Loretta Lawson, English professor and sometime sleuth, is looking forward to a quiet Christmas, putting the finishing touches on her Edith Wharton biography and spending quality time with her new beau, Robert. And then Sandra calls. A member of Loretta's disbanded women's group, she's in desperate need of a place to stay over the holidays, and what can Loretta do but let her sleep on the foldout couch for a few days. Unfortunately, a few days turns into a bit more, and Loretta begins to feel persecuted in her own flat. Still, when Sandra vanishes without a word right around New Year's, Loretta grows worried. Making a few calls, tracking down their old group, Loretta finds herself crawling about Sandra's strange private life, uncovering sordid truths that might have something to do with her mysterious and troubling disappearance. . . . "Establishes Smith as the star of the younger generation." -- *London Evening Standard*