Class Dismissed

by Mark Petry

A College Psychology Professor in Austin has apparently murdered almost his entire class of 35 students during his final. Five students have survived, although they remember nothing. Chase a local hero cop in Austin, from catching the "Sorority Killer" a few years earlier, is on the case. He's trying to locate Bill the professors teaching assistant who has disappeared, especially now that it seems he's still assisting by killing off the remaining five students...a race against the clock to find Bill, and the visits to Professor Holland in jail aren't helping anyone but him.

210 pages, Paperback

First published January 20, 2011

About the author

Mark writes mystery/suspense/thrillers.
He's all about the big surprise ending. His first book, Class Dismissed, has an ending hardly anyone sees coming...
Solitaire has an even more surprising twist!

Reviews

[Christi M · Rating 5 out of 5]

When I first started reading this, I thought I was going to hate it. It started out a bit too cheesy and hard to follow for me. CAVEAT: I did start reading this while waiting for an orchestra concert to start. So part of the inability to follow could have been due to general ADD due to all the conversations around me. LOL SOOOO glad I stuck with it. It totally hooked me and slayed me, thankfully unlike lots of characters in this book. Its premise is terrifying, though. GREAT read!

[Mary Manson · Rating 5 out of 5]

Really Keeps Your Attention

I really enjoyed this book. Very fast read, flows smoothly and seamlessly as the story switches back and forth between present day and several months ago. And, yet again, a new author to add to my ever growing list of favorites!

[Casey Seabolt · Rating 5 out of 5]

A fantastic read. The book twists and turns taking you on a fast paced psychological thrill ride. Looking forward to the next thriller.

[Ellen Stenzler · Rating 3 out of 5]

I really liked the premise, and I really liked the storyline...I just didn't love the book.

It kind of read like a late 80s teen slasher movie...plenty of gore and crazy ways that dead bodies are found...but the acting is just so-so.

I wasn't a huge fan of the writing style, though I liked all the twists and turns the book had in it. I would have liked a little more explanation of motive, but I very much liked the twist presented in the epilogue.

[Cheri Ross · Rating 2 out of 5]

Very Disappointing

Characters are underdeveloped, plot is unconvincing, crimes are barely mentioned. The only bright spot is the author's facility with words.

[Patricia · Rating 4 out of 5]

I think this was a terrific story for a first novel. Sometimes I had to think a bit moving between chapters as they skipped from present to past and kept me on my toes trying to keep up with the author. You can barely conceive of attending a class where the professor was as bizarre as this one. Even more weird was his Teaching Assistant, Bill. I knew the professor was toying with everyone he encountered but surely did not figure out the level of his reach. Let's just say I was quite surprised by the ending! And this is just what the author sought. I appreciated the quips about Austin, the University of Texas and all Texan references in general as my mother came from Texas. I felt right at home in that. I recommend this book to anyone who likes a surprise ending.

[Don Svedberg · Rating 1 out of 5]

Worst detective book I ever read. Totally unprofessional detective/FBI team. Stupid story premise. Nothing made sense. This is probably the worst review I have ever given. I never like to leave a book unfinished and I couldn't wait to complete. Even the conclusion was a jumbled mess. Sorry Mr. Petry. Lucky for you my opinion seems in the minority. You can't win them all.

[Becky · Rating 4 out of 5]

I enjoyed this 1st novel by Mark Petry. Having lived in Austin, I knew of most of the locations mentioned. The story is full of twists and turns and just when you think you know “who dunnit” you are wrong again!

[Julie · Rating 2 out of 5]

May appeal to fans of "How to get away with Murder". Many plot holes and inconsistent start times for the class bothered me.

[Jen · Rating 3 out of 5]

I enjoyed this book- the ending was a surprise that I didnt expect, and the murders throughout the book were exciting without being overly gory. As a football fan, I loved the football references. My only nit would be that I had trouble understanding the true intentions of the professor- I would have liked to see his character built out a bit further. Would recommend this book, which I read in one sitting because I wanted to see what happened!

[BonusMom · Rating 3 out of 5]

Very interesting concept

This is a new take on murder mysteries and was executed pretty good. The grammatical errors could be overlooked. Moving from past to present had me a little confused at the beginning as did the relationship between detective and FBI agent. Everything of course came together in the end.

[Frances Boyd · Rating 3 out of 5]

Not particularly please d

Disappointing. Too much between Chase and Melissa from the start...almost stopped reading the book. Wish I had. Talk about inhumanity!

[Chaplain Stanley Chapin · Rating 2 out of 5]

Not for me

Being familiar with the University. Austin and Texas, thought it would be an interesting mystery. Wrong it was more of a sexual encounter.