Carolyn G. Heilbrun (1926–2003)

Maybe even 4.5*, just because I do so love an academic setting for a mystery!

An academic mystery which deals with the internal politics & struggles of the faculty of a major (unnamed) New York city university is the kind of mystery I would have loved to write myself. Written in 1970, student unrest provides the background to the situation but as anyone who has been a college or university professor knows, the factions & committees etc. could have been taking place at any time. I had a few laughs (such as at the doctoral dissertation defense meeting & the professor describing a recent play he had attended) as well.

I loved the Auden quotes at the start of each chapter & throughout the text; I will have read his poetry for myself sometime soon!… (mer)

One of the lingering mysteries of Kate Fansler’s life is how she came to be so utterly unlike her older brothers. When her oldest brother Laurence is visited by a man claiming to be Kate’s natural father, it is with some surprise that Kate agrees to DNA testing, which in fact proves the man’s claim. But why has he come back into Kate’s life when she is in her mid-50s and he is in his 70s? And what does he want from the Fansler family?.... This is the last of the Kate Fansler mystery series and, unlike the previous book, Kate is all over this one. As is Shakespeare, as each chapter has an epigram (most, I think, if not all from The Tempest). The relationship between fathers and daughters is the overarching theme, and unlike other books in the series there are no murders to investigate here; the very idea of the self-aware and hyper-conscious Kate working to deepen her understanding of herself will either please or infuriate readers, depending on their relationship to the character. For myself, I’m glad I read it, and equally glad to finally be done with the exasperating Kate. Mildly recommended.… (mer)