GHOST WALK

N.Y.: St. Martin's Press, 1998. 1st ed., with complete number line beginning with 1. Fine in fine dust jacket, not price clipped, in protective mylar cover. "A second adventure for Londons Dido Hoare, divorced mother of three-year-old Ben; daughter of testy, ailing Barnabas; and owner of an antiquarian bookstore, with living quarters above (Deaths Autograph, 1997). All seems peaceful, with the book bus iness edging into prosperity, when elderly Tom Ashe, an occasional customer, collapses on Didos doorstep. She gets him to hospital, which he quickly leaves against doctors orders. Soon after, he calls at the bookstore on a day when Barnabas is helping out . Ashe remembers Barnabas from the war 50 years ago, when they both served in Signal Intelligence. He has brought Dido an odd-looking object from the Middle East to thank her, but the next morning hes found dead, with a card in his pocket asking that Dido be informed in case of trouble. The autopsy reveals murder, and Scotland Yard is taking an interest. Dido follows suit, especially after finding she has been named executor for Ashes surprisingly large estate. Her search of his pathetic living space is fruitless, but a visit to his widow brings up the names of Ashes army buddies Samuel Butler and Peter Mellor. All had returned to Intelligence work after the war, but it begins to look as though time spent in Egypt is at the core of Ashes killing and a sec ond murder in its wakewith a different kind of treasure at stake. Carefully plotted, with plenty of tense moments; a warmly likable heroine; a fresh, unfancy narrative style, and, for lovers of antiquities, some extra cachet.. First US Edition. Hard Cover. New/Fine. Book.