Grey Zone

March 21, 2011
In Simon's spirited third Dulcie Schwartz mystery (after 2010's Grey Matters), Harvard grad student Dulcie continues to work on uncovering the identity of the anonymous female author of The Ravages of Umbria, an 18th-century gothic novel. But the death of psychology professor Fritz Herschoft, an apparent suicide, as well as the disappearance of a former student of Dulcie's, sophomore Carrie Mines, distract her from finishing that darn thesis. Dulcie's evolving relationship with fellow grad student Chris Sorenson further complicates her life. The appealingly earnest Dulcie reveals a sweetly eccentric side through her psychic communications with Mr. Grey, her ghost cat sidekick, and her new telepathic kitten, Esmé. Strange dreams and Mr. Grey's sporadic assistance steer Dulcie toward a most elusive killer. Fans of Shirley Rousseau Murphy, Carole Nelson Douglas, and Rita Mae Brown should enjoy this feline whodunit, the best in the series so far.

May 1, 2011

A sleuthing grad student adjusts to having a new cat companion and sidekick.

Dulcinea "Dulcie" Schwartz is always making things more complicated than they should be. At least, that's what her boyfriend Chris insists. For example, her thesis on The Ravages of Umbria would be so much easier to write if she didn't get hung up on the author and the fact that she never published anything afterward. Dulcie's convinced the reason for her long silence is that she was murdered, but as a Harvard doctorate student of Gothic literature, she can't help thinking that way. Take the case of missing student Carrie Mines. Dulcie's advisee Philomena "Corkie" McCorkle insists that Carrie must be fine. But Dulcie's convinced there's much more to the story, especially now that a professor's suicide is being considered a murder. If only there were someone Dulcie could confide in. The tutoring Chris has taken on to bring in extra cash has taken him from Dulcie's side; her roommate Suze has a serious boyfriend; and her mother Lucy is too wrapped up in her hippie-commune things to be present on this life plane. And though Dulcie's slowly bonding with her new kitten, Esme doesn't talk to her the way Dulcie's former pet Joel Grey once did. While Joel's ghost makes a few appearances, Dulcie's biggest fear is that trusting those around her may mean losing Mr. Grey forever.

Although her protagonist is mildly less pretentious than she was last time around (Grey Matters, 2010, etc.), Simon's fans shouldn't expect many departures from a formula with which she clearly feels comfortable.

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April 1, 2011

Dulcinea Schwartz's life as a Harvard grad student is more complicated than most. She's a bit psychic; has a ghost cat, Mr. Grey, for a muse; and is already known to the local police for earlier cases (Grey Matters). And then she just happens to be on the scene when a professor falls to his death from his department's building. At the same time, her research into a 1794 feminist author's writings has stalled, and this gives Dulcie horrible nightmares that further complicate her thinking. VERDICT For those seeking mysteries with a gothic twist, Simon offers a supernatural cozy that also weaves in real-life issues (e.g., sexual harassment of students). Readers will relate to the academic politics and might also like Emily Arsenault's The Broken Teaglass as a similar suspense puzzle. Or for the paranormal element, consider Sue Ann Jaffarian's "Ghost of Granny Apples" series.

Copyright 2011 Library Journal, LLC Used with permission.

May 1, 2011
Graduate student Dulcie Schwartz and her ghostly feline, Mr. Grey, return in a third academia-set cozy. Dulcie, stressed with midterms and a new thesis advisor, is also having dreams about the author of Ravages of Umbria (her thesis subject) that have her convinced that the author was in some way silenced in 1794. And then she not only witnesses a suicide but also thinks one of her undergraduate students may be involved. The fast-paced story is propelled by Dulcies frenetic investigations and harried personal life, but unlike in many coziesin which the mystery plot is lost amid the personal detailhere the many scenes from Dulcies life actually support the main story, whether they are Dulcies phone calls with her commune-dwelling mother, Dulcies kitten troubles, or her worries about her longtime boyfriend and fellow grad student, Chris. A must-read for series fans, the novel should also be suggested to Lauren Willig and Jennifer Lee Carrell readers.(Reprinted with permission of Booklist, copyright 2011, American Library Association.)