Curiosity just might be the death of Mrs. Murphy--and her human companion, Mary Minor "Harry" Haristeen.  Small towns are like families:  Everyone lives very close together. . .and everyone keeps secrets.  Crozet, Virginia, is a typical small town-until its secrets explode into murder.  Crozet's thirty-something post-mistress, Mary Minor "Harry" Haristeen, has a tiger cat (Mrs. Murphy) and a Welsh Corgi (Tucker), a pending divorce, and a bad habit of reading postcards not addressed to her.  When Crozet's citizens start turning up murdered, Harry remembers that each received a card with a tombstone on the front and the message "Wish you were here" on the back.  Intent on protecting their human friend, Mrs. Murphy and Tucker begin to scent out clues.  Meanwhile, Harry is conducting her own investigation, unaware her pets are one step ahead of her.  If only Mrs. Murphy could alert her somehow, Harry could uncover the culprit before the murder occurs--and before Harry finds herself on the killer's mailing list. From the Paperback edition. YA-- At last there is a book that truly recognizes the important role animals have in solving crimes. Braun's "The Cat Who" series comes close, but it doesn't give the in-depth look at animal conversations and sleuthing from the point of view that this title does. The Browns have written a fast-paced, easy-to-read, attention-grabbing mystery sure to be loved by teens. Tee Tucker (a Corgi) and Mrs. Murphy (a gray tiger cat) utilize their superior detective abilities to determine who sends macabre post cards to the next murder victim. These sleuths must throw clues at the dense humans who try to solve the mystery before becoming the next corpse. The witty dialogue of humans and pets enables readers to know and identify with the unique residents in small-town America, and the attractive line drawings depict the industrious animal detectives. This is the first in a crime series; readers will eagerly await the opportunity to scent out the clues in the second. - Claudia Moore, W. T. Woodson High School, Fairfax, VA Copyright 1991 Reed Business Information, Inc. Mary Minor ("Harry") Haristeen, divorce in the works, runs the post office in Crozet, Virginia, with a pet cat and dog at her side. After two spectacularly gruesome murders rock the community, Harry attempts to gather helpful clues, while the pets (who converse with each other) do their best to protect her. Despite a few light moments, the "cute" antics of the animals wear desperately thin, failing to shore up the flimsy plot construction or bolster the weak characterization. A disappointment from the author of Rubyfruit Jungle (Daughters, 1973). Copyright 1990 Reed Business Information, Inc. "It should delight cat fancier. . .sassy, silly, and plenty of fun."-- The Baltimore Sun From the Paperback edition. st might be the death of Mrs. Murphy--and her human companion, Mary Minor "Harry" Haristeen. Small towns are like families: Everyone lives very close together. . .and everyone keeps secrets. Crozet, Virginia, is a typical small town-until its secrets explode into murder. Crozet's thirty-something post-mistress, Mary Minor "Harry" Haristeen, has a tiger cat (Mrs. Murphy) and a Welsh Corgi (Tucker), a pending divorce, and a bad habit of reading postcards not addressed to her. When Crozet's citizens start turning up murdered, Harry remembers that each received a card with a tombstone on the front and the message "Wish you were here" on the back. Intent on protecting their human friend, Mrs. Murphy and Tucker begin to scent out clues. Meanwhile, Harry is conducting her own investigation, unaware her pets are one step ahead of her. If only Mrs. Murphy could alert her somehow, Harry could un Rita Mae Brown is the bestselling author of Rubyfruit Jungle , In Her Day , Six of One , Southern Discomfort , Sudden Death , High Hearts , Bingo , Starting From Scratch: A Different Kind of Writers' Manual , Venus Envy , Dolley: A Novel of Dolley Madison in Love and War , Riding Shotgun , and Rita Will: Memoir of a Literary Rabble-Rouser . An Emmy nominated screenwriter and a poet, she lives in Afton, VA. Sneaky Pie Brown, a tiger cat born somewhere in Albemarle County, Virginia, was discovered by Rita Mae Brown at her local SPCA. In addition to Sneaky Pie's Cookbook for Mystery Lovers , Rita Mae and Sneaky Pie have collaborated on twelve Mrs. Murphy mysteries: Wish You Were Here , Rest in Pieces , Murder at Monticello , Pay Dirt , Murder, She Meowed , Murder on the Prowl , Cat on the Scent , Pawing Through the Past , Claws and Effect , Catch as Cat Can , The Tail of the Tip-Off , and Whisker of Evil .? From the Paperback edition. 1 Mary Minor Haristeen, Harry to her friends, trotted along the railroad track. Following at her heels were Mrs. Murphy, her wise and willful tiger cat, and Tee Tucker, her Welsh corgi. Had you asked the cat and the dog they would have told you that Harry belonged to them, no