A controversial president and a cunning killer await Homer Kelly in the gracious halls of Thomas Jefferson's historic home.In Murder at Monticello, Jane Langton surpasses even her own delicious best. Rich in complex characters, irresistible humor, and masterly tension, her fifteenth Homer Kelly mystery takes the Harvard sleuth into the cradle of American history. Invited to the Virginia bicentennial celebration of Jefferson's presidency, Homer-a longtime admirer of our third president-is excited to join the festivities.But more than fireworks are about to explode at Monticello. High above the tourist throngs, in the sun-flooded Dome Room, a former student of Homer's is at work on a book exonerating the founding father from latter-day criticism and scandal. Camped in the dark woods behind Monticello is a young ponytailed trespasser, Tom Dean, who swears the only Jeffersonian good deed was his sponsorship of the Lewis and Clark expedition. And somewhere a vicious murderer of local women is on the prowl. When Tom is arrested as a prime suspect, Homer is drawn into the lives of two troubled Toms: Thomas Jefferson, with the historians; and Thomas Dean, with the law. Threading chapters together with entries and maps from the Lewis and Clark journals and her own magnificent line drawings of Monticello, Langton weaves together scholarship, style, murder, and mayhem to create a mystery masterpiece.