HACKER

Nobody who knew kindly, semiretired Eric Huffman could believe someone hated him enough to hack him to death, along with his computer, but that's what his wife, Clara, returning from a trip to the beauty parlor, found in their comfortable suburban home. A tough case for Fort Worth Police Detective Deb Ralston (Hal's Own Murder Case, etc.), who's embroiled, as usual, in domestic turmoil. It gets even tougher when restaurant owner Helen Thorne is killed in the same grisly way. Now it's up to Deb to find the crucial connections. This in the midst of husband Harry's MBA study program; the uneasy presence in the house of drifter Shane Corbett; the demands of baby Cameron; the overchronicled eccentricities of various household pets; and the grief of son Hal, whose girlfriend Lori, daughter of a fellow policewoman, has been left comatose after a hit-and-run car accident. It takes a while, but all the bits and pieces finally mesh in a windup that shocks but rings true. A cunningly plotted, cozily written, offbeat spin on the standard procedural--and a welcome addition to an engaging series.