Last Puzzle & Testament

New York: Bantam. Near Fine in Very Good+ dust jacket. 2000. First Edition. Hardcover. Monor amount of edwear at tail of d j . . 352 pages. A Puzzle Lady Mystery, No. 2. Emma Hurley died the way she lived--surrounded by an air of mystery, with only her servants at her side. That is, until she finally passes away...and her greedy heirs crawl out of the woodwork to stake a claim to Emma's fortune. But unlike most people, Emma was not content to leave behind a simple will. Instead, her final testament includes, of all things, a clever puzzle...one to be given only to her living heirs. The first one to solve the puzzle will inherit Emma's entire estate; everyone else will be left with a pittance. Complicating matters further, the will stipulates that Cora Felton--local celebrity and famed author of a popular syndicated crossword puzzle column--must referee the contest. Unfortunately, Cora knows far more about the fine art of mixing a martini than creating--let alone solving--crossword puzzles. It's Cora's niece Sherry who's the brains behind Cora's "Puzzle Lady" persona. And it's up to Sherry to unravel the bizarre riddle Emma Hurley engineered before her death. For soon it's plain that Emma's game is one without a clear winner...and that the players could lose far more than they ever imagine. Before long, would-be heirs are scouring every nook and cranny of the town as they scramble to solve a forty-year-old puzzle, while the Puzzle Lady herself adds to the chaos with her less-than-sobering antics. Meanwhile, Sherry has some pressing problems of her own: Her romantic interest in a mild-mannered local reporter is turning into an unpleasant love triangle--one that involves a glamorous young lawyer. And when one of the participants in Emma's contest is knifed to death, the last thing Sherry needs is amorous advances--especially when they're coming from the number one suspect in the crime.... .