Customer Reviews

Theban Mysteries

5 star:		(2)
4 star:		(1)
3 star:		(1)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

This is a little bit of a departure from the usual collegiate themed mystery. Kate is asked to teach a senior seminar on the Antigone(appropriate for a murder mystery) at her old school, the Theban. A young man is found unconscious and bleeding, having been frightened by the school's guard dogs, and shortly thereafter his mother is found dead under similar circumstances. This is very much like the other Fansler mysteries, although the setting is different. The mystery is difficult to figure out and this is faster reading than the usual Cross mystery. I enjoyed it even more than usual.

What I love about the Kate Fansler mysteries is their many literary references. I'd love to spend the cocktail hour with Kate and Reed, trying to keep up with the snappy dialogue.

The Theban Mysteries is especially good due to its being set in a college seminar on Antigone. This lets Kate be her highbrow best.

Many times a mystery series gets repetitive as the series goes on, with the author churning them out like a factory. But every book in this series by Amanda Cross is as good as the last. The only sad thing about reading her books is knowing Amanda Cross is dead and therefore we'll never get another one.

If you like this series, you should also try the Sarah Caudwell mysteries.

The Theban Mysteries is an interesting read IF you're interested in literature or drama, and if you have a few open hours. It's a quick and easy read, one that won't knock you "off your feet," so to speak, but probably worthwhile. The plot tends to unravel and become too far-fetched and mediocre in terms of structure and you have to suspend some realism and belief in order to get through the book. That said, if you don't mind musing through some exaggerated and pompous dialogue to enjoy a decent (but not great) mystery, then give it a go.

A seminar on Antigone. "An ancient tragedy, a modern demise and a mystery to baffle the gods!" and as read in Antigone, "No, though a man be wise, 'tis no shame for him to learn many things, and to bend in season."