A Gift for Murder

Peggy O'Neill Mystery #4

by M.D. Lake

The discovery of Cameron Harris's body has stunned the unversity. But some members of The Tower Writers' Collective are more than a bit relieved that the poison pen of the bestselling author has been silenced. Tamara Meade, the Tower's headstrong leader, has a history with the writer she'd just as soon keep secret. Poetess Melody Carr has plenty to hide--and a jealous husband as well. In fact, the suspect list reads like a Who's Who at the university, and campus cop Peggy O'Neill is making it her business to find out who is this elite crowd of authors and academics has resorted to censorship through murder.

Genres: Mystery, Fiction

249 pages, Mass Market Paperback

First published December 1, 1992

About the author

MD Lake is the pseudonym for Allen Simpson, a professor of Scandanavian literature at the University of Minnesota and a former humor columnist for The Minnesota Daily. An Agatha-Award winning author, he has published ten Peggy O'Neill mysteries.

Reviews

[Mike Hernandez · Rating 1 out of 5]

Don't read this book.

[Karen · Rating 2 out of 5]

It was an "all right" mystery. It didn't have a great story line, but as I started the series, I felt I had to continue on with it. Meh.

[Vicki Gooding · Rating 4 out of 5]

The author is sharp and witty. A traditional mystery, that happened around Christmas and a cast of characters that are ultimately concerned only about their own book. It was fun to ride shotgun with this campus cop who knew more than credited for

[Lana Kamennof-sine · Rating 3 out of 5]

Interesting plot dealing with both local rivalries & those of a literary jealousy.

[Ray · Rating 2 out of 5]

A very dull read.

[Stacey Uffelman · Rating 4 out of 5]

Interesting, though for me the writing was a bit hard to follow. I didn't suspect that the person who "dunnit" did it at all.

[Anna Ligtenberg · Rating 4 out of 5]

ISBN 0380768550 - This isn't the best, or even close to the best, mystery I've ever read - but it IS good, and it's worth a read. It's not hard to keep up with Peggy, or to see what's coming before it arrives, but this is a good book to curl up with when even thinking about doing anything more serious just makes you tired.

Peggy O'Neill, apparently permanently single campus cop, meets a new man, makes new friends and finds her second corpse, all within walking distance of work. There's no shortage of people who might have liked to off Cameron Harris, a writer with little nice to say about anyone - even his "friends". Peggy needs to stop the killer before the death toll rises, and before SHE becomes the next victim!

Good fluff!

- AnnaLovesBooks

[Nancy · Rating 5 out of 5]

enjoyed this mystery, about a young woman who's second-in-command at a huge Market Show Center in DC. There's a major trade show going on, and one of the vendors is murdered.
I love the flavor of the minute-by-minute experience of her actual job, which makes a believable background to a well thought out plot. I dislike the modern trend of "job category" mysteries: the lady sheriff, the B&B owner, the caterer, the quilter, the bookstore owner--where all too often, the plots are not well done, and the surrounding info is just meh.

I love they way she avoids so many cliches of the genre: e.g. her boyfriend DOESN'T try to stop her from investigating. and I *love* the ending. Can't give it away, but suffice it that it's suspenseful, but without the cliched blazing guns/standoff.
Recommended!

[Leigh · Rating 2 out of 5]

This book was okay. Since it was December when I started a new book, I thought this one would be more Christmas-y - but it is not. It was a rather non-descript murder mystery. I had a hard time keeping the characters straight - and still don't remember who is who. And none of them were likable enough to care. I did not predict the killer in this one, which does give it an extra star.

[Samantha · Rating 3 out of 5]

A fun read

[Janice · Rating 3 out of 5]

A good plot and character development. Peggy O'Neill, University campus cop, investigates murder within a writers co-op after finding the first body.

[Pat · Rating 2 out of 5]

OK.
Writers - too many similar characters, a bit boring.