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Joan Spencer #1
Murder in C Major
Joan Spencer, the spirited and independent widow determined to make it on her own, has moved back to the quiet town of Oliver, Indiana, where she had spent part of her childhood. Life starts out wonderfully for her there: Her adorable whiz-kid son flourishes in the local high school; her old friendships get revived; she catches up on gossip; gets a new job; and, best of all, lands a chair in the viola section of the Oliver Civic Symphony. But before you can say allegro con molto, Joan's newly found harmony is disrupted by the bizarre death of the boorish first oboist, George Petris, who dies mysteriously at rehearsal during the big oboe solo in the Schubert.
There are all too many people with a motive for killing George; the oboist was universally despised. Still, the cause of death remains obscure and no one wants to believe it was murder. But when the orchestra's prized flutist is found in her home with her throat slashed, that's two too many dead musicians. The hunt for the killer begins.
The clues to these murders baffle the police. The answers seem locked up in George Petris' oboe—but they can't locate the instrument, let alone the murderer. Joan Spencer gives a virtuoso performance as an amateur sleuth working with her fast-talking son and the aloofly handsome policeman Fred Lundquist. Fred and Joan get closer to the killer—and to each other—in this absolutely delightful treat of a novel full of intrigue, suspense, small-town flavor and welcome combination of sophisticated wit and deft charm.
There are all too many people with a motive for killing George; the oboist was universally despised. Still, the cause of death remains obscure and no one wants to believe it was murder. But when the orchestra's prized flutist is found in her home with her throat slashed, that's two too many dead musicians. The hunt for the killer begins.
The clues to these murders baffle the police. The answers seem locked up in George Petris' oboe—but they can't locate the instrument, let alone the murderer. Joan Spencer gives a virtuoso performance as an amateur sleuth working with her fast-talking son and the aloofly handsome policeman Fred Lundquist. Fred and Joan get closer to the killer—and to each other—in this absolutely delightful treat of a novel full of intrigue, suspense, small-town flavor and welcome combination of sophisticated wit and deft charm.
214 pages, Hardcover
First published July 1, 1986
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Displaying 1 - 23 of 23 reviews
January 19, 2024
Joan Spencer, a widowed mother of a teenage son, moves back home to Oliver, Indiana when life becomes a bit complicated where they were. She had spent the first dozen years or so there before her family moved and had good memories. She's trying to find a way to fit in again and is pleased to be able land a chair in the viola section of the Oliver Civic Symphony. There she finds a familiar face in her sixth grade best friend, Nancy (Krebs) Van Allen. Soon Nancy has caught her up on everyone still in town and suggests she call on their sixth grade teacher, Mrs. Duffy. Margaret Duffy hooks Joan up with a director's position at the local Senior Citizen's Center. She also takes on a part-time position as the orchestra's secretary. Her son is doing well at his new school and all seems to be smooth sailing....
Until George Petris, the very rude and obnoxious first oboe, collapses during a rehearsal and dies in the emergency room. The doctors initially want to put it down as a heart attack, but Yoichi Nakamura, the orchestra's manager isn't so sure. The symptoms displayed before Petris was taken to the hospital remind him of a death he witnessed that was the result of puffer fish poisoning. He confides in Joan who suggests, if he concerned, that he should bring it to the attention of one of their bassoonists, Sam Wade--who is also the county prosecutor.
Soon Lieutenant Fred Lundquist is assigned to "babysit" the case. That is, to do a good enough investigation to lay Yoichi's fears to rest and forget about it. But the more Lundquist asks question, the more he thinks Yoichi is right. And then another orchestra member, who picked up Petris's oboe after the emergency, is found killed and the oboe is nowhere be found. Now Lundquist is sure that Yoichi is right. But who among the many who disliked Petris hated him enough to kill...and to kill again to cover their tracks?
This is the first book in the Joan Spencer mystery series and the second one that I've read. I tried Frommer's style out first in The Vanishing Violinist--where, as I mentioned in the review, I didn't feel like I had lost anything by jumping in mid-stream, so to speak. It was nice to go back to the beginning and see how it all began for Joan and getting the initial introduction to the characters that reappear in later installments. Frommer does a very good job in this series debut setting the framework and establishing Joan and the other characters. Her plotting is really quite good for a first mystery (for this is her debut as a mystery author as well as the debut for Joan). She gives the motive a very nice twist and even though I did spot the killer, I absolutely missed on the why. Of course, If I had caught that, I might have figured out why the killer did it.
Overall, a very good cozy mystery.
First posted on my blog My Reader's Block.
Until George Petris, the very rude and obnoxious first oboe, collapses during a rehearsal and dies in the emergency room. The doctors initially want to put it down as a heart attack, but Yoichi Nakamura, the orchestra's manager isn't so sure. The symptoms displayed before Petris was taken to the hospital remind him of a death he witnessed that was the result of puffer fish poisoning. He confides in Joan who suggests, if he concerned, that he should bring it to the attention of one of their bassoonists, Sam Wade--who is also the county prosecutor.
Soon Lieutenant Fred Lundquist is assigned to "babysit" the case. That is, to do a good enough investigation to lay Yoichi's fears to rest and forget about it. But the more Lundquist asks question, the more he thinks Yoichi is right. And then another orchestra member, who picked up Petris's oboe after the emergency, is found killed and the oboe is nowhere be found. Now Lundquist is sure that Yoichi is right. But who among the many who disliked Petris hated him enough to kill...and to kill again to cover their tracks?
This is the first book in the Joan Spencer mystery series and the second one that I've read. I tried Frommer's style out first in The Vanishing Violinist--where, as I mentioned in the review, I didn't feel like I had lost anything by jumping in mid-stream, so to speak. It was nice to go back to the beginning and see how it all began for Joan and getting the initial introduction to the characters that reappear in later installments. Frommer does a very good job in this series debut setting the framework and establishing Joan and the other characters. Her plotting is really quite good for a first mystery (for this is her debut as a mystery author as well as the debut for Joan). She gives the motive a very nice twist and even though I did spot the killer, I absolutely missed on the why. Of course, If I had caught that, I might have figured out why the killer did it.
Overall, a very good cozy mystery.
First posted on my blog My Reader's Block.
January 27, 2021
Joan Spencer moved back to the town of Oliver after 30 years having spent the first dozen years there. Her daughter is in college and her son is considering Oliver University. She joins the community orchestra as a violist and after a couple weeks takes on the part time job of assistant manager. One evening at rehearsal the oboist suddenly stops playing and collapses. His unusual symptoms makes someone suspect murder. Joan and her son Andrew do some amateur sleuthing assisting Detective Fred Lundquist. This had a likeable heroine and no silly endangerment. Decent writing style.
June 17, 2020
Not sure why I didn't like this. I usually like cozies, but this one fell short on all counts. Couldn't finish the book, and will not move forward with the series.
June 9, 2020
Widowed Joan Spencer returns to quiet Oliver, IN, and gets two jobs--one as assistant manager of the symphony, where she's a violist, and the other running the local senior center. Her life with teenaged son Andrew seems to be settling down, until one of the orchestra players, an unpopular professor, dies suddenly. When there is another death in the orchestra, police lieutenant Fred Lundquist, agrees with Joan that there is a connection between the deaths.
November 4, 2018
Joan Spencer and her son have moved back to her hometown after the unexpected death of Joan’s husband. She enjoyed playing the viola so she joined the local symphony orchestra in the hopes of meeting some old and new friends. She quickly became the music librarian (no one else wanted the job.) She also got a job as the director of the Senior Center. Unfortunately shortly after joining the orchestra, the oboist who sat next to her collapsed and died. It was found he was murdered by a rare poison. Several days later, another orchestra member was killed in her home. … What was happening in this quiet little town??? … Since a lot of the action involves the orchestra and instruments, it was particularly interesting for me. I was a cellist and played in at least 3 symphony orchestras and this brought back many memories (but there were no murders in any of my orchestras!)
June 11, 2017
Joan has just moved back to her home town. She is still adjusting to the loss of her husband. She becomes a member of the orchestra because of her ability to play the viola. When one of the members becomes suddenly ill and dies he curiosity yes the better of her as she tries to figure out what happened.
It is a pretty good start to a series, but I do like some other series better. I probably won't read another because of the mountains of things I have to read, but will keep this in mind in case I run out of stuff to read.
It is a pretty good start to a series, but I do like some other series better. I probably won't read another because of the mountains of things I have to read, but will keep this in mind in case I run out of stuff to read.
July 15, 2018
Cozy? Yes. Mystery? Not so much. Interesting, nonetheless. Joan Spencer and her teen son move back to her childhood hometown, where some people have hardly changed at all. She joins the civic orchestra and bumps into old acquaintances and makes some new ones, too...but also gets embroiled in a murder investigation when not one but two members of the orchestra wind up dead, suspiciously. Lots going on for such a short book.
October 28, 2018
I chose this in part because music seemed to be an important part of it. It actually turned out to have a rather peripheral role, but that didn’t keep the story from being an enjoyable mystery. Nothing deep, just a nicely-crafted piece of escape fiction.
June 22, 2018
Musical Inturlude
I enjoyed the explanation of the instruments and the fact that the director started the investigation by remembering something from his past
I enjoyed the explanation of the instruments and the fact that the director started the investigation by remembering something from his past
April 19, 2021
Dated but still a good start to a new cozy series. I like Joan, I like her son and her cop. I didn't like angry red herring man, made me sad that he was suspected. Will continue
February 12, 2023
I just couldn’t get into this, but did manage to finish it. The writing was clunky, in my opinion. It didn’t hold up over time with the references to women.
September 14, 2023
A pretty good puzzle involving a poisoning, an orchestra, a new job, old friends, a disgruntled cop, a realistic mother-son relationship, and a mysterious load of laundry.
May 9, 2014
This is the first in the Joan Spencer Cozy Mystery series, published in 1984. Joan, after her husband's death at a relatively young age, with her teenage son, Andrew, has returned to the small town of Oliver, Indiana, where she grew up.
She gets a job managing the local senior center on the advice of a former teacher. She also joins the local orchestra and takes a part time job as an assistant manager. During her first rehearsal, one of the oboists falls sick. After getting to the hospital, he dies from an apparent heart attack. One of the other musicians suspects he may have been poisoned, and he goes to the authorities with his questions.
The investigation falls to police detective Fred Lundquist. He is portrayed as a realist police officer, who questions the people around the victim and actually listens to what they say without predetermined ideas as to what has actually happened hampering his investigation.
Joan is not the usual protagonist in this type of mystery. She isn't trying to show up the police, she is just trying to help Fred with his investigation. Joan tells him things she has observed, and comments she overhears, and shares some thoughts she has, which Fred listens to. But she doesn't go out and try to take over the investigation.
I liked this story, and will be reading more by the author. The mystery was good, the characters were believable, and the flow of the book was smooth.
She gets a job managing the local senior center on the advice of a former teacher. She also joins the local orchestra and takes a part time job as an assistant manager. During her first rehearsal, one of the oboists falls sick. After getting to the hospital, he dies from an apparent heart attack. One of the other musicians suspects he may have been poisoned, and he goes to the authorities with his questions.
The investigation falls to police detective Fred Lundquist. He is portrayed as a realist police officer, who questions the people around the victim and actually listens to what they say without predetermined ideas as to what has actually happened hampering his investigation.
Joan is not the usual protagonist in this type of mystery. She isn't trying to show up the police, she is just trying to help Fred with his investigation. Joan tells him things she has observed, and comments she overhears, and shares some thoughts she has, which Fred listens to. But she doesn't go out and try to take over the investigation.
I liked this story, and will be reading more by the author. The mystery was good, the characters were believable, and the flow of the book was smooth.
March 31, 2016
BOTTOM-LINE:
Nice light read for a Sunday afternoon
.
PLOT OR PREMISE:
Joan Spencer, widowed, moves back to Oliver with her son Andrew and joins the local orchestra in her spare time. The second week of rehearsals is marred by the death of an unpopular oboe player. Joan helps the police investigate the murder (big surprise!) and does a pretty good job of spotting essential clues.
.
WHAT I LIKED:
Well written, characters nicely developed, including some hints of romance between Joan and the cop. Interesting was the switch between the two characters as the narrator -- not quite third person, not quite first person and surprisingly well-executed in the writing. The story moves along fairly quickly and doesn't drag.
.
WHAT I DIDN'T LIKE:
Perhaps too many characters with too many motives and opportunities. Unfortunately for me, I figured out the ending far too far in advance as well as the reasons for it -- and yet I still got the murderer wrong! (Missed it by *that* much!)
.
DISCLOSURE:
I received no compensation, not even a free copy, in exchange for this review. I am not personal friends with the author, but I did interact with her online.
Nice light read for a Sunday afternoon
.
PLOT OR PREMISE:
Joan Spencer, widowed, moves back to Oliver with her son Andrew and joins the local orchestra in her spare time. The second week of rehearsals is marred by the death of an unpopular oboe player. Joan helps the police investigate the murder (big surprise!) and does a pretty good job of spotting essential clues.
.
WHAT I LIKED:
Well written, characters nicely developed, including some hints of romance between Joan and the cop. Interesting was the switch between the two characters as the narrator -- not quite third person, not quite first person and surprisingly well-executed in the writing. The story moves along fairly quickly and doesn't drag.
.
WHAT I DIDN'T LIKE:
Perhaps too many characters with too many motives and opportunities. Unfortunately for me, I figured out the ending far too far in advance as well as the reasons for it -- and yet I still got the murderer wrong! (Missed it by *that* much!)
.
DISCLOSURE:
I received no compensation, not even a free copy, in exchange for this review. I am not personal friends with the author, but I did interact with her online.
June 29, 2013
A recent widow, Joan returns to her small home town to finish raising her son by herself. During rehearsal with the amateurs of the Oliver symphony, one of their members is overcome with numbness and dies shortly after he reaches the hospital. Joan stumbles in to helping Fred, the local police department's only Democrat -- and sorely passed over for promotion -- uncover the culprit. The body count ticks up and gossip swirls in this the little town of Oliver, but Joan keeps pursuing clues until Fred performs a tell-all reveal at the last rehearsal of the season.
The book is easy to read and entertaining, and I'd be a fool not to see the budding romance possibilities between Fred and Joan. But there's not enough here to really keep my attention. In the end it's just another cozy mystery with a cop boyfriend and a stumbling but bright woman chasing clues around a little town.
The book is easy to read and entertaining, and I'd be a fool not to see the budding romance possibilities between Fred and Joan. But there's not enough here to really keep my attention. In the end it's just another cozy mystery with a cop boyfriend and a stumbling but bright woman chasing clues around a little town.
September 6, 2013
Joan Spencer's husband has died at a relatively young age, and after an unpleasant experience she moves with her son to her hometown of Oliver, Indiana. Living in Ohio (and as an IU basketball fan) it was fun to recognize small-town Indiana in many of the descriptions.
Joan plays viola and decides to join the community orchestra. At her first rehearsal, the principal oboist falls ill, later dying at the hospital from an apparent heart attack...apparent being the operative word. Soon it's pretty clear there's more going on, especially when a second orchestra member dies.
I won't spoil things but as a musician I was pretty sure how the murders were committed although the murderer wasn't as easy to figure out. Yes, figuring out the modus operandi took a bit away from the story, but didn't ruin it.
I enjoyed the book and will check out book 2 and see if I want to continue.
Joan plays viola and decides to join the community orchestra. At her first rehearsal, the principal oboist falls ill, later dying at the hospital from an apparent heart attack...apparent being the operative word. Soon it's pretty clear there's more going on, especially when a second orchestra member dies.
I won't spoil things but as a musician I was pretty sure how the murders were committed although the murderer wasn't as easy to figure out. Yes, figuring out the modus operandi took a bit away from the story, but didn't ruin it.
I enjoyed the book and will check out book 2 and see if I want to continue.
February 8, 2012
I must say that I really enjoyed this book. Is it a cozy? Yes! However, the characters were really enjoyable and, although, it did have some moments of sticky sweetness, they weren't over the top. One of the other pluses of this book is that it didn't make me go into sugar shock as I have had to suffer through with having to read a cozy for challenges I participate in. This book kept me entertained enough, that I whipped through it in about two hours. Trust me, particularly with cozies, that is a good thing because I can normally take them in very small doses. This one, I didn't feel the need to put it down.
This is def. a series that I would try to use to fit into my challenges.
This is def. a series that I would try to use to fit into my challenges.
September 1, 2016
I enjoyed this book. The storyline was crisp, the mystery kept my interest, and the characters were nicely developed. This was the first in the series, and I plan to look for this author and start her subsequent books.
I was a little concerned that the book was several years old, but the book was well written and did not suffer from 'age'.
While I was able to figure out the method of the first murder, I was not able to figure out who the murderer was, so that was a pleasant surprise.
All in all, a nice read.
I was a little concerned that the book was several years old, but the book was well written and did not suffer from 'age'.
While I was able to figure out the method of the first murder, I was not able to figure out who the murderer was, so that was a pleasant surprise.
All in all, a nice read.
May 30, 2011
The mystery solving heroine plays viola in a community orchestra; my daughter plays viola in a community orchestra. Therein lies the chief charm of this otherwise okay-but-not-outstanding mystery. An oboe player dies of an apparent heart attack during rehearsal. By chance it's discovered that it was probably murder, and amidst the detail of musical minutae, the crime is eventually solved. And that's that.
September 22, 2007
I couldn't finish this one. It's a typical cozy sort of mystery, but there just wasn't anything about it that really made me interested to see who dunnit. I didn't really care about any of the characters and the plot was weak. I skipped ahead on this one.
September 8, 2016
A nice easy mystery; first in a series. Joan Spencer, recently widowed, moves back to Oliver, Indiana and joins the amateur orchestra. When the obnoxious oboe player dies, she "helps" the local policeman solve the case.
July 22, 2015
Just ok, as I am not a musician, I didn't enjoy all the description of musical instruments and their use.
October 9, 2015
An enjoyable cozy mystery set in small town Indiana
Displaying 1 - 23 of 23 reviews