The ninth book in Lawrence Blocks award-winning Burglar series finds the lovable, roguish Bernie Rhodenbarr entangled in a murder mystery connected to the secret love affair between a beautiful young woman and a reclusive, aging writer. When Bernie stumbles upon the body of literary agent Anthea Landau--the caretaker of the couples love letters--while burglarizing her apartment, he is immediately pegged as the leading murder suspect. To clear his name, Bernie willingly takes on the investigation with the help of his trusty friend Caroline and, as always, Raffles the cat. Uppety auctioneers, fanatical book collectors, scheming criminals, jewel-hungry actors, honorable cops, and a stuffed Paddington bear add twists and turns to Bernies already treacherous path to truth.