Homicide for the Holidays

Set in Chicago in 1938, Honigford’s entertaining sequel to 2016’s The Darkness Knows finds Vivian Witchell busying herself with a blossoming radio career and a publicity-driven faux romance with her dashing costar. During a Christmas party at her mother’s home, Viv discovers a hidden key, which unlocks the top drawer of her late father’s desk, where she finds an ominous note and thousands of dollars in cash. The mystery provides her with an excuse to contact attractive Charlie Haverman, a private detective she met in her first outing, who reluctantly agrees to investigate. Charlie uncovers secrets that challenge everything Viv thought she knew about her upstanding lawyer father. The lingering legacy of speakeasies and racetracks during Al Capone’s heyday sets the stage for this delightful caper, in which upper-crust Viv and her radio colleagues are unaffected by the hardships of the Great Depression. A few continuity errors mar the plot, but readers seeking a light mystery with period flair will be satisfied. Agent: Elizabeth Trupin-Pulli, JET Literary Associates. (Oct.)