It''s Christmas, but there isn''t much Christmas spirit in the Glendale Police Department.

Delia Riordan''s father has just died, Detective Jim Harvey''s family have left for the holidays, there are power blackouts, and of course no let-up in murders, muggings, burglaries and a perplexing triple murder/suicide.

The department''s mood improves with the addition of a dog and a family of kittens to the office. Some crimes even have comic outcomes, including the burglar who is given away by a trail of wool. So it turns out to be a happy Christmas after all - except for the victims.

''My favourite American crime-writer''