Ask the Cards a Question [Mass Market Paperback]

Marcia Muller (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: April 1, 1990

There's trouble in Sharon McCone's quiet San Francisco apartment building. Madame Anya, with her cards, her tame crow, and her candles, had predicted evil for Molly Antonio. Linnea Carraway, drinking heavily and careening crazily in the wake of a divorce, had argued with her. Now the sweet, elderly lady lies in her apartment. Linnea, last to see Molly alive, is the prime suspect and if Sharon means to clear her best friend, she has to find the murderer fast. Suddenly death is in the cards, threatening Sharon's oldest friendship, her professional credibility-and her life.

Product Details

• Mass Market Paperback: 224 pages
• Publisher: Mysterious Press (April 1, 1990)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0445408499
• ISBN-13: 978-0445408494
• Product Dimensions: 4.2 x 0.8 x 6.8 inches
• Shipping Weight: 4 ounces
• Average Customer Review: 3.9 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (7 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #1,165,340 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

More About the Author

MARCIA MULLER has written many novels and short stories. Her novel "Wolf in the Shadows" won the Anthony Boucher Award. The recipient of the Private Eye Writers of America's Lifetime Achievement Award and the Mystery Writers of America Grand Master Award - their highest accolade - she lives in northern California with her husband, mystery writer Bill Pronzini.

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

13 of 13 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars A Fascinating Mystery, September 21, 2000

By A Customer

This review is from: Ask the Cards a Question (Mass Market Paperback)

Sharon McCone, the unassuming detective, is having trouble in her own building.When she finds one of her neighbors dead, Sharon realizes she really hasn't noticed the people in the building. She's been too busy with her romantic life and solving crimes all over the city. While reading this fascinating mystery by Muller, we are continually amazed at the background information, locale description and vivid characters. I feel as if I know the whole staff at All Soul's (where Sharon is the detective). Muller has a gift for making characters come to life. It's an entertaining, spellbinding book.

5 of 5 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Ask the Cards a Question, May 23, 2002

By 

Ricky N. "Ricky C. Nelson" (Commerce, GA) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Ask the Cards a Question (Mass Market Paperback)

"Ask the Cards a Question" is the second of the Sharon McCone novels by Marcia Muller following the groundbreaking "Edwin of the Iron Shoes" which introduced McCone as the first hard-boiled female private investigator. Molly Antonio, a tenant in Sharon's building is found dead by her husband, Gus. She had been strangled. With things slow at the All Soul's Legal Cooperative where Sharon works, she is able to work on the case. She finds quite a few suspects along the way. The ending is sure to surprise. "Ask the Cards a Question" is a fine addition to this long-running series.

5 of 6 people found the following review helpful:

3.0 out of 5 stars A simpler version of Kinsey Millhone, January 17, 2002

By 

Paul Skinner (Manassas, Virginia United States) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Ask the Cards a Question (Mass Market Paperback)

This is my first McCone book, and my first impression is it is very similar in style to Sue Grafton's Kinsey Millhone, without quite as much of a hard edge. The writing style is simpler and faster to read than Grafton's, and the mystery was not too terribly hard to solve, given the abundance of bad characters (all of which being guilty of something). I was expecting McCone's houseguest to be the scapegoat, which never really happened. The interplay between McCone and the police was not very realistic. All in all, it was a fun read, but not extremely exciting. The story had the potential to be much more interesting.