Murder at Monticello [Hardcover]

Rita Mae Brown (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: November 1, 1994

A mystery at Monticello involves an old skeleton uncovered beneath the slave quarters and a new murder in Crozet, Virginia, with tiger-striped Mrs. Murphy and Welsh Corgi Tee Tucker joining forces to solve the killing and prevent another. 40,000 first printing. $40,000 ad/promo.

Editorial Reviews

From Publishers Weekly

Ailurophiles will purr as the inimitable Sneaky Pie Brown and her human coauthor, Rita Mae, return in their third adventure (after Rest in Pieces). Drawing deftly on archeological investigations at Thomas Jefferson's beloved Monticello, the Browns open with the discovery of the remains of a well-to-do Caucasian male, dated to 1803, beneath the hearth of a slave's cabin. Mary Minor ("Harry") Haristeen, postmistress of nearby Crozet, Va., and other friends of Monticello search for the man's identity in historical and genealogical papers, unaware that their investigations will bring them perilously close to a modern secret so closely guarded that someone has already killed to protect it. The animals, as usual, crack the case. Mrs. Murphy, a gray tiger, teams up with Welsh corgi Tee Tucker, fat cat Pewter and her ex-mate, tomcat Paddy Murphy, to bring to light a set of long lost journals linking past and present. Once again, Mrs. Murphy has the last word on the pathetic human condition. "You know, humans believe in things that aren't real. We don't," she observes. "It doesn't matter if a cat is black or white as long as it catches mice."
Copyright 1994 Reed Business Information, Inc.

From Library Journal

Make no bones about it, when a skeleton is discovered at Monticello, famed feline sleuth Mrs. Murphy (Rest in Pieces, Bantam, 1992) will find the murderer.
Copyright 1994 Reed Business Information, Inc.

See all Editorial Reviews

Product Details

• Hardcover: 298 pages
• Publisher: Bantam; First Printing edition (November 1, 1994)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0553081403
• ISBN-13: 978-0553081404
• Product Dimensions: 9.1 x 6.1 x 1.1 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1.2 pounds
• Average Customer Review: 3.3 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (18 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #1,083,898 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

More About the Author

Rita Mae Brown is the bestselling author of the Sister Jane novels-Outfoxed, Hotspur, Full Cry, The Hunt Ball, The Hounds and the Fury, The Tell-Tale Horse, and Hounded to Death-as well as the Sneaky Pie Brown mysteries and Rubyfruit Jungle, In Her Day, Six of One, and The Sand Castle, among many others. An Emmy-nominated screenwriter and a poet, Brown lives in Afton, Virginia.

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

3 of 3 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Murder Then and Now., November 25, 2004

By 

S. Schwartz "romonko" (alberta canada) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Murder at Monticello (Mrs. Murphy Mysteries) (Mass Market Paperback)

Is this old murder from 1803 connected to the new one that just occurred in present day Crozen? Harry and her friends think so, so they begin to dig deep into old records and letters to find out what the connection could be. Can some knowledge be that great that it covers two centuries? Apparently so because it appears that someone really wants some old secrets kept secret. I enjoyed this book actually more than the previous two because I found that the two murders separated by almost 200 years were very well connected by the author. I still find the "talking" done by the animals in this series a little off-putting, but the mysteries are quite good in spite of this.

2 of 2 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Murder, Mystery, and Thomas Jefferson, May 28, 2006

By 

L Smith "acozylover" (Macomb, MI) - See all my reviews
(VINE VOICE)   

This review is from: Murder at Monticello (Mrs. Murphy Mysteries) (Mass Market Paperback)

In the 3rd installment of the Mrs. Murphy and Tucker Mystery series, a body has been discovered in the slave quarters of the home of Thomas Jefferson. Since Jefferson has been dead for 170 years, it is impossible to question him about the man found dead from a blow to the dead. And when another recently murdered body is discovered, it becomes apparent that someone wants the secrets that have been buried with the body to remain so. Coming into question is the practice of slavery, and the descendants of Thomas Jefferson. Jefferson had been rumored to have fathered a child by one of his slaves, and it appears that the man found murdered may have been also been involved with one of the slaves. The citizens of Crozet band together to prove that their beloved Jefferson had nothing to do with the murder or cover-up, and while doing so they unearth secrets that have been hidden in the town for over a century.

I have become a big fan of this series, and enjoy the banter between the animals. The relationships between the members of the town have been evolving, and I like the way that Harry is loved and embraced by the people who have known her all of her life. She works hard, cares for her animals, and genuinely cares for the town and its residents. I look forward to future books in the series, and am hopeful to see more of Blair as a potential love interest for Harry.

The first book in this series is called "Wish You Were Here". Enjoy!

2 of 2 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Good Read, August 10, 2001

By 

Demosthenes (Rome and Germania) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Murder at Monticello (Mrs. Murphy Mysteries) (Mass Market Paperback)

For anyone who has thought that maybe their pets are trying to tell them something, this is a great book. And what makes this book stand out in a series of Mrs. Murphy (that's the name of the cat) books is the amazing mixture of past and present mystery that are seemingly unrelated. Ms. Brown gives the reader a lesson on Thomas Jefferson, the human nature, and hate as well as a lively comedy between cats, a dog, an ex-husband, and a nosy small town somewhere in Virginia. All in all, it kept me amused and I learned a lot about life at Monticello as well.