Unholy Death In Princeton [Paperback]

The plot involves a woman -- a journalist -- who is doing research at Princeton Seminary on a book she's writing about an abolitionist who was killed by a lynch mob. In the first pages, while on a walk this woman discovers a body and (unbelievably), the Keystone Cops in charge of the jurisdiction decide she must be the killer because she found the body. She is still defending herself from those accusations when another killing takes place. Because she has little confidence in the police to discover the killer, she and an old friend she's staying with decide to play detective and figure out (through asking questions) who is the killer at the seminary. There are a number of characters associated with the seminary (faculty, staff, and students) on the list of suspects, and they all end up being invited over for lunch or dinner.

I realize that mysteries are a fictional genre and don't have to be TOO lifelike, but they do (I think) have to be credible at some level. As one who has been to a divinity school, I found the portrayal of Princeton Theological Seminary a bit hard to believe. Does the author really think that students from snake-handling backgrounds a) would attend seminary and b) be allowed to bring their rattlesnakes with them and keep them in seminary housing? (By the way, that's not a spoiler -- we learn this very early in the story). Then there's the book that this journalist is writing -- a biography of a 19th century figure that the journalist doesn't seem particularly qualified to write about -- one of those "huh?" details. Does she have a contract to write this book? How did she get the idea -- not to mention the time off work -- to write such a biography? And for someone who is supposed to be employed as a journalist, the "detective" character seems to have an open-ended vacation from work, with no clear date set for her to get back to her regular job.

And those are just the start of the credibility problems -- there are other details that make me think it would be extremely unlikely that such a thing could happen -- I can't say more without risking revealing too much. But suffice it to say that the world of academics in any field is quite cozy, and in a field studied at seminary, very cozy. There are some secrets that would be very difficult to pull off given how everyone knows everyone.

And I had a pretty good idea about half-way through the book who the killer was.

That having been said, I nevertheless enjoyed reading the book This is definitely a cozy mystery, with lots of scenes taking place over meals, where the menu is discussed (there's even a couple of recipes in the back.)

This was a disappointment compared to her first two mysteries. Unholy death is repetitious and monotonous to the point where I used it to fall asleep at night. Most of the characters are as three-dimensional as cardboard. One character is mocked by the author because she (the character) is reluctant to drink beer like everyone else - as if beer-drinking-for-the-sake-of-conformity on campus were not the serious problem that it is! On the positive side, however, the Theological Seminary setting is interesting. Some good ideas, not artistically developed. Hopefully, if she writes another one, it will be an improvement over this.

This is Ann Waldron's best McLeod Dulaney mystery yet. The characters are so lively and well-drawn they literally walk right off the page (and, in some cases, right into your heart). The setting--the Princeton Theological Seminary--is perfect (a perfect place for a murder, that is), and the plot is downright diabolical. Are you in the mood for some humorous, mysterious and sinfully well-written fun? Then do yourself a favor and read this delightful book.

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