A Ghost in the Closet

1995, undated second edition, from Cleis
Mabel Maney
A Ghost in the Closet
Bought newish for $14.95
Slightly worn paperback
B

OK, this is my favorite of the series.  Not only do we have gay-male suggestiveness as well as lesbian, but the convoluted plot involving poodles, spies, astronauts, an insane asylum, and yes, a closet and a "ghost," is more intricate and interesting than anything in the first two books.  Romance is of course still important, with "newlyweds" Midge & Velma working on their relationship, and Cherry finally choosing between Nancy and Jackie.  Frank Hardly gets a boyfriend, too.

Even though this was the third book, I actually found some of the jokes improved by repetition, like how housekeeper Hannah is always described as being "like a mother to Nancy since the death of her real mother twenty-two years ago."  And the clip-art-like pictures seem more random than ever, including a bugler, gladiators, skiers and bobsledders (it's still July), an abacus, and a suit of armor.

Maney went on to write a couple "Jane Bond" books, but I was disappointed in the first one and didn't continue.  We'll see what I think of Kiss the Girls and Make Them Spy when we get up to 2001....