Not Exactly a Brahmin

Jill Smith #3

by Susan Dunlap

Telegraph Avenue ain't what it used to be now that gentrification has gotten under way.  But Jill Smith, the junk food-loving, smart and savvy Berkeley cop, hasn't changed.  Chugging along in her vintage VW to fetch a pint of chocolate chocolate shower ice cream, she runs smack into a case of murder.



A local philanthropist's Cadillac has crashed going down the steepest hill in town.



Its lifeless owner lies faceup in the rain, and cuts in the brake lines prove this is no accident.  Jill's best suspects are young, ambitious and definitely upwardly mobile.  But her best bet for a motive is one of the great class a hunger for love, a love of money, and, lust for vengeance.

Genres: Mystery, Procedural

228 pages, Mass Market Paperback

First published January 1, 1985

About the author

Susan Dunlap is best known for her Jill Smith detective series, but she is a prolific and much loved writer of crime and mystery fiction, including award-winning short stories.

Reviews

[Karen · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is early in the series and Jill is now a Homicide Detective not a patrol officer.

She is investigating the suspicious death of a prominent Berkeley society benefactor whose brakes failed during a rainstorm just after having his car serviced. Ultimately she determines the brake fluid lines had been tampered with. Was it done at the dealership or at home? Who made the call from the police saying the wife had been arrested and caused Ralph to hop in the car, nearly blind, and in such a bad storm?

Jill is not getting much information directly from the wife, who inherits, so she checks out the auto dealership and gets leads to other friends of the wife whom the husband had recently investigated. And it leads to another confrontation with PI Herman Ott.

What we learn is that there was a concerted effort to marry off one of the Shareholders Five to a prominent and wealthy husband with hopes of a payoff later down the road. This plan worked for a time but when the payoffs stopped, did someone retaliate?

There are no actual Brahmins in this murder mystery, but plenty of subterfuge and evasions. We also learn that to get the job you want you must dress the part, and that includes breaking into high society with the right introductions and the appropriate trousseau.

I own a copy.

[William · Rating 3 out of 5]

Living where I do in Berkeley Hills, I enjoy the local of Dunlap's mysteries very much. However the mysteries themselves are a little contrived. This one certainly is. It gets very twisted and less likely towards the end.

[Melissa · Rating 4 out of 5]

Interesting mystery - police procedural. I enjoy reading mysteries written before the age of cell phones ...

[Sandy Weir · Rating 4 out of 5]

Been a while since I read a Jill Smith mystery and I felt pampered with this one. One thing that really helps me enjoy the series is the location and a deep understanding of the community. I also enjoyed the Halloween sub-plot (fun).

[Ellen · Rating 4 out of 5]

Det Jill Smith #3

[Cindy · Rating 3 out of 5]

Pretty good mystery. Jill Smith, Berkeley cop, is looking into the hit and run death of a philanthropist everyone loved.

[Rini · Rating 4 out of 5]

captivating n surely a page turner.... a fast paced novel...really liked it

[Pat · Rating 2 out of 5]

Elderly man losing vision has his brake lines cut and dies in the accident. Long involved story about a group of people who try to get their friend a rich husband.
Not too good.

[Les · Rating 3 out of 5]

A lite, enjoyable mystery. The story is a bit choppy, but the mystery itself is pretty good.

[Jean]

Good book. First I have read. Dated--with no cell phones, computers, etc.