Santa Clawed (Mrs. Murphy Series #17)

As Harry well knows, there’s hardly a place on earth cozier than Crozet, Virginia, at Christmastime. Snowflakes, carolers, it’s all picture-perfect until Harry and her husband, Fair, find the tree they’ve chosen grimly decorated with a corpse. The tree farm is run by the Brothers of Love, a semimonastic organization whose members live atop the scenic Blue Ridge Mountains. Now, as the season grows merrier, a murderer is growing bolder. One by one, prominent men of Crozet are being crossed off Christmas shopping lists and added to the morgue. And if Harry and her four-legged helpers aren’t very good–and very careful–this Christmas will be her last.

Publishers Weekly

Brown is perhaps the only known novelist who collaborates with her cat, Sneaky Pie, but if their writing is any indication of their inherent talent, then the relationship should be celebrated. The pair's 17th novel finds Harry and friends Mrs. Murphy, Pewter and Tee Tucker involved in a holiday investigation in which an old friend is the prime suspect. For newcomers to this popular series, the catch is that the supporting characters are, you guessed it, talking animals. Kate Forbes gives a solid performance, creating interesting and original voices for each character, both human and animal. Her voice flows well, drenched in a certain storybook charm that manages to entertain an adult audience. A Bantam hardcover (Reviews, Sept. 15). (Nov.)

 
Rita Mae Brown is the bestselling author of several novels, including the Sneaky Pie Brown series, the Sister Jane series, Rubyfruit Jungle, In Her Day, and Six of One, among many others. An Emmy-nominated screenwriter and a poet, Brown lives in Afton, Virginia.