First published 1990
Professor Peter Shandy tends his botanical specimens at Balaclava College when a peculiar crime wave strikes the campus. Antique weather vanes begin vanishing from rooftops across the grounds, leaving behind only empty mounting posts and baffled witnesses. Shandy finds himself drawn into the mystery when his own prized copper rooster disappears from atop the greenhouse. The botany professor must track down the thief before more irreplaceable pieces of New England folk art vanish forever. As he investigates, Shandy discovers the thefts connect to something larger than simple robbery. The case tests his skills of observation, honed through years of studying plant specimens, as he applies scientific method to criminal detection. Publishers Weekly praised this installment of Shandy's adventures for MacLeod's reliable storytelling.
Genres: mystery, cozy-mystery, academic, amateur-sleuth
Vibes: cozy, suspenseful, thought-provoking
Tropes: amateur-sleuth, found-family
Setting: Balaclava College, New England
Period: 20th-century
Hardcover · G K Hall & Co