Among Daly's possessions are a series of articles about the brutal killings of members of St. Mallory Church. From these clippings and other information, Robert develops a profile on a vicious serial killer. As he gets closer to identifying the culprit, Robert knows he must pick up the pace before another parishioner becomes the next brutalized victim.

HARLOT'S MOON, the latest Robert Payne novel (see HAWK MOON and BLOOD MOON), is a tremendous hard-boiled detective story, starring a great protagonist. When it comes to crime, Robert is as tough as they get, but Ed Gorman makes his star profiler seem human because he provides him with compassionate traits too. Throw in a well-designed fast-paced story line and a strong support cast that constantly move the plot forward and the audience has a top rate psychological who-done-it.

Harriet Klausner

While the brevity of the book may give the impression that it's sketchy or too high level, it does a remarkable job of walking you through the what's, why's and how's of service level agreements and how they can form the foundation of improved operational efficiency and end user satisfaction. More importantly, the book steps you through the entire process of developing the SLA, negotiating objectives and implementing and managing to it.

With respect to the service level objectives that comprise the SLA I strongly recommend that you read "Using Service Goals and Metrics to Improve Help Desk Performance" by Mark W. Ellis (another pamphlet-sized resource) in conjunction with this book. Combined, you'll be able to understand SLAs and the significant metrics associated with help desk operations, which is the first step in the process of developing a more unified service delivery posture. Another book I recommend after you've established SLAs at the help desk level is "IT Problem Management" by Gary S. Walker. That book takes service delivery to the enterprise level.

Psychiatrist Dr. Jack Caleb is jogging in Chicago's Lincoln Park when he hears some chanting. When he goes in the direction of the noise he observes a cultist mob about to burn a police car with the cop inside the vehicle. His presence puts a halt to the festivities and the wannabe arsonists flee the scene. Later on, the officer's partner Arlette Banks is found dead, a victim of a stoning. The Chicago police department assigns John Thinnes to investigate the case, which circumstantially point towards the cult.

However, the case becomes more complicated when members of the cult begin to die in what appears to be a series of arson fires. Soon, evidence surfaces that makes the prime suspect appear to be Dr. Morgan, a close friend of Jack. To prove his buddy, who he wants a closer relationship with, is innocent, Jack sets in motion a plan that, if it fails, will leave him and John burnt to a crisp

The third Thinnes-Caleb investigation, INCENDIARY DESIGNS, is a well-designed tale. The story line is obviously crisp and fast-paced. The secondary characters and the lead duo strengthen the plot. However, what makes Michael Allen Dymmoch's novel so good is the best tour of Chicago since Bueller needed a day off. This is a wonderful series that is worth reading.

Harriet Klausner