July Publications

In Ralph McInerny's Requiem for a Realtor: A Father Dowling Mystery, the 23rd entry in this reliably entertaining series (Her Death of Cold, etc.), the devoted priest of St. Hilary's parish receives an unexpected call from realtor Stanley Collins, who confides that his wife is having an affair with a loyal parishioner and prosperous dentist. When Collins turns up dead in the parking lot of a popular nightspot, the police investigation reveals many possible suspects, all with motive and opportunity. In the best tradition of Agatha Christie, McInerny keeps the reader guessing to the end. (St. Martin's Minotaur, $23.95 256p ISBN 0-312-32417-0)

Soon after Tom Mason starts volunteering at the Oscar Wilde Gay Youth Services Clinic, the Chicago high school teacher discovers the severed head of the clinic's nasty executive director in a file drawer. File Under Dead: A Tom & Scott Mystery, the 10th in the series (after 2002's Here Comes the Corpse) by Lambda Literary Award-winner Mark Richard Zubro, offers some insights into the plight of gay teenagers as well as an engaging whodunit. (St. Martin's Minotaur, $23.95 256p ISBN 0-312-28097-1)

Sister Fidelma fans—and they have their own international society (www.sisterfidelma.com)—will welcome Peter Tremayne's Whispers of the Dead: Fifteen Sister Fidelma Mysteries, the second story collection devoted to the seventh-century Irish religieuse sleuth after Hemlock at Vespers. Three of the tales are original to this volume. Agent,TK(St. Martin's Minotaur, $14.95 paper 416p ISBN 0-312-30382-3)

Crossword buffs won't want to miss Anatomy of a Crossword, Nero Blanc's eighth puzzler to feature crossword editor Belle Graham. This round, Belle gets involved in a crossword-themed TV series and murder in Hollywood. Agent, Alice Martell.(Berkley Prime Crime, $13 paper 320p ISBN 0-425-19620-8)

In Joel Rosenberg's meandering Family Matters: An Ernest "Sparky" Hemingway Mystery, the second in the series after 2003's Home Front, Sparky takes in an inner-city teenager and is talked into becoming a deputy sheriff. The irreverent Sparky has his charms as a narrator, but readers expecting conventional crime-solving may be disappointed. Agent, Eleanor Wood at Spectrum Literary Agency.(Forge, $24.95 320p ISBN 0-765-30499-6)