The James Joyce Murder (1967)

This was the among most upbeat of the Kate Fansler books, and a pleasure to read. ( )

A highly improbable theft and murder is solved by Kate Fansler, professor/sleuth, and her admiring assistant DA. While aspiring to the literate mystery pioneered by Dorothy Sayers, Amanda Cross wrote dialogue that no one would ever have spoken. All the characters seem to have memorized copious quantities of literature in order to produce pithy comments on cue. The mid-Sixties social and sexual mores give a rather quaint feel to the situations in the mystery, as well. I felt like I was reading an anthropological study of mid-century New York intelligentsia as much as a mystery. ( )

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The James Joyce Murder is the second in Amanda Cross' series featuring English professor turned amateur sleuth, Kate Fansler. Any bibliophile with a penchant for mysteries has to love a series with an English professor as the heroine!

Here, Kate sets out to spend the summer in the Berkshires, sorting the papers of a recently deceased eminent publisher, famous for his correspondence with modern greats, including James Joyce. Her chaotic household – the subject of much gossip in the rural community – includes an unruly young nephew, his tutor, Kate's assistant, her District Attorney boyfriend, and a couple of weekend guests.

The mystery is clever enough, even if it lacks many twists and turns. The fun of the book is its effervescent tone, literary subject matter, and witty dialog. In addition to literature, the characters spend a lot of time discussing who is and isn't a virgin, which seems even more dated than the book's 1967 publishing date. That may be part of why it is easy to imagine a movie version featuring Katherine Hepburn as Kate and Gregory Peck as her D.A. boyfriend.

Today's readers need to tolerate vintage kitsch to enjoy the book. But for those who do, The James Joyce Murder is a lot of fun.

Also posted on Rose City Reader. ( )

I enjoyed the tone of this novel; it seems to come from a time when people both took things more seriously, sometimes too seriously, but also somehow had more fun. The somewhat repetitive focus on sex dates the book, in that the characters are clearly still coming to terms with the idea that an unmarried person can enjoy a sex life. I’m particularly drawn to Kate. She seems quite comfortable with her status as both a spinster and a woman of sexual experience. In this novel, that forms quite a striking contrast with both the older woman professor, Grace Knowle, who never had the chance, and with the younger people, who seem conflicted and confused. ( )