April Publications

Handicrafts provide the theme for Murder Most Crafty, an anthology of 15 original stories edited by Maggie Bruce. Contributors include Susan Wittig Albert, Dorothy Cannell, Margaret Maron and Sujata Massey. Agent, Deborah Schneider at Gelfman Schneider.(Berkley Prime Crime, $21.95 320p ISBN 0-425-20206-2)

In Conrad Allen's delightful Murder on the Salsette: A Mystery Featuring George Porter Dillman and Genevieve Masefield, the sixth book in the British author's ocean liner series (after 2004's Murder on the Marmora), the sleuthing pair sail on the Salsette from Bombay to Aden in the spring of 1909. The intrigue extends far beyond murder, and by voyage's end, George and Genevieve have wrapped up an impressive number of puzzles. Agent, Stuart Krichevsky.(St. Martin's Minotaur, $23.95 336p ISBN 0-312-30793-4)

With its muted evocation of the Alaskan terrain and somewhat brittle construction, Sue Henry's Murder at Five Finger Light: A Jessie Arnold Mystery is a weak entry in a usually strong series that began with Murder on the Iditarod Trail (1991), which won both Anthony and Macavity awards. Forsaking her dog team and the familiar environs of her remote cabin, Jesse sets off to join a work party organized by friends who have purchased a lighthouse on Five Finger Island, where the discovery of a body puts a chill on what were supposed to be festive proceedings. Agent, Dominick Abel.(NAL, $23.95 288p ISBN 0-451-21397-1)

Those looking for authentic American Indian lore will embrace Aimée and David Thurlo's White Thunder: An Ella Clah Novel, the latest outing for the Navajo Tribal Police special investigator (after 2004's Wind Spirit). The search for a missing FBI agent and a Social Security fraud case collide in this engaging mystery set in New Mexico. Agent, Elaine Koster.(Forge, $23.95 304p ISBN 0-765-31174-7)

Clayton Rawson's reprint collection, The Magical Mysteries of Don Diavolo, gathers for the first time all four Golden Age novellas to feature Diavolo. Rawson (1906—1971), a traditional whodunit writer who bears comparison with John Dickson Carr, presents his wizard with baffling puzzlers, including murder and theft that may be the work of a vampire. Impossible-crime buffs will enjoy the tight plotting and logical explanations for apparently supernatural crimes. (The Battered Silicon Dispatch Box [www.batteredbox.com], $50 437p ISBN 1-55246-532-2)