title: A Shroud for Aquarius: A Mallory Novel
author:  Max Allan Collins 
description: Mystery writer Mallory was a precocious reader as a youth and for years shared the thoughts spawned by great books with his high school friend Ginnie Mullens. But the two lost touch as adults although they lived in the same small Iowa town. Nevertheless, Mal is troubled by Ginnie's apparent suicide and agrees to help the police chief, sub rosa. Tracing her life back from her recent business success to her '60s-style rebellion, Mal is saddened to uncover gambling and drug trafficking in Ginnie's history, a history some of her associates would persuade him to leave alone. His investigation, however, also uncovers another former schoolmate, this one grown into a beautiful and engaging woman. Mallory, met before in No Cure for Death and Kill Your Darlings, is a likable, brave and sensitive fellow who has believable and entertaining adventures. Foreign rights: Dominick Abel. November 11<br />Copyright 1985 Reed Business Information, Inc.
zlib_text: ![Image](../images/00001.jpeg)
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  **Also by Max Allan Collins in the Mallory Series:**
  
  
  _The Baby Blue Rip-Off_
  
  
  _No Cure for Death_
  
  
  _Kill Your Darlings_
  
  
  _A Shroud for Aquarius_
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  ![Image](../images/00002.jpeg)
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  The characters and events portrayed in this book are fictitious. Any
  similarity to real persons, living or dead, is coincidental and not intended
  by the author.
  
  
  Text copyright © 1986 Max Allan Collins  
  All rights reserved.
  
  
  No part of this book may be reproduced, or stored in a retrieval system, or
  transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic, mechanical, photocopying,
  recording, or otherwise, without express written permission of the publisher.
  
  
  Published by Thomas & Mercer
  
  
  P.O. Box 400818  
  Las Vegas, NV 89140
  
  
  ISBN-13: 9781612185255  
  ISBN-10: 1612185258
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  _For Ed Gorman  
  Best friend Mallory ever had_
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  ## CONTENTS
  
  
  [AUTHOR’S NOTE](part0006.html)
  
  
  [PART ONE: Thursday](part0008.html)
  
  
  [1](part0009.html)
  
  
  [2](part0010.