The Boric Acid Murder

Periodic Table #5

by Camille Minichino

A trip to the Revere Public Library proves fatal for thirty-six-year-old Yolanda Fiore. Her body is found early one morning at the bottom of the library's staircase. The evidence shows she'd been struck on the back of the head before her fall.

In this fifth Periodic Table Mystery, retired physicist Gloria Lamerino is not inclined to take on another murder investigation--her romance with homicide detective Sergeant Matt Gennaro is all the contact she needs with the Revere Police Department.

But Gloria will do anything for her lifelong friends and current landlords, Rose and Frank Galigani, operators of the Galigani Mortuary. So when their son John is arrested for murdering Yolanda, his former girlfriend, Gloria goes in search of the real killer.

Genres: Mystery, Cozy Mystery, Fiction

256 pages, Mass Market Paperback

First published January 1, 2002

About the author

Camille Minichino is also known as Ada Madison and Margaret Grace.

Reviews

[Kira · Rating 2 out of 5]

I was so excited when I found out about the existence of this book - a cozy mystery with periodic tables and scietific elements!! Count me in!!

But the execution of this whole plot left me high and dry which was really upsetting. The main character apart from being named a retired physicist had no quality of actually being one imo. She was annoying, naive and a bit trifling to put up with at times.

The mystery itself was not even as interesting as I had hoped it to be. Matt and Gloria's romance bored me and I couldn't be bothered with finding myself invested in the book.

[Nancy · Rating 1 out of 5]

Initially I was prepared to write that this book didn't merit the time or energy necessary to write a review, but I decided that the mystery genre deserved more than that snippy comment.

I was frustrated by the contrast of the book's promise vs. its delivery. I loved the concept of a recently retired, brainy older woman "helping" her small town police dept. solve crimes when scientific expertise was required. As a true believer that mystery novels can attain literary hights, I am particularly disappointed when they are formulaic and/or barren of spice or style.

Minichino's heroine just left me cold. I tried to relate to her and didn't succede. I think it was supposed to be endearing that she was late middle-aged and a trifle overweight, but if she was sensitive to her size why did she have a near-constant diet of sweets and carbohydrates? Oh, yes, it's because she is Italian.

The suspension of disbelief required to assume that her policeman boyfriend would allow her to independently investigate a murder was more than I could accept and her skills questioning suspects were about as deft as a fifth grader simulating Sherlock Holmes. I thought she was totally lame,unappealing and boring.

A book can succede with an unattractive protagonist if it is well written and deftly plotted. This didn't meet those basic standards for me. I am intrigued that other GoodReads readers gave it multi-star ratings (but I notice that very few bothered to articulate their thoughts in a review). Maybe if readers are genuine science geeks the book would be more fun but I felt like the scientific bits were just thrown in to support the career "creds" of the principal character. They often felt like filler.

[Katherine · Rating 2 out of 5]

I wanted this book to be so much more than it really was. I was intrigued by the non-standard sleuth, and had high hopes that it would be intelligent and humorous. The intelligence and humor were there, but they were wrapped in so much triteness and repetition that they were hard to enjoy.

Minichino gives us a middle-aged, heavy, amateur detective in Lamerino. So far, so good. The problem is that Minichino then uses all the "heavy, middle-aged person" tropes that will fit in the novel. Instead of coming across as a smart, clever woman who has had a successful career and a certain amount of accolade, Lamerino becomes shambling, dowdy, and just barely competent.

Minichino also falls into the trap of telling too much instead of showing...and telling us over and over again. How many times do I need to hear that Lamerino is Italian? Or a scientist? Or middle-aged? Or that her friend knows everything about everything in their town? Note it once and then move on and let those characters free!

I'll give the series another chance, but for now I'm filing it in the massive file marked "disappointing" in my head.

[Nicholas George · Rating 2 out of 5]

Fairly blah, run-of-the-mill mystery. Could have been more interesting given some of the plot elements. I'm not motivated to read any more in this series.

[Leorah · Rating 2 out of 5]

I liked the idea of using the periodic table and having a science based mystery, but the writing just didn't do anything for me.

[Theresa · Rating 3 out of 5]

Gloria arrives back from her trip to CA only to find another murder in Revere, MA. This time it is a young journalist who worked at the local lab until fired shortly before her death. The victim, who was hit over the head and pushed down a metal circular staircase late one night at the Revere Public Library (which really exists as described), was also the former girlfriend of her best friend Rose's youngest son, and John is a prime suspect as they were seen arguing earlier in the evening she was murdered. Immediately Gloria along with her police detective boyfriend Matt start working to find the real murderer. Boron and its uses with nuclear waste are a possible reason for the murders as the victim had written a number of articles questioning the local lab's safety measures. However, many other possible reasons and as always, Gloria finds her life in danger before all is solved.

There were several interesting plot lines and even a couple of past murders that came into play here, and all was as charming and even funny and interesting as always in this series. Plus the evolution of Gloria and Matt's personal and professional relationship continues to evolve nicely. But for some reason, reading this just dragged for me. I'm still giving it 3 stars and look forward to the next which, from both the hint at the very end and its title, will no doubt revolve around Carbon. Now if I can only score a copy at a reasonable price ... which is getting more and more difficult as I make my way through the series.

[Megan · Rating 4 out of 5]

I always wish that the actual science in these books was a little stronger. Minichino is definitely a competent writer, but the special sauce she should bring to the table is the science behind the scenes, and I find myself wishing it had more of an impact on the story.

[Kitha Pola · Rating 3 out of 5]

It actually has a good plot. I wonder why it has so many bad reviews. The story is interesting and kind of unique but I just got a little bit annoyed on how slow the story paced. I like author's writing style and planned to read more of her works some other time.

[Tracy Trujillo · Rating 3 out of 5]

Very enjoyable characters and good mystery.

[Helen · Rating 2 out of 5]

I usually like mysteries with women detectives, but this one did not interest me. It had a fine plot and characters. All I can figure is that the characters had little feeling in them.

[Terry Tschann Skelton · Rating 3 out of 5]

Started out slow--i wasn't sure, but after a bit I got into it. Good cast and a fun read. By the end, it was a strong 3.5!

[Johnmarilyn Rivera · Rating 3 out of 5]

Loved the characters, but too much somewhat complicated science stuff. Also, hard to keep up with all 3 murders & how they connected.

[Nancyann · Rating 3 out of 5]

I am not a fan of murder mysteries but a chemist friend of mine recommended this series. I probably won't read another periodic table mystery, but I liked this one just fine. Physicist Gloria sometimes assists the Revere police as she does when a young woman is found murdered in the local library. There are many interesting details in the story---Gloria is friends with the local morticians and lives in an apartment in their funeral home, she is dating a widowed police officer, she assists high school students with science fair projects, and much more. Tasty Italian bakery treats are a staple at every meal as Gloria agonizes over scientific tomes in an attempt to explain not one but three murders. The author playfully includes a hint of sexual activity between Gloria and her beau, but this is mainly murder solving tale. If you like this genre, you will enjoy The Boric Acid Murder.

[Anastasia · Rating 4 out of 5]

The Boric Acid Murder by Camille Minichino is the 5th book in the periodic table mystery series. This time police scientific consultant Gloria Lamerino becomes involved in solving the murder of a laboratory public affairs writer when her friends son is accused of the murder. I enjoyed seeing Gloria's romance progress further through the book as she cleverly works through the various suspects. A wonderful series which I am looking forward to continuing.

[NebulousGloom (FK) · Rating 4 out of 5]

Good story, interesting mystery and very enjoyable characters. I think I'm most happy with the characters.

[Andy Plonka · Rating 5 out of 5]

The author is a has a PhD in Physics, but she manages to make this branch of science comprehensible for the layman while spinning a pretty good mystery to boot.

[Lori · Rating 5 out of 5]

I love this series!

[Phifer, Barbara · Rating 5 out of 5]

I always did like chemistry!

[Diana Bringardner · Rating 3 out of 5]

Enjoyed the mystery but the writing style didn't capture me.

[Patricia · Rating 3 out of 5]

Reading challenge category: The next book in a series you started