Reunited again for the first time since Killer Boy Was Here (1970) are crime writer Bagby and his Chief source of inspiration, Inspector Schmidt, the head honcho in the New York Homicide Department. It all starts when Baggy's wealthy English neighbor, Daphne Hobbes, complains about a hawk found shot to death in their communal garden. Daphne's windows are later used for target practice. . . and before you know it, the flirtatious divorcee staying with her is silenced for good. The obvious suspect is a maladjusted fifteen-year-old who admits to shooting the first bird (no wonder--his parents call each other Tootsie Roll and Lollypop). Perfunctory minus.