Murder at the National Cathedral

Truman's latest capital city mystery ( Murder at the Kennedy Center ), well served by the rich ecclesiastical accoutrements of its solemn setting, gets off to a fine start as law professor Mackensie Smith and his new wife, art gallery owner Annabel Reed, investigate the murder of high-profile Episcopalian priest Paul Singletary. Leader of Word of Peace, an international anti-apartheid group whose followers number an unsavory element as well as idealists, the dashing Singletary had acquired many enemies who could have bludgeoned him to death in a Cathedral chapel. Combining business with pleasure, Mac and Annabel continue sleuthing on their honeymoon in London and the Cotswolds, where another priest is killed and Annabel's life is threatened. Back in D.C., government agencies interrupt the investigation, a soloist from the Cathedral boys' choir exhibits great anxiety, two canons accuse each other of murder, the choir director quits and Truman's mystery unravels disappointingly in a melodramatic, arbitrary resolution. Gentlemanly Mac and lively Annabel deserve a more convincing vehicle. (Sept.)