Parnell Hall, You Have the Right to Remain Puzzled

You Have the Right to Remain Puzzled

Parnell Hall

Bantam, November 2006, $24.00

ISBN: 0553804189

One day at the coffee shop, puzzle lady Cora Feldon is asked to construct a puzzle for Mimi Dillinger so that she can give it to her husband Chuck when she tells him she crashed the car. She hopes he will forgive her, which he does. Mimi publicly thanks Cora for the role her puzzle played, and the note and puzzle appear in the newspaper. However, there is one minor problem. Cora did not create the puzzle; her niece Sherry Carter did, and she purloined it from a book of puzzles, though she changed the clues.

The actual puzzle creator Benny Southstreet is livid that Cora plagiarized his work, and when he challenged her she blew him off because she refuses to believe that Sherry would do such a deed. Benny plans to sue Cora, so he breaks into her home and that of the Dillingers seeking proof. Earlier that day Mimi notices fifteen hundred dollars lying loose at her husband's desk, so she puts the cash away. Chick calls the police to report a break-in, which leads to a series of events resulting in someone murdering Benny and Cora arrested for the homicide as all evidence leads to her.

The latest puzzle lady mystery is a delightful whodunit, complete with crossword puzzles that entertain and stimulate the readers with clues to the mystery. Cora is the star as she seeks to clear her name, even while every clue she finds proves her guilt. There are many red herrings that the audience will not know across from down, as Cora looks guilty. Parnell Hall provides his fans with a solid murder mystery, that only by finishing the book can a reader uncover the identity of the culprit.