Contemporary Romance, Detective Fiction, Cozy Mysteries & Amateur Sleuths, Women Detectives - Fiction
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Overview
Safely away from the chaos of Manhattan, St. Thomas, a small college on the banks of the Hudson River in the Bronx, is supposed to be tranquil, bucolic, and serene. Unfortunately, English professor Alison Bergeron has found it to be anything but. Recently divorced from a fellow professor and even more recently without a car---it was stolen---she has been hoofing it to school. One Friday evening, two NYPD homicide detectives drop by her office. The good news is that they found her beat-up Volvo; the bad news is that the body of one of the students in her Shakespeare seminar was in the trunk.
Not only are Alison's chances of getting the car back bleak, but suddenly she's the primary suspect on a list that includes, among others, the murdered student's drug-dealing boyfriend, Vince, and the girl's father's business rivals (he's head of an old Italian family . . .).
Accused of a crime that she didn't commit, Alison enlists her best friend, Max's, emotional support and services as an amateur sleuth. Their fumbling efforts to clear Alison's name could land her in even hotter water with Detective Bobby Crawford, the handsome investigating officer (and former altar boy)---not to mention the nuns at St. Thomas. . . .
Maggie Barbieri's charming professor and down-to-earth detective make an unlikely but lovable team in her delightful debut mystery.
Editorials
Publishers Weekly
At the start of Barbieri's sparkling debut, Alison Bergeron, a divorced English professor who teaches at St. Thomas, a small Catholic college in the Bronx, is dismayed when her car is stolen, but she's stunned when handsome NYPD homicide detective Bobby Crawford informs her that it has been recovered-with the body of Kathy Miceli, one of her students, in the trunk. Alison becomes a suspect in Kathy's murder, but disturbing incidents like the ransacking of Alison's office help persuade Bobby she's innocent. The sassy banter between Alison and Bobby nicely balances the escalating tension of the murder investigation, which calls into question the integrity of Alison's philandering ex-husband, another St. Thomas professor. Romance, humor and suspense blend perfectly in this exceptional cozy, the first of what hopefully will be a long series. (Nov.) Copyright 2006 Reed Business Information.Library Journal
Having her car stolen is only the beginning of Alison Bergeron's bad day. When the police find the car, they also discover in the trunk the body of one of her students; her philandering ex-husband is picked up for questioning. In this debut entry of the ever-expanding world of chick-lit mystery, the characters are so irritating that any attempt at humor is spoiled. [See Prepub Mystery, LJ 7/06.] Copyright 2006 Reed Business Information.Kirkus Reviews
An English professor finds herself both the target of a murder investigation and the object of the investigator's affections in Barbieri's mystery debut. Puking on a police detective's shoes isn't the smoothest move, but that's exactly how English professor Alison Bergeron greets the news that freshman Kathy Miceli's body has been found in the trunk of her car. And Bobby Crawford, owner of the shoes, is the good cop. The bad cop, a cranky guy named Wyatt in a bad suit, just wants to slap the cuffs on Alison. But Crawford prevails: He tails Alison patiently as her best friend, Max Rayfield, persuades her to break into LaSalle Hall and toss the room of Kathy's boyfriend Vince; he shows up at her house to ask just a few more questions; and finally he takes her down to his family's Seaside Heights beach house for a much-needed break. But even when Wyatt turns his attention toward others-including Alison's ex-husband, Ray, whose affair with the dead girl makes him an especially promising suspect-Crawford remains focused on Alison, whose experience with an unfaithful ex makes her wary of any blossoming romance. It's not until someone breaks into her office and stuffs her into the back seat of a Jeep that Alison realizes the police aren't the only ones to treat with caution. Alison is game enough, and her amatory life absorbing enough, to make you almost forgive the absence of authentic mystery. Agent: Deborah Schneider/Gelfman Schneider Literary Agents Inc.From the Publisher
"An entertaining debut."—Booklist
"Spot-on…with wit and verve."—Richmond Times-Dispatch
"If you love Agatha Christie, Sue Grafton, and Sara Paretsky, you'll be delighted by Murder 101."—Sheila Curran, author of Diana Lively Is Falling Down
"Grade: A."
—Susan McBride, author of the Debutante Dropout Mysteries
"Romance, humor, and suspense blend perfectly in…the first of what hopefully will be a long series."—Publishers Weekly (starred review)
Book Details
Published
November 27, 2007
Publisher
St. Martin's Press
Pages
288
ISBN
9781429950640