The novel was so small that at first I suspected it to be one half of a 2-part novel. So I checked the front and the back just to be sure. Didn't want to troupe back to the library the next day to change it. While I was at it, I read the synopsis on the back cover. Looked like the story was about Alwirah and Willy - my two favorite characters from the novel 'The Lost Years'. That was reason enough to check it out.
And I am glad to see that Mary Higgins Clark didn't disappoint me one bit. :-)
The story begins around Christmas time. Alwirah's sister-in-law is running an after-school shelter where kids from less-privileged families are looked after every evening till their parents come to pick them up. But the city authorities are hell-bent on closing it down citing the building's old structure. Just then Bessie, someone who Alwirah and Willy both know, dies and leaves her home to her younger sister, Kate, who decides to use part of it for the after-school shelter. But the Bakers, who have been Bessie's tenants, blow up her plans when they produce a more recent will by Bessie that leaves the house to them. Alwirah suspects that the will produced by them is phoney and sets about the business of proving it so.
The Father at the local church has his own puzzle to solve. Who is the mystery woman who has been hanging around his church every day? And what does she want? Is she the same woman who called up asking about a baby that she left on the steps of the rectory seven years back? He is sure there was no baby found seven years ago but the odd thing is that one of the church's important relics, a chalice, was stolen on the same night.
It's a sheer delight to read how Alwirah, with Willy's help, manages to solve both mysteries and bring much-needed Christmas cheer to everyone. This is a must-read for any fan of the Meehan couple.
And I am glad to see that Mary Higgins Clark didn't disappoint me one bit. :-)
The story begins around Christmas time. Alwirah's sister-in-law is running an after-school shelter where kids from less-privileged families are looked after every evening till their parents come to pick them up. But the city authorities are hell-bent on closing it down citing the building's old structure. Just then Bessie, someone who Alwirah and Willy both know, dies and leaves her home to her younger sister, Kate, who decides to use part of it for the after-school shelter. But the Bakers, who have been Bessie's tenants, blow up her plans when they produce a more recent will by Bessie that leaves the house to them. Alwirah suspects that the will produced by them is phoney and sets about the business of proving it so.
The Father at the local church has his own puzzle to solve. Who is the mystery woman who has been hanging around his church every day? And what does she want? Is she the same woman who called up asking about a baby that she left on the steps of the rectory seven years back? He is sure there was no baby found seven years ago but the odd thing is that one of the church's important relics, a chalice, was stolen on the same night.
It's a sheer delight to read how Alwirah, with Willy's help, manages to solve both mysteries and bring much-needed Christmas cheer to everyone. This is a must-read for any fan of the Meehan couple.
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