Santa Clawed: A Mrs. Murphy Mystery

I haven't read one of the Mrs. Murphy mysteries in a while and once I read this book it took me right back into the love I have for this mystery series. It is a great, easy read for the mystery lover who also loves animals and the relationships they have with the humans they love. A wonderful Christmas time flair built in. The use of characters is, as usual, brings you right into the book and makes you not want to put it down. As always, with Ms. Brown's books, a delight to read.

I of course loved this new installment of the adventures of my favorite pets. I have read them all. Sneaky Pie-Please keep them coming!!!!

It's Christmas in Virginia, and Harry, Fair, Tucker, Mrs. Murphy, and Pewter are quite excited about choosing a Christmas tree. Unfortunately, when they go to the Christmas tree lot to pick up their tree, there is a dead body in the lot. One of the monks has been murdered. Once again the animals assist in solving the mystery, finding clues that their human counterparts miss. This book has a couple of layers to the mystery, making it a bit different than the traditional Mrs. Murphy books. It is a very enjoyable and fun read, as are all of the books in this series.

As usual Mrs. Murphy has done it again. This is a must read for any Mrs. Murphy and Tucker fans.

We are accustomed to talking about "summer reads," those light but compelling novels we have in hand on planes or at the beach, gulping down a few chapters on vacation or sunning at the park. In winter we like to turn to serious books, thick tomes to lose ourselves in, ideally sitting before a warm fire, snuggled in a favorite chair. But the holidays are times of rest and travel as much as the summer is, and snowy and cold days call for fun and well-written books as much as hot and humid days do. Enter Rita Mae (and Sneaky Pie) Brown and SANTA CLAWED, a solid mystery with familiar characters and a brisk pace, just perfect for wintertime reading. The small, tight-knit town of Crozet, Virginia, is gearing up for Christmas. Mary Haristeen, known to all as Harry, is busy preparing for holiday parties and events, spending time with family and friends. But as colder than typical weather blows in, the town finds itself dealing with a series of murders, and the only clue to solving them is a bit of Greek mythology. It all starts when Harry and her husband Fair go to the tree lot run by the Brothers of Love, a monastic order living on the outskirts of town, to select a Christmas tree. They find the perfect pine but also come across the slain body of one of the monks at the end of the lot. Brother Christopher had been raised in Crozet, and after getting in trouble for white collar crimes, he dedicated his life to The Brothers of Love. He was well liked, so it was hard to imagine who would hate him enough to slit his throat right before Christmas. Harry promises to stay out of the way of the police investigation, but another murder and her own assault --- after finding a suspicious box hidden in the woods near her home --- make that impossible. Christmas is coming ever closer, and the town is reeling as it becomes obvious that there is a killer at work and at large. Brown's latest is at once homey and exciting. Popular characters like Harry, Fair and others who people Crozet are back. Returning too are Harry's funny animal familiars, cats Mrs. Murphy and Pewter, and dog Tucker. Though they can't always clearly communicate to the humans they live with, these pets find ways to help Harry and the others solve the mystery nonetheless. SANTA CLAWED balances well the violence of the murders and the fear of the town's residents with witty dialogue and an overall entertaining feel. There are crimes to solve here, but Brown's focus is on the characters themselves and how they deal with the stress and uncertainty in their town. Though most of them rally together, there are those who, realistically, don't. In the end, the identity of the killer and the motivation for the crimes come as a big surprise. In this new Mrs. Murphy mystery, Rita Mae Brown again shares authorial credit with her feline companion, Sneaky Pie Brown, and so it is not surprising that the animal characters are just as interesting as the human ones. But the easy and enjoyable nature of the nove