The Mayor Has Been Replaced by a Bench
A town elects a park bench after discovering it has listened to more residents than any candidate. The campaign manager must stop its first act of corruption: premium cushions.
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The Murder Nobody Put in the Minutes
A retired court stenographer attends a village council meeting where nobody mentions the man lying dead beneath the table.
The Dragon's Smallest Debt
A dragon pays an old debt by running the village lost-and-found, where every unclaimed object remembers the person it misses.
The Planet Next Door
A quiet suburb wakes beside a second Earth whose residents want to borrow tools, not conquer anyone. The first loan changes gravity.
The Murder Before Breakfast
A breakfast-club organizer receives the victim's meal rating before the murder occurs. The eggs provide an alibi no one believes.
A Whale for the Window Box
An adult gardener finds a tiny whale in her window box. It needs a route back to the ocean that will not flood the town.
Everyone Remembers My Alibi
A woman wakes to find that an entire town remembers attending her birthday party, giving her a perfect alibi for a disappearance.
Nobody Wants the Good Neighbor Prize
Every finalist withdraws from a town's beloved Good Neighbor award after receiving a blank card. The florist making the winner's bouquet and a retired registrar investigate why an honor worth almost nothing has frightened people who are usually delighted to be praised.
A Murder of Extremely Polite Neighbors
A neighborhood mediator finds every resident has submitted an unsolicited alibi for the same death. Their perfectly courteous accounts reveal which small conflict nobody is willing to name.
The House That Kept the Tape
A sound archivist moves into a house whose old answering machine receives tomorrow's apologies. One message uses her own voice.
The Widow's Seating Plan
A wedding planner finds a seating chart that places six widows beside the same missing husband, just before the reception is sealed.
A Body in the Borrowing Cupboard
The volunteer who runs a village's cupboard of shared tools discovers a body behind a ladder. Every borrowed object has been returned cleaner than it left.
We Agreed to Forget the Dog
A couple in witness protection agree never to discuss their old life. Then their supposedly dead dog appears with a new collar and someone else's house key.
The Victim Sent Flowers
A florist receives advance orders from a man murdered yesterday.
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