Baffled in Boston

Baffled in Boston marks the debut of the most likable - and unlikely - sleuth to come along in years. Burned-out true-crime writer Scotty Scotland has been abandoned by his wife, ordered to give up coffee by his doctor, and according to his latest review, he should give up writing too. He spends his days winning imaginary arguments with his wife, defacing reviews of his novels, and counting flowers on the wallpaper. But when his best friend Molly, a nationally syndicated advice columnist, is murdered, Scotty must get out of his pajamas and into action to find the killer.

"Dear Molly,

I'm competing with 18,000 preachers, plumbers, writers, shrinks - and a set of quintuplets - to be the new you. If I win the contest, I could solve a lot of problems - and maybe your murder, too. The problem is, between the paper's sleazy management, bitter rival columnists, and the psychos who read your column, I've got more suspects than Walgreen's has Rolaids, and so far, I've only ruled out Ann and Abby.

Baffled in Boston,

Scotty"