Trouble in Transylvania

Cassandra Reilly #2

by Barbara Wilson

Cassandra Reilly is embroiled in a case of international intrigue and murder as two factions battle over a crumbling resort


London-based lesbian translator and part-time sleuth Cassandra Reilly is on the move again. Her latest trip is to China, via Eastern Europe, where, upon receiving a call about a murder in a run-down Transylvanian health spa, she suddenly finds herself embroiled in a murky and wholly unusual investigation. The woman accused of the murder, Gladys Bentwhistle, had previously met Cassandra on the train. She begs Cassandra for help and, unable to resist her own insatiable curiosity and hunger for adventure, Cassandra says yes.


As the mystery unfolds, Cassandra and her cohort, including her friend Jacqueline and potential love interest, Eva, are steeped in the history of Romania, from the devastating relics of Ceausescu’s tyrannical reign to the vampire folklore born in the region centuries ago.


Surprising, gripping, and funny, Trouble in Transylvania is the second book in the Cassandra Reilly Mystery series, which begins with Gaudí Afternoon and continues with The Death of a Much-Travelled Woman and The Case of the Orphaned Bassoonists.

Genres: Mystery, Fiction, LGBT, Crime

300 pages, ebook

First published January 1, 1993

About the author

Barbara Wilson is the pen name of author and translator Barbara Sjoholm. Her mysteries, written under the name Barbara Wilson, include two series, one with printer Pam Nilsen (Murder in the Collective) and one with translator-sleuth Cassandra Reilly. Her mysteries include the Lambda-award-winning Gaudi Afternoon, made into a film of the same name. She was a co-founder of Seal Press and in 2020 received the annual Trailblazer Award from the Golden Crown Literary Society for her contributions to lesbian literature. Her books have been published in England and translated into Spanish, Finnish, German, and Japanese.

Reviews

[Ana · Rating 2 out of 5]

One of the things I really like about Barbara Wilson's writing is how she captures the experience of travelling through European cities. I liked the description of the tense relationships between Hungary and Romania (which still exists to a certain extent today) and the description of post-revolution Transilvania (I believe this book takes place in the 90').

The problem with this book is the same one I had with the first book in the series. For a mystery novel, there is very little suspense so it took me a really long time to finish it.

[Megan]

This is less a mystery than a travelogue, although a very interesting one, peppered with feminist politics, history, and economics and salted with a mystery that blends all of these things together. It’s not a great book, but it is fairly delightful.

Cassandra Reilly is a world traveler who decides to spend some time with her friend Jack in Hungary. Somehow, she gets roped into helping some travelers who get embroiled in a suspicious death in the nearby Romanian province of Transylvania. Said travelers are as entertaining a bunch as you are likely to find. An elderly woman taking a cure at a health spa, her 19-year-old lesbian granddaughter (who takes a shine first to Cassandra, then to her friend Jack) and a family named Snapp who are searching for the birth mother of a four-year-old girl they adopted as a baby.

But although all the characters are interesting (which is very rare in itself) and the mystery mildly interesting, it is the author’s care in describing the history of the area that gives the book its punch. Without dwelling overlong on the Dracula theme, it gives the history of Romania and Hungary from both perspectives. And Transylvania has ties to both, it being part of Romania but with a mostly Hungarian population. In addition, Jack has studied the goddesses of Old Europe and is a fountain of information on this prehistorical theme that owes much to the work of Marija Gimbutas.

All in all, the characters (except for the murdered one, of course) have a good time and so does the reader. Well written and well researched without being outstanding, give this one just above an average number of stars.

Note: This review is included in my book The Art of the Lesbian Mystery Novel, along with information on over 930 other lesbian mysteries by over 310 authors.

[Ralph · Rating 2 out of 5]

Some people think it's easy to write a first person novel, but it really isn't. Not only does your character have to be interesting (as must every character), but she must have a voice and a point-of-view that can carry the story. Unfortunately, Cassandra Reilly, the protagonist of "Trouble in Transylvania" never rises to the task. Seen through her eyes, characters who need to be engaging and sympathetic become banal, the cities become just places on the map, and storied Transylvania is as mysterious and atmospheric as a city park. The author tries to bring it all together, but it never manages to gel, and the very elements that should make this book rise to the level of "very good" instead drag it down to "it's just okay."

[Dennis Fischman · Rating 3 out of 5]

This book is good at many things: a travel diary through Vienna and Romania, a discussion of the history of Eastern Europe and the tensions between ethnic groups in the post-Soviet era, an incisive look at reproductive rights and the lack of them under the Ceaucescu regime, even a bit of a lesbian romance novel. I liked the older characters the best, but young Cathy Snapp won my sympathy, and it would be interesting to get to know Emma Snapp when she's older.

What it is not good at is the murder mystery itself. It feels like a McGuffin to get out heroine, her buddy, and the buddy's business partner to the Arcata spa. Once they are there, it only crops up every now and then, as if the author were clapping her hand to her forehead and saying, "Oh yes, there's supposed to be some investigation going on!" And I, who never solve mysteries, thought the whodunnit painfully obvious (although the how depended on a bit of science I didn't see coming).

I mainly brought this book home from the Little Free Library because of the blurb by Ursula K. Le Guin, but I think she was generous because there were so few lesbian mysteries when it was published.

[Shelly Adrian · Rating 5 out of 5]

Enjoyed reading this book — i think I read Gaudi Afternoon two decades ago! — I like the history, the travel, the musings on language / translating, and the humor. I’m not a fan of romance but I don’t mind it in small doses.

[Amy · Rating 2 out of 5]

The basic plot was good, and the characters likeable. But there was a lot more historical political discourse than I wanted to read - it was also irrelevant to the story and just slowed things down.

[Nightwitch · Rating 4 out of 5]

At times it felt like we were getting a little too much exposition and/or travelogue, but overall this was just as delightful as the first book, and a fascinating look at Transylvania in the 90s.

[Linda C · Rating 3 out of 5]

Cassandra Reilly, translator & nomadic traveler, is on her way to China via train to Budapest, where she will spend a few days while waiting for her connections with a friend who has opened a secretarial service there. However, a couple days later she receives a call for aid from one of her recent train companions who is being suspected of murder. She and her friends head to Romania. It seems Gladys was reluctant to use the galvanizing bath which ran a mild current through water to stimulate muscles. When the doctor goes to demonstrate its safety by putting his arms in the bath and has Gladys turn it on he is electrocuted. As Cassie is investigating and assisting with translating, she runs into the Snapp family, another group from the train to Budapest. They have a 4 year old violin prodigy adopted daughter who does not speak. They are hoping by going back to Romania from where they adopted her as a baby, they can locate some relatives that will give them some insight as to why she won't talk. The two stories are interwoven with the stories of other people at the spa. Very different mystery. Heavy on the feminism and lesbianism of the main characters as well as the political situation of post-Communist Romania.

[Wayne Spiceland · Rating 3 out of 5]

Didn't think it was great, but I definitely liked it better than the first book, Gaudi Afternoon. This time, there are more characters to like than just Cassandra, though not many, and, the plot isn't nearly as convoluted and contrived. There's nothing in the writing to complain about in a technical sense, and the narrative moves smoothly and is nicely paced. Wilson's writing is funny and witty, much more so than in the one book of her Pam Nielsen series that I read, as well, and descriptive passages are at times quite evocative. I do enjoy mysteries with some sort of historical connection, and the link to Ceauşescu's Romania fills the bill here. Unfortunately, there aren't enough of the good qualities to carry a whole novel. Moreover, it's not really much of a mystery, and, if it's a thriller, it's not all that thrilling, either. Mildly diverting is the best description I can come up with, I'm afraid. I'm not sure if I'll continue reading this series at some point, but, it'll be a while.

[Karen · Rating 2 out of 5]

This book turned out to be a series of lectures posing as a novel. There was no coherent plot, nothing resembling suspense, and generally weak character development. The author clearly wanted to share her knowledge and opinions about Eastern European history and culture, the ethics of international adoption, and lesbian/feminist culture and history, but made the unfortunate mistake of using dialogue to communicate these themes. The strengths of this book were the protagonist's voice, the alluring title, and the quirky characters of Archie and Cathy Snapp. I had high hopes for this book after the first few pages, but was quickly disappointed.

[Susan · Rating 3 out of 5]

Lesbian translator Cassandra Reilly is on her way to China when she stops to visit an old pal, Australian Jack, in Budapest. Waiting for her train connection, she gets a phone call asking her to come to Romania to help an elderly American she'd met on the train. Soon Cassie, Jack, and Jack's business partner Eva are at a Romanian resort, investigating the death of the elderly doctor who invented a rejuvenation treatment.

[Debrarian · Rating 3 out of 5]

Cassandra Reilly, itinerant translator, gets the travel itch and winds up in Budapest for a while and then in the Carpathians at a mineral spa that’s seen better times, and where the proprietor has just died suspiciously. Lots of good modern history and linguistic speculations, plus Cassandra’s queer. Fun!

[Cb Smith · Rating 4 out of 5]

I loved this book. It's not a "mystery" per se, but more of a travelogue. Wilson is whimsical and hilarious and she adds a good bit of history and culture to the mix. If you want a classic who-done-it this one's not for you. But if you're in the mood for humor and a crazy mix of characters,it's a delightful read!

[Barbara · Rating 4 out of 5]

I liked it a good deal. It's political enough, but not overly so. Just enough. And some good travelly bits. And Cassandra is amusing as an narrator. The mystery is kinda the point and kinda not. It's more about the mood. Would read more of the series.

[Sarah · Rating 3 out of 5]

My favorite quote from this book:

"Cassandra, you're a wonderful person...And I find your life, what little I know of it, just fascinating...Is there any place in the world you haven't been?"

"Not many, but there are a lot of places I haven't been back to."

[Abilouise · Rating 5 out of 5]

I wish I'd known that there were lesbian mystery writers I'd enjoy this much years ago. I found her writing really immersive and fun and I was really impressed that the author stuck so much about middle european history in a book this enjoyable.

[Syd · Rating 2 out of 5]

The best part of this book is the description of the scenery. Save yourself some time and pick up a travel book.

[Ryan Mishap · Rating 3 out of 5]

Not as good as the other series, but still pretty entertaining mysteries.

[sjams · Rating 4 out of 5]

What beautiful writing.

[Sharon Davies]

Quick read. Funny mystery.

[Libby · Rating 3 out of 5]

Kind of fun, but I didn't like it as much as some of her other books. I wasn't driven to find out what happens so it took longer to read than it should have.

[Tyler Snortum-phelps · Rating 2 out of 5]

Trying too hard to squeeze feminist polemics and Eastern European history lessons, there isn't much mystery here. Mildly amusing at best.