Customer Reviews

Extracurricular Activities (Alison Bergeron Mysteries)

5 star:		(5)
4 star:		(4)
3 star:		(3)
2 star:		(2)
1 star:		(1)

 

 

"Extracurricular Activities" is Maggie Barbieri's follow-up to her well-received debut, "Murder 101." Dr. Alison Bergeron still teaches English literature in St. Thomas, a small Catholic college in the Bronx. The love of her life, "Detective Hot Pants," also known as Bobby Crawford, has yet to divorce his pretty and saintly wife, Christine, who is also the mother of their seventeen-year-old twin girls. Meanwhile, Alison's philandering ex-husband, Ray, is forever dropping by, and she is too polite to tell him to get lost. One evening, Alison comes home and finds a mutilated corpse propped up at her kitchen table. Now she really has her hands full, what with her professional responsibilities, her quandary about whether she should go out with her friend's gorgeous single brother, Jack McManus, and of course, her sleuthing. Alison has never been one to leave the detecting to the detectives.

Her investigation brings her into close contact with Bobby, which makes them both a bit uncomfortable. She is also forced to spend some not-so-quality time with several suspects, including the formidable mob boss Peter Miceli and his nasty wife, Gianna, who have intimidated her ever since their nineteen-year-old daughter was found dead in the trunk of Alison's car. Peter and Gianna keep stalking her and that leaves Alison more than a bit queasy. In addition, she is chagrined when her slutty neighbor, Terri, who had been one of Ray's lovers, suddenly decides to have a chat about her personal problems. Before all the plot elements are finally resolved, more bodies pile up and Alison finds herself in mortal danger.

"Extracurricular Activities" has a likeable and wise-cracking heroine and cute dialogue laced with amusing one-liners. The secondary characters include Alison's buddy, Father Kevin McManus, a gossipy priest, Terri's golden retriever, Trixie, who always greets Alison with unbounded doggy affection, sultry Max Rayfield, Alison's soon-to-be married best friend, and Carmen Montoya, a tough, smart, and sexy cop who, although married, unabashedly flirts with Crawford. It is too bad that the story is so far-fetched. The police seem to be sleeping at the wheel while Maggie does most of the dirty work and as the plot unfolds, it becomes more and more preposterous. In addition, Barbieri makes the jarring decision to switch from Alison's first person point of view to the third person and then back again to the first person. The book's redeeming features are its lighthearted humor and Barbieri's deft handling of Alison's volatile love life. Although it does not earn the highest marks, "Extracurricular Activities" is a satisfying enough chick-lit mystery that will appeal to fans of escapist fare.

Extracurricular Activities is the hip sequel to Murder 101, which if you haven't read yet, I highly recommend. Alison Bergeron is the main character in both and she's a joy to spend time with as she finds dead bodies, drinks martinis, and is the maid of honor in her best friend's wedding. She also adopts a goofy dog and finds some romance with a NYC detective. Much fun with a zippy pace and great twists (especially at the end).

This is the second installment of Maggie Barbieri's murder mystery/comedy/love story series about college professor and part-time sleuth Alison Bergeron. It's an excellent follow-up to "Murder 101"

In "Extracurricular Activities" there is more of just about everything; more dead mangled bodies, more suspects, more lascivious chit chat. There's less of Alison fainting; but that's a good thing.

It's another breezy, fun read, and I confess that I was totally wrong about who the perps were. I won't explain, since that would give things away, but I can say that if you like fast-reading entertainment in the mystery genre, you'll enjoy this book.

I can't wait for #3 in the series.

When we first met Alison Bergeron, she was the number one suspect in a college student's murder. Not only did Alison have a past with the victim's parents, her ex-husband had an affair with the student as well. Just clearing her name from one investigation, Alison soon finds herself involved with another murder. . . her ex-husband Ray. Ray's death has Peter Miceli's name written all over it, as his death was a signature Mob hit. As much as she despised Ray (after all he had numerous extra-martial affairs), Alison is stunned by his death and can't help but to play amateur sleuth once again.

Finding Ray's killer will also distract her from her on-again, off-again relationship with NYPD homicide detective, Bobby Crawford. Crawford has marital issues of his own: he's legally separated from his wife, however he failed to mention this at the start of his relationship with Alison. It's quite difficult for Alison to avoid Crawford because his partner is marrying Alison's best friend, Max, and he is best man while Alison is maid of honor. And not to mention, with all of Alison's snooping, she finds herself in situations that only a police officer can assist her with.

Overall, I enjoyed this book. Alison is an amateur sleuth with good sense. The plot at times is funny, but not over the top. The author provides enough twists and turns that will make the reader wonder who really is the killer. After the killer's identity is revealed, we learn why Ray was killed and how Alison is involved.

Alison's character is one the reader can relate to: she's hard working, trying to pick herself up after a bitter divorce while contemplating re-entering the dating scene. The reader will hope Bobby figures things out with his estranged wife before Alison moves on. The two definitely have chemistry and both deserve a second chance on love. If you're looking for a good cozy mystery, I recommend this series.

Extracurricular Activities (2007) is Maggie Barbieri's second mystery novel featuring English professor Alison Bergeron. It is the sequel to Barbieri's debut novel Murder 101.

A few months have passed since Alison was cleared of the murder that ocurred at the small, secluded college where she works. It has been about as long since Alison last saw her married (sort of) boyfriend Detective Bobby Crawford. Everything about Alison's life seems to be back to normal--leaving her plenty of time to focus on her work and best friend Max's upcoming nuptials.

That is until Alison finds herself at the center of another murder investigation when her ex-husband's body is found in Alison's house. The Alison learns about the case, the more convinced she is that a local Mobster is responsible, specifically the one that has been harassing Alison since last spring. Alison wants nothing more than to solve the murder for her own sanity and be done with the Mob once and for all, but how do you threaten a Mob boss with no qualms about killing the people who get in his way?

Chronologically this book picks up very close to where the first book left off, making it easy to deal with the loose ends and unresolved issues that carried over from Murder 101. While Alison struggles with her decision that she and Crawford should take a break, she finds herself receiving attentions from another very attractive, and available, man. This creates a moral dilemma as Alison tries to figure out where her heart lies and whether the best route is also the easiest one. This side plot of sorts adds more dimension to Alison's character and her dynamic with Crawford as well as bringing a lot of humor into the story.

Something that Barbieri has changed in this installment is her narration technique. In the first novel, Alison narrated in traditional first-person, past-tense style. That narration works for the story allowing readers to get inside Alison's head and hear all of her funny asides during dialogue sequences. Most of Extracurricular Activities is told in the same way. However, interspersed with Alison's narrations are sequences from Crawford's point-of-view written in the third-person, past-tense. I liked this addition simply because it helped to flesh out Crawford's character by showing events from his perspective. In terms of the plot it was also the best way to tell the story since there are events that would be impossible for Alison to witness firsthand. Thus, without Crawford's segments, the story would have had a lot of talking back and forth about events.

I respect Barbieri for trying something new with her writing in this novel and am intrigued to see what she has in story for her next mystery. That said, the writing in Extracurricular Activities was not as good as its antecedent. This novel came out one year after Barbieri's first book and, to be blunt, it shows. The writing often felt slapdash with repeated phrases and awkward sentences that were not an issue in the the first novel. That is not to say this is a bad book, it isn't. Extracurricular Activities was actually a lot of fun, an ultimately cheerful and optimistic mystery. That just didn't always coincide with the smoothest writing.

Alison Bergeron's next appearance is in Quick Study (2008).

Sweet and Sassy! Maggie Barbieri does not disappoint in this sequel. Alison and Crawford, their quirky friends and imperfect lives provide for another smart, entertaining read. Highly recommended for those who long for books with great dialogue and a strong sense of mystery, humor and romance.

I read the first book in the series and thought this one was just as good. The lead character came across as less silly and weak as in the first book, so I'm glad that the author toughened her up a bit.

I won't get into the plot, but essentially, the lead character's ex-husband is found dead in her house, and strange things continue to happen until finally the mystery of who-done-it is solved.

There may be more romance than many mystery readers would like. I suspect that those who like Evanovich would probably enjoy this series -- romance, comedy, mystery, in that order. Many of the characters are two-dimensional, but the writing style is breezy and the plot moves along quickly.

It is such a pleasure to re-connect with Alison, Crawford, Max...and of course to meet new dead bodies. Barbieri's wit shines as the characters are further developed (and friskier!) in this sequel to Murder 101. Extracurricular Activities is the perfect weekend getaway for an over-stressed mind. You won't be able to put it down until the last page is read and then you'll be anxiously waiting for the next in the series.

I really enjoyed the first book in this series Murder 101 and this book is a continuation of Alison's life. I enjoyed the look into life as a college professor in a small catholic school and the political games that happen whenever humans are forced to work together. But that was just a very small, but interesting back drop to the story. I have read so many romances and mystery novels that I enjoy the differences more than others might. I was totally surprised at the end of the novel as I certainly didn't predict the ending. It is a very good and fun read and I am looking forward to her next book!

I thought the first book in this series was flawed but cute, and since it sometimes takes me a couple of books to warm up to a new series I was anxious to read EXTRACURRICULAR ACTIVITIES. I'm sorry to say, I found this book to be a complete mess!

Example 1: At the end of some of the chapters, the author switches from "first-person Alison" to "third-person Crawford." It was difficult for me to switch my brain to the new format, especially because it happened irregularly -- every other chapter for awhile, then 2 chapters in Alison-only, then back to one with Crawford...

Example 2: NOTHING about the next-door neighbors makes sense. There's a bunch of clues, some contradictory behavior, and nothing is really cleared up despite a rushed try. And I found that to be true of at least one other character as well -- a bunch of "hints" at something important that end up not being addressed.

Example 3: Crawford has an informant who calls him with information about the murder and wants to tell him in person. He's missing when Crawford gets there and later winds up dead. And...that's it. Apparently his murder has nothing to do with the first one.

Example 4: Without trying to give anything away, the last two chapters were the worst. Alison is attacked for no apparent reason other than to wrap something up. There was no logical reason for this attack and I thought all the "explanations" for the murders were seriously lacking.

I felt the author cared more about making good individual scenes (ooh, let's show Alison being funny, let's show Alison and Crawford in love, let's show what a good guy Crawford is) than in creating a good mystery or a cohesive story. There were too many coincidences that either put Alison in harm's way or got her out of tough jams.

I love "amateur-detective with a twist of romance" -- it's pretty much all I read -- and I'm used to unlikely scenarios but I didn't like this book at all.