The Nitrogen Murder: A Periodic Table Mystery [Hardcover]

Mrs. Camille Minichino (Author)

Book Description

Series: Periodic Table | Publication Date: April 14, 2005

In the latest installment of this fun, fast-paced series, retired physicist Gloria Lamerino and her fiancé, homicide detective Matt Gennaro, attend the wedding of Gloria's best friend in California. Unfortunately, the groom has disappeared along with some top-secret research on nitrogen.

As Gloria and Matt try to figure out a connection between the missing groom and the absent classified nitrogen research, the body count rises.

Editorial Reviews

From Publishers Weekly

In Minichino's diverting seventh entry in her periodic table series (after 2004's The Carbon Murder), Gloria Lamerino, who's part Mary Worth and part Jessica Fletcher, finds that even a simple California trip for a close friend's wedding involves her in murder. When the work partner of the groom's daughter, an EMT, is shot dead, apparently by a mugger, Gloria gets suspicious because the groom, Philip Chambers, has too much information about the crime. After learning that the thief was after a briefcase connected with Chambers's secret government research on nitrogen, she conjures up a broad conspiracy with implications both for national security and the bride's happiness. Gloria and her own significant other, Massachusetts homicide detective Matt Gennaro, make an engaging couple. Cozy fans who don't require a twisty solution to the whodunit will be well satisfied. Agent, Elaine Koster. (May 9)
Copyright © Reed Business Information, a division of Reed Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

From Booklist

Why is Minichino's Gloria Lamerino series unique? It's elementary--in the sense that each adventure revolves around an element in the periodic table. This time it's highly combustible number seven: nitrogen. But another key element of the series is quite human: its amiable protagonist, Lamerino. The retired physicist "of a certain age" loves teaching, drinking espresso, and spending time solving mysteries with her fiance, homicide detective Matt Gennaro. Here, Gloria and Matt have left their Boston-area home to attend the wedding of Gloria's friend Elaine in Berkeley. Although a fellow scientist, Elaine's fiance, Phil, rubs Gloria the wrong way. Exactly what is the highly classified research he is doing on nitrogen? As her suspicions grow, Gloria alienates Elaine, but when Phil goes missing, the two friends must reunite to find him. In addition to its bizarre premise, Minichino's series features many original touches. For example, though they may not be spring chickens, Gloria and Matt are portrayed convincingly as passionate lovers. A series so entertaining that even certified chemistry haters will hang on every molecule. Jenny McLarin
Copyright © American Library Association. All rights reserved

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Product Details

• Hardcover: 288 pages
• Publisher: Minotaur Books; First Edition edition (April 14, 2005)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0312333838
• ISBN-13: 978-0312333836
• Product Dimensions: 8.3 x 5.8 x 1 inches
• Shipping Weight: 15.2 ounces
• Average Customer Review: 4.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (4 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #1,204,453 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

7 of 7 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars superb scientific mystery, April 27, 2005

By 

Harriet Klausner - See all my reviews
(#1 Hall OF FAME REVIEWER)    (TOP 1000 REVIEWER)    (REAL NAME)   

This review is from: The Nitrogen Murder: A Periodic Table Mystery (Hardcover)

Retired scientist Gloria Lamerino and her fiancé Matt Gennaro are in Berkley California to attend the wedding of her close friend scientist Elaine Cody to retired chemist Phillip Chambers, a consultant to Dorman Industries. Phil's daughter Dana is still traumatized by seeing her EMT partner gunned down while bringing their patient Lakesh Patel to the hospital. Mr. Patel dies in the hospital and the killer makes off with his duffel bag but Dana brings home his briefcase what contains severed ID's under different names including access to Dorman Industries.

When Phil and Gloria meet, she isn't impressed with him but her mild feelings of disdain turn to severe anxiety when Dana confides that somehow the briefcase wound up in her father's apartment. Patel and Phil collaborated on several papers involving nitrogen weapons research. When Phil disappears, Gloria and Matt work together to try and figure out the connection between the dead scientist, the stolen research and the multiple identifications that Mr. Patel carried.

There are very few mystery authors today who can incorporate a lot of scientific data into the story and make it part of a one sitting thriller as Camilla Minichino consistently does. She makes the science understandable so reader can learn while they are being entertained. The protagonist of THE NITROGEN MURDER is spunky, strong-willed and totally loyal to her friends, which endears her to the audience. The relationship between Gloria and Matt is believable and affirms that there is life after retirement.

Harriet Klausner

1 of 1 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Great science mystery without being too scientific for lay people, October 24, 2006

By 

Dawn Dowdle "Mystery Lovers Corner reviewer" (Lynchburg, VA USA) - See all my reviews
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This review is from: The Nitrogen Murder: A Periodic Table Mystery (Hardcover)

Retired physicist Gloria Lamerino and her homicide detective fiancé Matt Gennaro are in Berkley, CA, to help her friend Elaine prepare for her wedding. Elaine's fiancé, Phil, is a fellow scientist, but he rubbed Gloria wrong from the minute she met him.

Phil's daughter's EMT work partner is shot dead by what is believed to be a mugger. Gloria is soon suspicious because of the information Phil seems to have about the shooting and the patient his daughter was helping transport when her partner was shot.

Gloria's suspicions of Phil soon alienate Elaine, but when Phil goes missing, everyone joins together to try to locate him. Plus Gloria is sure that this has something to do with his work and the shooting. Can she find him in time to save the wedding?

I really like Gloria. Even though she is a scientist, I don't feel these mysteries are written so that laymen can't understand even the scientific talk. I like that. This is a great cozy series that is such an easy read.

This one being set in California was fun. It was Gloria's old stomping grounds from years ago, so she knew people and places. Made it all more believable. I highly recommend this book and the series.

3 of 4 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Two Murders, Stolen Drugs, Secret Nitrogen Files, and a Missing Scientist, August 27, 2005

By 

L. Kelly (Lakewood, CO) - See all my reviews
(VINE VOICE)    (REAL NAME)   

This review is from: The Nitrogen Murder: A Periodic Table Mystery (Hardcover)

Retired physicist Dr. Gloria Lamerino is visiting California with her fiance, Revere Police Detective Matt Gennaro. Gloria's best friend Elaine Cody is getting married in two weeks, and Gloria and Matt are in Berkeley to help with the celebration and have a little vacation. Just as soon as Gloria and Matt arrive in California, though, trouble strikes when they learn that Tanisha Hall, a young paramedic gunned down at the door to an Oakland hospital is the partner of Elaine's future daughter-in-law. The plot thickens when they learn that the patient being transported to the hospital (who later dies of his wounds) is an Indian scientist working on highly classifed research pertaining to powerful new explosives using newly discovered nitrogen molecules. Gloria and Matt begin to suspect that Elaine's fiance Phil Chambers might be involved in the two murders. When Phil suddenly disappears, no one is sure if he's just gotten cold feet about his wedding or if he is running from the law.

There's a lot of interesting and well-tied together plot lines in this book. In addition to the mystery of the two murders and the missing Dr. Phil Chambers, there are some missing drugs and medical supplies, stolen from the ambulance company, which are found in the murdered paramedic's home. As in all the stories in this series, author Minichino sprinkles in a healthy dose of scientific knowledge. The information she gives on newly found nitrogen compounds and their use in new powerful explosives is really fascinating. The characters in this series are well-developed and very believable.

Being a former resident of the California Bay area myself, I thoroughly enjoyed the Berkeley setting. Whether or not readers are familiar with the previous books in this series, I highly recommend "The Nitogen Murder" as a very entertaining mystery.