A Crossworder's Gift

Nero Blanc. Berkley Publishing Group, $22.95 (208pp) ISBN 978-0-425-19315-0

In keeping with the Christmas spirit, Nero Blanc (Corpus de Crossword, etc.) offers puzzle fans a treat in A Crossworder's Gift, the pseudonymous author's second story collection. The five tales range all over the map, from the Caribbean island of San Lucia (""Holly, Jolly Roger"") to Las Vegas (the title story).

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