Murder Among the Angels Stefanie Matteson

While considering a face-lift, septuagenarian actress Charlotte Graham, seen last in Murder on High, is swept up in a complex murder case in this intriguing look at a small Hudson Valley religious sect. Charlotte consults Dr. Victor Louria, a famous cosmetic surgeon who lives in the former home of the founder of Zion Hill, an outpost of the Swedenborgian faith. Louria was married to the founder's granddaughter Lily, who drowned in Mexico a few years before. When two skulls are found nearby and reconstructed for identification, the features of both turn out to be resemble those of Lily, whose likeness also appears in the faces of the angels in the Zion Hill community's public art. Charlotte and her friend Jerry D'Angelo, the Zion Hill police chief, suspect Louria of murder when it is discovered that the dead women had undergone cosmetic surgery. Louria confesses that he operated on the women but insists he didn't kill them. When his alibi proves solid, Charlotte and Jerry turn to Lily's past to learn why someone would kill a woman who had the face of an angel. As they search, they are reminded afresh that beauty is only skin-deep. (Feb.)