Moondog

Mystery and horror are combined with aplomb in this well-paced debut. The first three bodies found in a remote Californian town are women's, ripped apart and abandoned. Only one man, local recluse and enigmatic columnist Cyrus ``Moondog'' Nygerski, notices the similarities in the killings, particularly that the moon was full on the nights of the murders. No one except a recent parolee working nights at a local diner takes Moondog seriously until the fourth killing suddenly has townspeople eating garlic, wearing crosses and loading silver bullets into their pistols. Garfield endows all of his suspects with wolfish mannerisms-teeth grow long and pointy, sleepless nights are legion, body hair is rampant-and gives none a half-decent alibi. The ending is thoughtful, and the subdued prose adds a lot of credibility to the tale. (Mar.)