Whisker of evil - rita mae brown

Its a summer full of turbulence for small-town Crozet, Virginia, with a movie stars homecoming, a spreading rabies epidemic, and the clues to an old murder unearthed.

But whats unsettling for Harry is that the building of a new post office may depose her as postmistress.

A mysterious death in a Virginia farm town has the locals scratching their heads--while frisky feline Mrs.

Murphy and her friends, fat-cat Pewter and corgi Tee Tucker, uncover clues as they curl their way around a cold-blooded killer.

This balmy summer in Crozet, Virginia, postmistress Mary Minor Harry Haristeen has a lot to think about.

Things have been pretty cozy between her and her ex-husband, Fair and her beloved old post office is in danger of being replaced with a modern building--and modern rules.

Harrys thoughtful contemplation is shattered the day she stumbles over a dead body near Potlicker Creek.

Barry Monteith, the handsome local horse breeder, has been savagely murdered.

A true ladies man, Barry was known to have left a string of broken hearts behind him.

But could a spurned lover be responsible for his untimely demise? The plot only thickens when an autopsy reveals that Barry was infected with rabies weeks before he was killed.

As usual, Harry cant resist doing a little digging--with Mrs.

Murphy close by to warn of approaching danger.

Harry makes a remarkable discovery in the creek--the class ring of Mary Pat Reines, a local woman who disappeared thirty years earlier along with her prized Thoroughbred stallion.

Like Barry, Mary Pat was a successful horse breeder--and now all of Crozet is wondering if the two cases are linked.

As the police struggle with the evidence, the pressure gets hotter than a June afternoon--especially when another person is found dead of less-than-natural causes.

As usual, Mrs.

Murphy and her crew are the first to sniff out the truth.

But if they dont find a way to help Harry piece together the puzzle, she could become the killers next target--and even Mrs.

Murphys slinkiest moves wont be able to save her.