This is the fourth novel in Archer Mayor's excellent Joe Gunther series.  Odd as
it seems, these are hard-boiled police procedurals set in Brattleboro Vermont.

 For the most part, Mayor has kept the action in Vermont, but in this entry
Gunther travels to Chicago to unravel the mystery surrounding a twenty year old
skeleton with an artificial knee.  He's soon involved with mobsters, ex-radicals
from the Sixties & police turf battles.

The action concludes back in Vermont at Bread and Puppets, a bizarre combination
of Left-wing puppet shows and baked breads that tours Vermont.  It's these bits
of genuine local flavor, as well as the likable Gunther and Mayor's sharp
writing,  that help this series stand out from the many competitors

(Reviewed:)

Grade: (B)

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