Dear Miss Demeanor: Amazon.ca: Joan Hess: Books

Product Description

The scandals mount in Farberville, Arkansas when a respected teacher is fired for pilfering petty cash and suggestive letters are sent to the local advice columnist. Murder of the high school principal is absolutely the last straw, and Claire Malloy, in her third outing in this acclaimed mystery series, gets a notion to do some detecting. But the killer is still out there and has some unfinished business....
"Hess's books are funny, acerbic, touching, terrific."
Elizabeth Peters

From the Publisher

"Hess's books are funny, acerbic, touching, terrific." -Elizabeth Peters --This text refers to an alternate Mass Market Paperback edition.

Inside This Book (Learn More)
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First Sentence
Caron and Inez skittered into the Book Depot like bumper cars gone berserk. Read the first page

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Concordance

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Front Cover | Copyright | Excerpt | Back Cover

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Customer Reviews

7 Reviews

5 star:		(2)
4 star:		(4)
3 star:		(1)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(0)

Average Customer Review

4.1 out of 5 stars (7 customer reviews)

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4.0 out of 5 stars Just cute little stories, Mar 29 2004

By	J. Gielow (Chicago, Illinois) - See all my reviews (REAL NAME)

This review is from: Dear Miss Demeanor (Hardcover)

I got started on Joan Hess books from her Arly Hanks Maggody series (fantastic books). These are not as good but still quite entertaining little stories. The books are never more then 225 pages and are easy reading. The dialogue between Claire and her daughter is worthy enough to be a SNL skit. These books will not make you think but they will make you laugh.

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5.0 out of 5 stars The Book That Got Me Hooked, Feb 6 2004

By	MZ (Novinger, MO United States) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Dear Miss Demeanor: A Claire Malloy Mystery (Mass Market Paperback)

I picked this book up at a school book sale amidst piles of paperbacks that had been donated for their fundraiser. The witty writing, light but intelligent style, and intriguing mystery combine to make a great, fast read.

Hess' humor is so enjoyable, and I love the fact that Claire Malloy is a bookstore owner and that the series has nothing to do with cooking. Hess is definitely a unique voice in the mystery world.

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4.0 out of 5 stars Witty sleuthing in small-town US, Nov 2 2003

By	pompfis_hoppi - See all my reviews

This review is from: Dear Miss Demeanor: A Claire Malloy Mystery (Mass Market Paperback)

Book Depot owner Claire Malloy, the recreational sleuth of Faberville, is urged by her daughter Caron to investigate the dismissal of an elderly spinster journalism-teacher at Faberville High: Miss Parchester, the daughter of a former judge of the Supreme Court, was accused of embezzling petty cash from the journalism-fund of Faberville High.

Suddenly the ghastly prinicipal of Fabervile High as well as the nasty janitor/custodian are poisoned and naturally old Miss Parchester seems to be the culprit. However, several of the teaching staff seem to have a motif to quieten the principal and/or the janitor.

Substituting in teaching Claire does her bit of sleuthing in order to solve the crimes.

As I have mentioned before, this book is not a thriller. Claire Malloy is a witty person, however, and has to cope with raising a teenage daughter mostly always speaking in capital letters and therefore is nearly incessantly involed in "adolescent melodrama" (p. 3). Yet another funny tidbit is Claire's relationship to local CID-boss Peter Rosen who seems to be a hunk, but a bit clumsy when it comes to investigating.

Result: The right book, if you want to spend an afternoon chuckling in front of the fireplace or in the garden.

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Most recent customer reviews

4.0 out of 5 stars Dear Miss Demeanor
This book was saucy and I enjoyed it very much. Until the ending. I was left feeling as though it wasn't finished. Read more

Published on Feb 4 2002 by Anna Cook

3.0 out of 5 stars Light and mild
A high school principal and janitor are poisoned with cynanide. The scene is Farberville and Claire Molloy the bookstore owner is the detective. Nobel Prize prose it's not. Read more

Published on Oct 17 2001 by D. P. Birkett

4.0 out of 5 stars A great beach book
When the journalism teacher at Faberville High School is accused of pilfering petty cash and suspended from work, Claire Malloy finds herself pushed into substitute teaching... Read more