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Informationen zum Autor Rita Mae Brown & Sneaky Pie Brown Klappentext Rita Mae Brown and her feline partner-in-crime-detection, Sneaky Pie Brown, return to the scene of their bestselling crimes-picturesque Crozet, Virginia. Love is in the air as spring comes to the small town, but no sooner has Mary Minor "Harry" Haristeen remarried than she is rudely interrupted-by murder. And no sooner does the trouble start than curious cats Mrs. Murphy and Pewter, along with corgi Tee Tucker, sink their claws into the case.… After an unexpected rekindling of their romance, Harry and her veterinarian ex-husband, Fair Haristeen, have happily remarried. But the excitement of their nuptials is quickly overshadowed by the murder of Professor Vincent Forland, a world-famous grape and fungal expert who was in town visiting the local vineyards. Within days of giving a lecture on how distilled fungus and cattle diseases are the current basis of chemical warfare, Forland's decapitated body is discovered. After their initial fright, the residents of Crozet believe that this was a political murder and settle back into their routines-until a local is also found dead, killed in the same gruesome manner as Professor Forland. Now residents can't help wondering, is this really the work of an outsider-or one of their own? No longer working in the post office, Harry had just planted a quarter acre of grapes, which fuels her natural curiosity over just what the two murder victims knew and had in common. Once the warmth of spring arrives, the grapevines blossom and Harry's furry entourage discovers the first critical clue. But how can they show the humans what they've learned? And how can they-or anyone-stop the killing? Leseprobe Chapter One "Mary Minor, wilt thou have this man to be thy wedded husband, to live together after God's ordinance, in the holy estate of Matrimony? Wilt thou love him, comfort him, honor and keep him in sickness and in health; and, forsaking all others, keep thee only to him, so long as ye both shall live?" "I will," Harry answered in a clear voice. The Reverend Herbert Jones, in his sonorous tone, then asked, "Who giveth this woman to be married to this man?" Susan Tucker, next to Harry, said, "I do." Fair, smiling, repeated what he had memorized. "I, Pharamond Haristeen, take thee, Mary Minor, to be my wedded wife, to have and to hold from this day forward, for better, for worse, for richer, for poorer, in sickness and in health, to love and to cherish, till death us do part, according to God's holy ordinance; and thereto I plight thee my troth." Perched on the balcony ledge, Mrs. Murphy, Harry's tiger cat, and Pewter, the roly-poly gray cat, observed intently. Tucker, the corgi, sat on a bench next to Mildred, the organist. " Finally ," the dog sighed. " They're right for each other ." Mrs. Murphy had cat's intuition about such matters. " They tried it once, the second time should be the charm ." Pewter wished the ceremony would speed along, because she was eager to attend the reception. The extravagance of foods thrilled her far more than contemplating human rituals. " If you think the farm runs along like a top now, you just wait until Fair puts his back into it. He's strong as an ox. " Tucker had always loved the six-foot-five-inch veterinarian. The feeling was mutual. " Does this mean we won't be sleeping on the bed? I mean, do we have to put up with their thrashing around and all that moaning and groaning ?" Pewter cherished sleep almost as much as food. " Why would it be any different now, Pewts? Flop on the end of the bed and when they're done then go up and sleep on the pillow ," Mrs. Murphy replied. " Well, if they're married maybe they'll be doing it more, you know ?" Pewter considered human physical intimac...
