Chipped marks the return of Peter

Marklin, antique toy dealer and reluc-

tant sleuth. With his girlfriend Arabella

away in America, Marklin had been

hoping to spend a quiet winter in his toy

shop. But when a local private detective

disappears, Marklin finds himself up to

his neck in trouble again. Snooping

around, he discovers that the missing

man had made quite a few enemies in

his work--any one of whom might have

been glad to see him out of the way.

There s a crooked boat owner; a bizarre,

Doberman-equipped animal rights

activist; the surly headmaster of a too-

progressive private school; and the

private eye s own girlfriend, who seems

to know more than she s telling.

With three attractive women in-

volved in the case, the plot thickens

quickly. Helped by his exasperating old

friend Gus Tribble, Marklin unravels a

shocking story of greed, corruption,

strange practices, and vain hopes--

leading ultimately to violence and

murder. In a stunning climax, the toy

dealer finds himself succumbing to a

burning desire and is forced to leap

from the frying pan into a very real fire.

Chipped is another distinctive thriller

from Neville Steed, mixing sprightly wit

and dark, deadly mystery.