The Semester of Our Discontent (A Lila Maclean Academic Mystery Book 1)
By: Cynthia Kuhn
Rating: 5 of 5
“The Semester of Our Discontent” is the debut mystery in a new series set in academia. It was so well-written, I went looking for more books by this author and that is when I realized it must be her first one. I will certainly be looking for new books in this series in the future.
Lila Maclean is the new literature professor at Stonedale, a private university in lush Colorado surroundings. It is also her first job and she is trying to find her way and fit into the “political” hierarchy of the teaching staff. There are many who are friendly and there are a select few who simply don’t like Lila although they know little to nothing about her.
When she discovers a murder victim, it sets of a chain of related events and attacks that seems to point randomly at many of the professors she has been working with. When those she cares about seem implicated, she decides to take a more action hand in pursuing the answer to whodunnit.
While all of this is going on, we get a glimpse at the inner workings of higher education. The emphasis in this story is on the teaching staff rather than the courses and/or students. It’s fun to recognize some of the traits I know from my various teachers over the years.
While I thought the ending was somewhat dropped on me as a reader, the clues would have been known to some of the characters. It would have improved the book if a relationship or two had been made known to me so I could feel as if I had solved the story as well.
In addition to the copy of this book I purchased on Amazon, I was provided a digital advance reader copy of this book by the publisher via Netgalley.
“The Semester of Our Discontent” is the debut mystery in a new series set in academia. It was so well-written, I went looking for more books by this author and that is when I realized it must be her first one. I will certainly be looking for new books in this series in the future.