Death of the Office Witch

November 1, 1993
This semi-supernatural mystery, an uneven work that doesn't live up to its best moments, marks the return of L.A. literary agent Charlie Green. On a day that begins with highway gridlock, a missed appointment and an argument with her acid-tongued teenage daughter, Libby, Charlie also faces the mysterious disappearance of waspish office secretary Gloria Tuschman. Gloria is discovered sprawled out in nearby bushes--dead. Charlie, who tested her sleuthing skills in Murder at Moot Point , is brought in on the case by Gloria herself, whose voice seems to call from the Great Beyond: ``Charlie, I'm in the trash can. Help me.'' Lt. David Dalrymple of the Beverly Hills PD also hopes for her help while Charlie learns that several co-workers have reason to rejoice in Gloria's death. Then, visiting Montana author Mary Ann Leffler also vanishes, leaving Charlie to hunt for more clues in this world and the next. Millhiser is perhaps too successful at making the work of a Hollywood literary agent seem mundane; as for other realms, those unearthly messages, rather than being portentous, are just transparent plot-expediting gimmicks.