body, and with precious few clues, the investigation ground to a halt. Now it seems that someone who can hold back no longer is composing clue-laden poetry that begins an enthusiastic correspondence among England's news-reading public. Not one to be left behind, Morse writes a letter of his own--and follows a twisting path through the Wytham Woods that leads to a most shocking murder.