Simon Said

Simon Shaw is the perfect protagonist for a cozy mystery; unlike other cozies, which dump corpses behind bakeries or in bookstores, Shaber deposits a 70-year-old corpse in the middle of an archeological dig at a college, where a depressed and socially awkward professor of history is happy to take up the research to put a name to the skull, and a name to the bullet inside of that skull. As an amateur detective, Shaw utilizes his skill set as an academic and researcher, and pieces together the mystery in a way that is purposeful and conceivable. While one of the two mysteries of the text isn't quite so meticulous, Shaw's own efforts are strong.

So why just three stars? Shaw himself is repugnant, albeit far less so than some of his show more colleagues. Emotionally crippled by the departure of his wife, Shaw is initially presented as a wounded animal, and lacks sympathy (when Shaw himself analyzes his failed marriage he can understand how his actions and decisions lead to the separation, and so can I). However, such emotional frailty could be overlooked if Shaw himself wasn't such blatant a sexist. Although a colleague in the history department is labeled a sexist, it is Shaw himself who proves far more demeaning and critical: the colleague dismisses women as a waste of time, while Shaw criticizes the "love interest's" choice of clothing, eating habits, and choice of beverages in a way that exerts his superiority over an independent and successful woman. To Shaw, she lacks autonomy and instead functions as an inevitable addition to his life - after all, once she works through her far-more-complicated emotions he will be there to indulge in the relationship of his choosing.

As much as I enjoy Shaw as an amateur detective, his personal life is enough to keep me from pursuing the series. show less

Rating: 3.5* of five

The Book Report: First of the Dr. Simon Shaw, forensic historian, series set in 1990s Raleigh, North Carolina. Simon Shaw's not having a good end of spring semester, 1996. His wife has left him, sending him into a deep depression. His colleagues are concerned, one of them to the point of using his depression as a lever to pry Simon out of small Kenan College's last tenured history professorship, in an academic-politics war that could end a career.

But it's the corpse in the college's historical home-cum-museum that's causing most of the trouble for Simon. In fact, it's about to get him killed, despite being seventy years dead. You see, Anne Bloodworth, the rightful heiress of the property, disappeared one April night show more in 1926, never to be seen or heard from again. Until a body is discovered in a routine excavation of the old house's vanished outdoor kitchen site.

Simon is called to the scene, told the probable timing of the death, and using clues such as a quilt in which the gun-shot corpse was wrapped, the jewelry the corpse still wore, and the lore of the house, gives Raleigh Police detective Otis Gates and Police Department counsel Julia McGloughlan an ID for the vic...so what, the killer's dead by now, can't prosecute a dead person, and let's all go on with life.

Simon can't just go on with life, and besides he's been depressed about his life since his wife left, so he latches on to the case. His investigation takes him into the world of upper-crust Raleigh before Jim Crow was tamed, into dusty library stacks, into microfiche readers and card catalogs, and requires him to survive murder attempts that make no sense in a case this old.

Until they do, in a moment of revelation that had me squirming in acute discomfort, and fanning pages to find out what was going to happen next.

My Review: Metaphorically speaking, that is, since one can't fan pages on a Kindle. Bella Rosa Books, a small press with the specific mission of rescuing out-of-print series mysteries for new fans to find, reprinted this 1997 St. Martin's Press Malice Domestic contest winner in 2011, and a Kindle version was made at the same time. Very wisely, the first book in the five-book series was free on Kindle for a few weeks, and even now is free for Prime members to read. It's whetted my appetite for the others, so their decision to forego immediate revenue for future sales is proving to be effective in at least one case.

This is not to say there are no issues with the Kindle edition. In several places, too many to be overlooked and forgiven, words or dates are missing (eg, David Morgan has all the Rolling Stone issues printed since . SINCE WHEN?!). Some flaws, such as Simon and Julia's attraction for each other being glued on to the plot, and the underuse of a perfectly delightful red herring suspect, are too minor to register as more than niggles.

In the end, it's the atmospherics of the book, the evocation of a vanished moment—and good riddance to it—that make the book fun. Simon is an entertaining sleuth, his pleasantly hang-dog ways and his sharp mind (if conveniently distractable eye) making him less a Holmes figure than a Maigret one. He's relatable and still plausible. And the book is good fun. Kindlers of the world, spend that $2.99 with no fear of wasting your money! show less

I really liked this book. The police were intelligent, the amateur wasn't an idiot, and no one wears vintage clothes or shoes they can't afford. The amateur actually solves a mystery through research and deduction, rather than just floundering around until the criminal gets bored and confesses. The author did a good job of writing the kind of mildly snarky dialog that my friends use, and, wonder of wonders, captures that amazing feeling you get while doing research on an interesting topic. I am totally willing to forgive the few minor formatting flaws. I can't wait to read another one.

[Simon Said] by Sarah Shaber
Book 1 in the Professor Simon Shaw Murder Mysteries
5★'s

From The Book:

Forensic historian Simon Shaw likes his murders old and cold, and his first case fits the bill. An archaeologist friend has found a skeleton with a bullet hole in its skull under historic Bloodworth House, and Simon investigates with his usual doggedness until he discovers that the corpse is Anne Bloodworth, an heiress who disappeared in 1926. Shaw feels compelled to find out who killed her. But this turns out to be more than an academic exercise when someone who wants to hide past secrets tries to murder him!

My Thoughts:

I'm not a big reader of the cozy mystery sub-genre but from the start I fell in love with Simon and his friends. Throw show more in the mystery and a well told story and they combine to make a light and fun tale. Those that are not big fans of the darker, gorier mysteries will find that this is a pleasant surprise. The characters are not especially "deep" but they hold their own in bringing the story alive and keeping the mystery intriguing. This is the first of the Simon Shaw Mysteries but i will be looking for more when I want something that is light and fun to read. 5 stars. show less

This is the first book I won in a Goodreads giveaway and I was looking forward to receiving it. Unfortunately my timing was off as it arrived at the end of a very busy school year, but once I got to it I was glad I’d requested it. I’d consider it an enjoyable start to a cozy/traditional mystery series.

The historical murder is appealing and the cold case aspect fascinating. The mystery in the present is believable, with just enough red herrings to keep the reader guessing without being overwhelming. The culprit’s motive was a tiny bit questionable, but as I said, still within the realm of possibility. I also enjoyed the setting in a small college in the modern south.

My one quibble is in the area of character development. The author show more does a lot of “telling rather than showing” in this regard, explaining the main character’s motivations and background rather than letting them appear naturally in the course of events. This might be because it’s the first novel in the series; it would be interesting to see if this changes as the series develops. I will say that author’s sense of humor was one of the things that appealed to me: “It was not my intent to drive around a residential neighborhood in a semiconscious state and hit a stone wall.”

Overall, a good, solid first effort in a promising mystery series. show less

Simon Shaw is a star history professor at Kenan College in Raleigh, NC. When a colleague doing an archaelogical dig at a historic home discovers a woman's body, Simon is intrigued. Could she be the heiress who ws thought to have disappeared? Simon must overcome attempts on his life, faculty infighting, and indifference on the part of the police to engage them in solving the mystery.

Shaber's slight volume is fun and not too demanding. She introduces a nice cast of quickly sketched characters who we can safely bet will reappear in sequels. Simon himself is a quirky and attractive character, enough so that I'll keep my eyes open for subsequent volumes, although not enough so to send me on a frantic search for them.

I originally read this book when it was published, but I thoroughly enjoyed rereading. I had forgotten the main character, Simon, and all his quirky ways. The characters are delightful, especially all the college professors. Simon stands in a different world with his Coke addiction. The mystery revolves around a rather dated corpse discovered on the college grounds, and then a coroner decides that the death is by murder. Simon prods along with his mental and physical worries, but finds the conclusion in the end. The novel is sound and a cozy mystery, with few graphic details. Plus, an added bonus is learning about history.