MURDER IN THE EXECUTIVE MANSION

Back to the pre-WW II White House of 1939, as President Franklin Roosevelt and wife Eleanor prepare for a state visit from England's King and Queen. Here, Lucinda Robinson, one of Eleanor's minor assistants, disappears from view that busy morning, to be found days later, strangled, in a White House linen closet. The investigation, headed by D.C. Police Captain Ed Kennelly (Murder in the East Room, 1993, etc.), aided by Mrs. Roosevelt, soon reveals a young woman very unlike the pudgy, bespectacled workaholic Lucinda appeared to be. David Lasky, a lawyer on White House staff and one of her many lovers, had sent Lucinda threatening letters when supplanted by someone she called the Kraut. Now, Lasky has disappeared, but a new revelation has claimed the attention of Mrs. Roosevelt, the police, and the FBI—Mary Logan, one of several young people cataloguing Woodrow Wilson archives in the White House, has been caught photographing maps in an off-limits office, and has committed suicide. It appears the enemy has infiltrated the heart of its soon-to-be target, but Eleanor persists, working through a plethora of distractions, finally nailing down Lucinda's killer. Memory Lane for some readers; an intimate history lesson for others. With a puzzle a bit more complex than most in the series, this offers low-key, affable entertainment.