Amazon.com Arly Hanks， Maggody's mother-ridden police chief， is a technophobe who cringes at the sight of a mouse， especially when it's connected to a computer. But when Maggody goes online， the Net brings murder， pornography， and maybe Satan to town. Or so the God-fearing folks who live， pray， and mind everyone else's business in Maggody believe. Gwynnie Packwood， a 17-year-old unwed mother， sees the new computer lab at the elementary school as her ticket out of town， and so does Justin Bailey， the instructor who assures the townspeople he can bring the wired world to Maggody without letting the devil in. Justin and Chapel， his dissatisfied wife， aren't the only newcomers in Maggody; there are also Lazarus and Seth， whose connection with Gwynnie just might have led to her murder. But even without the strangers， Maggody has more than its share of home-grown oddballs， especially the Buchanons， who count among their numbers the mayor of Maggody， his long-suffering wife， pigs of the two- and four-footed variety， and assorted moonshiners and feral boys. The Buchanons drive Arly nearly as crazy as Ruby Bee， proprietor of the Flamingo Motel and the Ruby Bee Bar and Grill (and Arly's mother). And while she may have infinite resources， home-spun wisdom， and irrepressible curiosity and she may see whatever Arly misses and rarely misses a chance to point it out to her aggravated daughter， she's also too much of a lady to tell the police chief when pornographic pictures of Maggody's leading citizens flit across her computer monitor. By the time Arly finds out， they're under suspicion for Gwynnie's murder too， and Satan's stalking the trailer park. Hess's cozies are full of local color and colorful locals; the mystery is merely the container for this Southern-fried ramble through lovingly described and defiantly redneck country. --Jane Adams --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title. From Publishers Weekly The latest Arly Hanks mystery (after Misery Loves Maggody) proves once again the author's mastery of light-hearted country humor. The tiny Arkansas town of Maggody is in an uproar because one of the local high school teachers has obtained a grant to set up a computer lab for students and citizens. The move toward new technology provokes a fiery debate in the town hall， where the mayor's wife argues that the Internet's easy access to smut makes it the work of the devil. But when the computers and a systems operator arrive， everyone flocks to see the town's Web site， including a 17-year-old named Gwynnie. She and her infant son have just moved to Maggody so she can live with her aunt while studying for her GED， and more than one young man is smitten with her good looks and helpless predicament. But when Gwynnie is murdered and the town's e-mails are tainted with pornographic pictures that flash on the screen for a moment， then disappear， some residents think the devil has indeed arrived and taken up a religious crusade against the new computer lab. It's up to level-headed police chief Arly Hanks to find the earthly causes to both crimes. In order to do so， she must dig into Gwynnie's mysterious past， question a gaggle of trailer park locals and investigate the system operator's shaky marriage--all while trying to quell the detective tendencies of her mother， Ruby Bee， and her friend Estelle. Maggody's eccentric inhabitants and Hess's comic touch infuse this cozy with a refreshing dose of spunk， resulting in another triumph for both small-town America and Hess. (Jan.) Copyright 1999 Reed Business Information， Inc. --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title. See all Editorial Reviews