The Crossword Connection
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- $8.99
Publisher Description
PI Rosco Polycrates and crossword editor Belle Graham are about to tie the knot, but a nasty case of multiple murders could give them cold feet
A homeless man has been found in an alley, clobbered to death. The crime seems pretty cut and dried—vagrants fighting over turf—until the Newcastle Police Department uncovers a connection to a local shelter in danger of being taken over by greedy developers. Is the dead John Doe a victim of some sinister plot? And what became of the scruffy mutt he had recently adopted?
Recruited to find the missing puppy, private investigator Rosco Polycrates has to juggle the search with his upcoming nuptials to Belle Graham. And soon a second murder shatters the serenity of their scenic Massachusetts town. Then Rosco disappears . . . and Belle starts receiving threatening messages concealed in fiendishly clever crossword clues. Will Rosco become the third victim? With time running out, the Queen of Cryptics races to fill in the blanks before her wedding is put on hold—forever.
This ebook includes six crossword puzzles that can be downloaded as PDFs, with answers in the back of the book.
The Crossword Connection is the 3rd book in the Crossword Mysteries, but you may enjoy reading the series in any order.
PUBLISHERS WEEKLY
The pseudonymous Blanc (husband-and-wife writing team Steve Zettler and Cordelia Frances Biddle) has constructed another neat whodunit, along with some clever crosswords, in this third outing (after The Crossword Murder and Two Down). Crossword creator Belle Graham is happily anticipating her upcoming nuptials to private investigator Rosco Polycrates when the murder of a homeless man in an alley in Newcastle, Mass., threatens to derail those plans. Is the murder part of a plot designed to shut down a homeless shelter so that developers can take over the property? And what happened to the puppy the murder victim had recently adopted? Local grande dame Sara Crane Briephs hires Rosco to find the missing pup, giving him a legitimate reason (other than sheer nosiness) to be involved in the case. The situation turns uglier when a second murder occurs. Soon Rosco disappears, and Belle receives odd and threatening messages in the form of devilishly contrived crossword clues, which she thinks are coming from the kidnapper. Can Rosco's former partner, Lieutenant Al Lever, find him in time for the wedding to go ahead as planned? Though only the two main characters are much more than genial stereotypes, Blanc builds the suspense slowly and surely, challenging the reader with a dandy puzzler.
