An Absolute Gentleman

August 13, 2007
You may never look quite the same way at that punctilious little man down the street after reading this chilling first novel from Kinder, author of two well-received short story collections (A Near-Perfect Gift
and Sweet Angel Band
). Inspired by her own brush with a serial killer—back in the late ’80s her neighbor Robert Weeks was sentenced to life in prison for two murders and suspected of more—Kinder deftly limns the deadly odyssey of Arthur Blume, a middle-aged creative writing professor who manages to be both the most ordinary and the most monstrous of creatures. The well-paced action cuts between Blume’s Missouri present and horrific past in Georgia as the child of a psychotic teenage mother (which forms his view of treachery as the natural order and women as innately deceptive). Along the way, his slyly dropped clues—or are they red herrings?—add to the intrigue. Though one wishes that Kinder had gone lighter on some of the Southern-fried Freud, this artfully told tale of psychological suspense is as gripping as the spider webs Blume is so fond of studying.

August 1, 2007
In this absorbing study of a serial killer, told in the first person, Kinder offers a rather sympathetic view of a man who outwardly possesses the characteristics of a highly functional citizen. In fact, it's difficult not to like Arthur Blume: He's even-tempered, bright, and a well-respected teacher of creative writing. In fact, for a novel featuring a murderer, very little violence takes place. Instead, Kinder relates the latest chapter in Arthur's peripatetic life, which has him searching for elusive tenure and hoping to rekindle the creative magic he exhibited in his only novel, published 20 years ago. Besides his being remarkably laid-back, Arthur's dominant character trait is his insistence that everyone be treated fairly. This philosophy, and Arthur's reluctance to offer the smallest bit of information about himself, both frustrates and fascinates his new lover, Grace, a fellow professor who ultimately learns more than she wants to know. Kinder based much of this first novel on her experiences with a real-life serial killer named Robert Weeks, and her handling of her fictional character shows a sophisticated understanding of a madman's thought processes. For most general fiction collections.Kevin Greczek, Hamilton, NJ

Copyright 2007 Library Journal, LLC Used with permission.

Starred review from August 1, 2007
Inspired by her own brush with a serial killer, Kinder has created a fictional representation that is chilling in its normalcy, haunting in its intensity, and stunning in its portrayal of sheer, sadistic madness. Taciturn English professor Arthur Blume launches his narrative by boldly stating that he is believed to have murdered as many as 17 women. Yet what most outrages him, now that he has been incarcerated, is that journalists are depicting him as a monster. He pens a memoir tocorrect this impression. In it, he describes in lavish detail the outfitting of his newly rented rooms in the small university town of Mason, Missouri; demurs over particulars of his illicit love affair with a fellow professor; and shares self-deprecating anecdotes about his gallant championing of a maligned colleague. Tucked among these decorous tidbits, however, are tantalizing clues to the demon within, one Kinder allows to emerge as stealthily as a cobra sliding from its bamboo basket. The addition of a self-explanatory epilogue regarding her personal experience detracts only slightly from Kinders otherwise spellbinding debut novel, a pitch-perfect rendition of the cunning malevolence that can lie hidden beneath the guise of refined civility.(Reprinted with permission of Booklist, copyright 2007, American Library Association.)