Miss Mary's Husbands

Mary Lambert, a successful businesswoman and bestselling author, seems to have little luck with the men she marries. Robert Taylor, husband number one, burned to death in an auto accident. Her second mate, Larry O'Mara, was murdered in a motel room, and her third spouse, Dick Devalos, expired, poisoned, on Mary's sofa. This pleasantly baffling, almost farcical mystery poses even more thorny problems when Mary is romanced and beguiled by a slick con man, John Maurier, who wishes to become husband number four for his own devious purposes. The small New England harbor town of Gelsey is soon scandalized when two of Mary's husbands, Larry and Robert, turn out to be very much alive and interested in making life hazardous for Mary, who begins to be plagued by anonymous phone calls and menacing prowlers. The opportunistic Maurier moves in with Mary and persuades her that she needs his protection, particularly when Larry and Robert turn up really dead this time, and the Gelsey police make Mary their prime suspect. The puzzle is solved after some wildly improbable machinations, making this book an uneven blend of engaging personalities and unsatisfying plotting. (August)