Black Cat Weekly #257

This issue, we’re celebrating the 50th “Velda, P.I.” story from Ron Miller. Quite a milestone! And we do, indeed, have more of her adventures waiting in the wings. Her adventures continue to be among our most popular stories, based on reader feedback. (And I wouldn’t publish them if I didn’t like them, too.)

But Velda can’t do it all on her own, no matter how hard she tries. So we’re happy to have a fine selection of other tales to accompany her, kicking off with originals from Hal Charles (yes, we have a Hal Charles solve-it-yourself, too), Shannon Taft, Anne Swardson, Larry Hodges, and Phyllis Ann Karr. Classics include contributions from John Jakes, a collaboration between William Morrison and Frederik Pohl, and a crime-adventure novel from Frank L. Packard. You won’t be bored by any of it.

Here’s the complete lineup—

Cover Art: Ron Miller

NOVEL

The Devil’s Mantle, by Frank L. Packard

Pearls, murder, pursuit, survival at sea, and a mysterious key!

NOVELLA

“Velda Goes to Church”, by Ron Miller [Velda, P.I. series]

A missing church assistant leads Velda into a most unholy mystery.

SOLVE-IT-YOURSELF MYSTERY

“Point, Set, Murder”, by Hal Charles

Can you solve the mystery before the detective? All the clues are there!

SHORT STORIES

“Odysseus and the Siren”, by Hal Charles

Can Miles expose a terrorist plot before the trail closes on him?

“A Dog’s Cat’s Job”, by Shannon Taft [Barb Goffman Presents]

An immortal cat follows a bloody trail—and finds a canine rival…

“Lost in Paris”, by Anne Swardson

A vanished tourist leads a new detective into Paris’s hidden past.

“The Long Adventures of Captain Quick”, by Larry Hodges

How many lifetimes does it take to stop a villain armed with puns?

“Another Black Cat”, by Phyllis Ann Karr

Yvonne’s strange ally has claws—and a plan no mortal can foresee.

“Hunt the Red Roe”, by John Jakes

Would you kill God for a few pieces of silver?

“The Head Hunters”, by William Morrison and Frederik Pohl

A tough engineering job in space might need a headless robot…