A Cruel Wit

The woman has lost her head; she has only a mask for a face. An obedient dog lies at her feet. But who is the faceless owl perched on her shoulder in counsel? And why is he horned? Hearts, Spades, and Clubs are present ... but where are the Diamonds? When her husband suddenly disappears on a business trip to Bangkok, Hope Alexander rushes after him. But what she finds causes her to abandon her search entirely; and, as a result of her husband's alleged crime, she quickly finds herself out of a job, in danger, and alone. She flees their comfortable home in Singapore in an effort to start over. But Hope may be considered a poor master of her own fate: from nearly the moment her husband disappears, she gets herself into one tangle after another and, blind to the motivation of those she charms into helping her, leaves herself vulnerable to the wit of an odd lot of characters, and revenge for her husband's crime.