Emily Dickinson Is Dead

Homer Kelly #5

by Jane Langton

When Winifred Gaw is discovered murdered in Emily Dickinson's bedroom, Horace Kelly decides to investigate the baffling crime

Genres: Mystery, Fiction, American, Academia, Audiobook, Thriller

256 pages, Mass Market Paperback

First published January 1, 1984

About the author

Langton was born in Boston, Massachusetts. She studied astronomy at Wellesley College and the University of Michigan, receiving a bachelor's degree in 1944. She received an M.A. in art history from the University of Michigan in 1945, and another M.A. from Radcliffe College in 1948. She studied at the Boston Museum School from 1958 to 1959.

In 1961 Langton wrote and illustrated her first book for children, The Majesty of Grace, a story about a young girl during the Depression who is certain she will some day be Queen of England. Langton has since written a children's series, The Hall Family Chronicles, and the Homer Kelly murder mystery novels. She has also written several stand-alone novels and picture books.

Langton's novel The Fledgling is a Newbery Honor book. Her novel Emily Dickinson is Dead was nominated for an Edgar Award and received a Nero Award. The Face on the Wall was an editors' choice selection by The Drood Review of Mystery for 1998.

Langton lives in Lincoln, Massachusetts, near the town of Concord, the setting of many of her novels. Her husband, Bill, died in 1997. Langton has three adult sons: Chris, David and Andy.

Series:
* Hall Family
* Homer Kelly Mystery

Reviews

[Alonzo Church · Rating 1 out of 5]

This one rubbed me the wrong way hard.

The setting is as cozy as it gets — a symposium on the 100th anniversary of Emily Dickinson’s death. Tea and literate murder during a shining New England Spring.

However, this is not a whodunnit. We know who is guilty of the mayhem all the way through. Mostly, this is professors behaving very badly and a crazy perpetual grad student who the author treats as an opportunity for extended fat shaming. Nature deals harshly with the villains, which is a good thing because such detectives as there are do a rather poor job of figuring out the bad actors.

Parts are very funny and well written. The rest is unpleasant.

[Shannon · Rating 3 out of 5]

Okay, but mostly frustrating

To be kind, I'll start with what was good: I finished it. I almost didn't, but I have to admit that the plot was intriguing, if a little convoluted at times. The characters were quirky and had silly names (which were too often used with both first and last) and often stereotypical, which is not necessarily a bad thing in a somewhat soapy silly mystery, though it is a drawback if you like things more literary. There were a couple good plot twists. There were multiple proofing errors in the kindle version, but these were fairly minor. Particularly toward the beginning, a lot of backstory was quickly delivered to the reader. It might have been better read in the series, but I don't think that would fix the primary problems that almost made me give up on the book.

By far the biggest issue was the portrayal of the female characters, especially Winnie Gaw. For a book that ostensibly has feminist themes (some characters respond angrily when a conference about Emily Dickinson features only male speakers, and the main theme is about whether Emily's appearance mattered at all) it sure does treat the female characters like garbage. Allison is characterized as little more than selfish, beautiful, and not particularly bright. Winifred is characterized primarily by her fatness and ugliness. Almost her every action is marked by some mention of her size of looks, and other characters speak very cruelly of her appearance. The misogyny, fat shaming, and obsession with looks were difficult to tolerate. Additionally, though the plot was interesting, I was frustrated by the ending. No spoilers, but it felt un-fulfilling after everything that had happened. I'd also hardly call it a mystery, since the reader knows almost everything that's going on.

Long story short, I would not recommend it.

[Angie · Rating 3 out of 5]

This is really better than three stars, yet it doesn't make four. Again, a book I never would have discovered without my sister-in-law, Deb, having gifted it. It's quite an amusing little book. Some decent characters. A bit of suspense. Good setting. Tad of humor. Fun to see how things play out. Read it when you're in the mood for a not terribly suspenseful suspense with a lot of fitting lines from Emily Dickinson's poetry thrown in. Don't you find yourself in such a mood often? Anyway, though some things seemed coincidental, though you may have to suspend your disbelief when people are saved IN THE NICK OF TIME, I thought it was very much worth my time. A caveat---the fatness of the pathetic loser who causes most of the trouble due to her insane jealousy and obsession is portrayed (the fatness, I mean) as a manifestation of her pathetic, evil loseriness---the implication is that of course she's no good; she's a fat person. This bugged me. Also, she buys four dozen doughnuts and eats them all in one evening. Come on. Still, all things considered, thumbs up.

[Lisa Leone-campbell · Rating 3 out of 5]

Emily Dickinson Is Dead is a murder mystery in the Homer Kelly Series. Published in 1984 (I found the book in an antique store, signed by the author with a few doodles she did on the signed page as well). She also had illustrated the book. Langton was known for her immense knowledge of Emily Dickinson and this book is a tribute to the grand dame of poetry. The story exudes wit, mystery and more importantly incorporates lines of Dickinson's poetry into each chapter. Being published in the 1980's it also has a throwback sense of what was happening at the time, and what could be said (and written).

But there is one true life mystery incorporated into the story. There is a mystery involving a photo which was discovered of Emily Dickinson. It has been debated for years as to if this is really her or not. To this day, no one knows for sure.

As the 100th anniversary of Emily Dickinson's death approaches, an English professor at Amherst College in Amherst, MA has a brilliant idea to celebrate her life with a combination conference with discussions and a festival. Dickinson enthusiasts are invited from all over.

But from the start, the event seems to be cursed. Two students are killed in a dormitory fire, the women of Amherst rebel against the creators of the event because no women were included to lead any of the discussion groups, and then of course there are a few townspeople who have their own issues, some psychological and some devious.

That's when scholar Homer Kelly accidently gets involved. As more bodies begin to pile up, and some go missing, it's up to him to figure out what exactly is going on in this town. He cannot fathom what the real Emily Dickinson would think...especially when one of the bodies shows up in her own bedroom!

The twist to the story is that although nobody in the town knows who is doing the killings, the reader not only has a seat at the table to it all, but also knows the killer's reasoning for why it's being done.

Emily Dickinson Is Dead is an entertaining, enjoyable look back in time with a good murder/mystery and enough poetry incorporated that you wonder if the words she actually wrote were meant to be used as fodder for a who done it.

Published by St. Martin's Press

[Marci · Rating 2 out of 5]

I am probably coming to these books far too late. This was the first of the series I read, and even for a book written and published about 1984, it's dated. The writing is good; characters well drawn even if one is especially cringe-worthy, but dialog is a strong point too. I finished the book because it was well written, but will likely not read another one of this series. A good share of the humor was rooted in sexist attitudes such as that the appearance of a woman is the all-important thing, which was not refuted much if at all, and although the ex-policeman Homer Kelly and his wife were not active participants, the other sympathetic characters did participate. I can't find the humor and don't appreciate it. There was very little about Emily Dickinson that was interesting (no insights beyond her appearance), and for the setting to be a symposium about her, albeit a train-wreck of a symposium, it was too bad. I felt the train wreck could have included more humor about scholars and their outlandish or impenetrable ideas (there was one instance of that, but it was confined only to one sentence). There were too many murderous impulses acted upon. I could understand it if it were confined to one character, but when the second character started in, that was too much like nihilism, and if it was supposed to be funny that multiple scholars want to knock off their rivals or enemies or whomever, it wasn't. Although the ending is supposed to be heart-warming, the book left a sour taste.

[Corinne · Rating 2 out of 5]

I should be congratulated for listening to this whole farcical audiobook. It is the first Homer Kelly book I've read. Only Homer and his wife were sympathetic characters. The rest were stereotypical clowns.

[Kimberly Daley · Rating 1 out of 5]

This book is extremely fatphobic. So so completely fatphobic, I barely could finish it because of how fatphobic. Do not read unless u want to feel very very angry

[Dogsandbooks · Rating 2 out of 5]

Clunky writing, ridiculous plot, misinterpretation of Emily Dickinson and lots of violence and sadness. Ick. Ebook via dpl hoopla

[Susan · Rating 4 out of 5]

Even though Langton has used the final plot twist before, this is an amusing read, and even the villains are more or less sympathetic. There's a symposium for the centennial of Emily Dickinson's death at Amherst, MA, and one professor is torn between his fiancée and the really hot undergraduate he's dating. Meanwhile, the unhappy and unattractive graduate student has lost her job with the professor she unrequitedly loves, and taken a new one, as tour guide at the Dickinson house. The medical examiner just wants to get away from his crazy wife and go fishing. And Homer Kelly wants to enjoy the symposium, but dead bodies keep getting in his way.

[Morgan]

any enjoyment of the plot utterly ruined by the author’s truly pathological hatred of fat people. At times it seems like the author’s entire motivation in writing the book was to create an excuse to say cruel things about a fat character?????? (who is also poor and disabled, two other characteristics that come in for a lot of scorn for some reason?) It actually feels embarrassing to be confronted with someone’s neuroses in such a blatant way. (Also sometimes she takes breaks for flashes of very weird racism.) extremely odd.

[Eugene · Rating 3 out of 5]

Another Homer Kelly outing, though he doesn’t play a very large part in the proceedings. And as with other Jane Langton murder mysteries, there’s murder but there isn’t any mystery about it - we get to watch from a front row seat. You will get a lot of New England history and lore (some faux, some actual) and it does contribute a fair deal to the proceedings. I’m by way of re-reading this series, and thus far it doesn’t have quite the charm of the first run, but it’s entertaining and I will solder on.

[R. Ware · Rating 5 out of 5]

You won't rate this book more than four stars if
you haven't lived in Hampshire County, Massachusetts.

(The book is marred by a touch of racism toward Asians.)

[Bookwoman67 · Rating 2 out of 5]

I've liked other Homer Kelly books by this author but would say give this one a miss. I don't need to add to what some of the other reviews have said so clearly.

[Verena · Rating 3 out of 5]

Emily Dickinson is Dead by Jane Langton caught my attention at a used book sale. Decades ago I had enjoyed a couple of her mysteries, which take place in New England. I've visited Emily Dickinson's house in Amherst, Massachusetts, and so the chance to revisit it was too good to pass up. The descriptions of the town and countryside in beautiful western Massachusetts did not disappoint. The stereotyped characters did disappoint, and I was especially uncomfortable with the over-the-top description of an obese, female character. Although her backstory lends sympathy and explains her actions, the frequent references to the ugliness of her fat body were uncomfortable to read. This is a good example of how sensitivities have changed since 1984 when this book was written.

Emily Dickinson's poetry introduces each chapter, and quotations from her work sprinkle the conversations of the renowned scholars who have gathered for an Emily Dickinson centennial symposium. The author's drawings of Amherst street scenes and home interiors also add charm. A dubious photograph of the poet adds to the plot, which at times is quirky, amusing, and suspenseful.

According to Langton's Afterward, the photograph was still a puzzle in 1984, with scholars questioning its authenticity. In 2012 Amherst College* displayed an image at the Emily Dickinson International Society. The 1859 daguerreotype copy of Emily Dickinson and her friend Kate Scott Turner appears to be the real thing and only the second authenticated image of this beloved American poet.

*Amherst College Archives & Special Collections
https://www.amherst.edu/library/archi...

[Jefferson · Rating 2 out of 5]

A Bit Dated and Not Very Mysterious Mystery

Brilliant, sensitive, “saintly” U Mass Professor Owen Krausnick is a widower with a weakness for “lame ducks.” He regrets having mentioned to his boor of a department chair Dombey Dell that the 100th anniversary of Emily Dickinson’s death is approaching, because the information inspired Dell to hold a Centennial Symposium for the famous poet at the university, with conference speakers staying in the Dickinson Homestead. Owen recoils from the passion with which Dickinson experts (from professional scholars to amateur crackpots) think they possess the great poet.

Owen’s friend, the ex-policeman, current professor Homer Kelly, however, finds human conflict interesting, so he’s kinda looking forward to the conference, knowing that it will be percolating with all manner of jealousies, ambitions, grudges, and so on. (Academia here is no milk and honey paradise.) Indeed, the conference promises to be a fertile site for crimes of passion: the doctor fiancée of another professor, Tom Parry, is planning on attending the event unannounced, ignorant of Tom’s fling with an incredibly beautiful coed, who is envied by an overweight graduate student who has a delusional crush on Owen, while Peter Wiggins, a professor from the University of Central Arizona (living in Pancake Flat!), is planning to make a splash (and escape the desert) by proving that he possesses a later photograph of Emily Dickinson, showing that she is more beautiful than her famous daguerreotype indicates. Meanwhile, two different pro-Dickinson feminist groups are independently planning demonstrations during the conference, as all the speakers invited happen to be men, and the male members of the Japan Poetry Society are coming in by tour bus armed with their cameras (Langton is not above stereotyping her characters).

Even before the conference begins, things start getting out of hand, with dormitory arson killing a couple male students. The police receive descriptions of suspicious people seen around the dormitory the night of the fire, including one “fat woman.” It couldn’t be Winifred Gaw, could it? All seventy-five members of the U Mass English Department (except for Owen) have just voted to fire Winnie from her job as Owen’s secretary and to expel her from the PhD program, and though Owen has set her up for work as a tour guide at the Dickinson Homestead, she is consumed by resentment and envy.

Jane Langton's Emily Dickinson Is Dead (1984) is NOT a whodunnit! We know the culprit (of at least three murders) pretty much immediately. It’s more of a will-the-culprit-get-away-with-it story. And Homer Kelly and his wife don’t really get on the “case” until Chapter 37 (so I don’t get why this is a “Homer Kelly mystery”). For that matter, for the reader if not for the characters, there’s no mystery to the deaths and no narrative coverage of the police working on the initial arson case, so this is also not a police-procedural or CSI genre work. There is no private detective in the novel. Come to think of it, for a “mystery” with an Emily Dickinson theme, there is very little Mystery in the novel. The perceptive characters figure out what the culprit was doing in Emily’s bedroom with a basket and an axe and some sleeping pills and a library book in one of the last chapters…

As she is not writing a whodunnit, Langton is liberated to indulge in plenty of dramatic irony, where we know things her characters don’t, like when the coroner, Owen’s cousin Harvey, thinks a dead woman apparently walking the submerged street of a drowned village at the bottom of the reservoir is Emily Dickinson, and we know who she really is.

(The damming of Swift River and drowning of multiple villages to make the Quabbin Reservoir and send water to Boston, etc., are as impressive in the novel as the Emily matter.)

Langton understands Emily about as well as the enigmatic and charismatic poet can be understood. Many of the characters quote cool Emily lines (some I knew well, some I encountered for the first time), and each of the 46 numbered chapters begins with a plot-appropriate epigraph made of lines from an Emily poem. Chapter 8, for instance, starts with a great stanza from a poem I hadn’t read before:

How martial is this place!
Had I a mighty gun
I think I'd shoot the human race
And then to glory run!

Langton is good at getting in the heads of a variety of characters, and she writes a fast-paced page turning story, and readers who love Emily Dickinson would enjoy the quotations from her poems and references to her home and family and so on.

Although the atmosphere and layout of Amherst sound convincing, unfortunately, the academia Langton imagines seems rather cartoonish. It’s hard to believe that a sexist lout like Dombey Dell could be English Dept Chair at a high-level Eastern university like U Mass (and would mispronounce Brobdingnagian) or that ex-cop Homer Kelly could be a professor anywhere. I can’t believe the university would be able to put conference speakers up in the Homestead and to let a student wear Emily’s white dress for a poetry recital at the conference.

Some things that date the novel to 1984 must be forgiven, like a NY Times reporter’s portable typewriter, the photos that many characters take with cameras, or the Homestead having a brick façade instead of being the mustard yellow it’s been since 2004 (which happens to be the color of the house when Emily lived there). But other anachronisms feel unpleasant, like the depiction of the visiting Japanese academics’ English and picture taking or, more disturbingly, the depiction of Winifred Gaw. Despite Langton giving Winnie a sympathetic back story of parental abuse, the fat-shaming she indulges in at her character’s expense is disconcerting. Similarly, the negative depiction of “feminists” is disappointing.

The audiobook reader, Derek Perkins, is fine, but his female character voices tend to be a bit too artificially high and “feminine.”

I feel no need to proceed to other Homer Kelly literary mysteries.

[Daisy · Rating 3 out of 5]

I've really enjoyed this vintage mystery series. Langton invokes the environment of New England academia so beautifully. And she makes me want to love the old transcentalists as much as she clearly does. However, there are also challenges. The fat-shamed villainess in this one is pretty hard to take. And the hero of the series, Homer Kelly, could not possibly be more the lauded mediocre WASP Male.

[Vivienne Strauss · Rating 1 out of 5]

I liked the idea of this book, however, it was so awful I was embarrassed for the author. I made it to page 73 and had to quit.

[Joyce Adams · Rating 1 out of 5]

Made it half way through. Sick.

[Kay Iscah · Rating 3 out of 5]

I LOVE the title of this book. Instant hook. (I bumped this up a star because the author also did the illustrations and those are quite competent.)

To be fair, I think Emily Dickinson was a mediocre poet and mainly respect her for knowing she was a mediocre poet. I don't think you need to love her as a poet to enjoy the premise, but I must admit that I may be missing Emily Dickinson "in jokes" that her more devoted fans would pick up on.

I also think a good script treatment could evolve this one into a good film. But for the book, it's like all the pieces for a good mystery or "novel of suspense" were there, but they weren't put together properly. I think it would be more fair to call this one a modern gothic novel than either "mystery" or "suspense". There's no mystery or suspense. (not even Columbo style)

As 5th in a series, it may be the author thought Homer sufficiently developed in other novels and in no need of repeating that development here. But as it's not labeled as a part of a series, I just jumped in. Homer Kelly has next to zero personality, which is slightly less than most of the other characters.

It's a weird book. The main character is not the protagonist. The only ones actively doing anything is the murderer, and the insufferable Dombey. Everyone else kind of drifts, bumping into information accidentally.

There is some great imagery moments and dark humor. I do see the outline of what could have been a compelling story, but we get information about the characters, particularly Winnie, at the wrong times. Knowing the story behind her missing finger early on would have done wonders for increasing the tension and atmosphere in the first half of the book, as well as explain a lot behind her actions. But rather than Winnie's abusive childhood being presented as her motivating factor, it's treated as an offhand side note, while the author spends a massive amount of time dwelling on Winnie's weight in way that sits between cliche and offensive. Knowing Winnie's backstory, or that her job was her only chance at escaping her father's oppressive shadow would have added so much more gravitas to her motivation. True desperation, not just petty jealousy.

But there are definitely strong moments in the book. Great premise. Quirky characters, a bit one note, but sometimes that works with more satirical humor.

Just don't feel like it pulled together quite right. Almost there, could have been great. But missed the mark, needed more time to fine tune or something.

[False · Rating 3 out of 5]

Yes. I read this in one night. I couldn't sleep. There were a lot of things that irked me about Langton's writing style: her dialogue sounded stilted at times, a sentence or two ending with a preposition, underdeveloped characters. I keep going back to the characters. My chief reason for reading this was 1) Amherst, Massachusetts; 2) Emily Dickinson; 3) the writer's own art work; and 4) the citing of many Amherst landmarks and eateries, but given this was written in the mid-1980's many could be gone. I did a quick scan and found out the Winnie Gaw donut shop is still there, but no mention of the Gaslight restaurant (which the author may have created and non-existent.) One reviewer said they found it doubtful such a character could eat four dozen donuts in one evening. I think it's possible. That's why they call it gluttony. Many reviewers cringe at the constant mention of fat rolls and morbid obesity whenever Winnie's name appears, and the author does indulge in body shaming in this book. I would expect this of say...Gwyneth Paltrow...but not Langton who has quite an interesting academic past. I loved her calling UMass a former cow college. True. She is very descriptive (and accurate) about the town's notables and landmarks. Yes, Austin Dickinson did buy his way out of the Civil War, but I believe it was his father who paid for it. Mabel Loomis Todd gets short mention but she should have received more, given the topics of obsession and cheating partners. I loved Dickinson scholar Owen. I love his housemate Homer (protagonist of the Homer Kelly mysteries) and his haute cuisines of spaghetti with pickle relish or eating pancakes that have hit the floor and ceiling. Yankee frugalness! When I finished reading the book, I thought, "I'll seek no more of her work," but later, giving to deeper ruminations, I thought, "I'd be willing to read the Homer Kelly mysteries." So we'll leave it at that. I don't think Tilly would have left that glass negative of Emily on her fireplace mantel for little hands to find and destroy. She seemed attuned to the sad, abandoned boy and was giving him the first nurturing he had ever received--and perhaps offsetting the damaged derailed life of Winnie Gaw. At least she mixed up her consumption of donuts: glazed, chocolate glazed, cinnamon and eclairs.

[Rebecca · Rating 2 out of 5]

Oofdah.
Let me start with this: I love Jane Langton's Homer Kelly mysteries--this is certainly not my first one. This was my first time listening to one on audiobook, which I'll address in a bit. The book itself was written in 1984, and that may explain the archaic use of the word "oriental" and it might even explain (not excuse) the sort of stereotypical portrayal of Winnie Gaw as the fat girl who eats her feelings. A stereotype would be annoying, but it is the utter and inexplicable fixation on fat-shaming as a source of humor that is really obnoxious here. Langton relies on a certain amount of parody in general, and there are the usual suspects: all variety of academics--the bumbling, the pompous, the sketchy--, and then there is the ingenue (of sorts) in Allison. Presumably Langton was going for some sort of overblown contrast between the two characters, but it does not land well. Really, it is to the point of distraction. In reading other reviews, I know it isn't just because I was listening to it on audiobook.

It is a real shame because there are several other elements of Langton's wonderful mystery at play--the tangled web of surprise connections, the subtler humor (e.g. Homer Kelly's "gourmet" meals for Owen Kraznik), and of course the historical/New England connections and peppering of Dickinson's poetry. The audio book, if I had to guess, was also recorded for "Books on Tape" back in the day (and I was alive then, so I'm not making assumptions about the 80s), so presumably folks might have found Derek Perkins' fake Japanese accent less offensive. Aside from that, however, Perkins reads the book well, subtly imbuing most characters with individual personas, but not to the point of farce.

Did I like aspects of the book? Absolutely--it has the cozy mystery aspect that I was looking for, but the misogynistic bigotry made it a sour read, sadly.

[Chazzi · Rating 5 out of 5]

Amherst, Massachusetts is a quiet college town, but during the Emily Dickinson Centennial Symposium it was quite another vibe.

The symposium was to bring recognition to Amherst and Emily Dickinson, along with money. There would be lecture by well-known authorities of Dickinson’s life and writings, special tours of the Dickinson Homestead, slide shows, readings, the works! Unexpectedly there were other events that also came along.

In the early planning stages there was the fire at Coolidge Hall and the loss of two students’ lives. During the symposium another student went missing but later turned up in an unexpected manner. There was vandalism of Emily Dickinson’s bed chamber, the near death experience of Professor Krasnik and Dr. Oak, and the attempted takeover of the Dickinson Homestead by women of A.W.E.D.

Luckily a current Harvard professor, attending the symposium, is a former Boston detective and is glad to step in and try to make sense of what all is happening.

The characters all have their quirks and there are laughs to be had, while reading this book. There are also pen and ink drawings, scattered through the book, of places in the story. Seems life isn’t so stuffy in a college town…

[Dora · Rating 4 out of 5]

Emily Dickinson Is Dead

Owen is a well known Emily Dickinson scholar who makes the mistake of mentioning to the head of his department that it is the 100th anniversary of Emily Dickinson's death. Dombey, the department head, who had come to tell Owen to fire his assistant because she was ugly and not eligible for the doctoral program either, was diverted by the thought of how having a symposium would bring honor to him.

However, Winnie Gaw, the assistant, does not take the news well particularly when she shows up for work and there is Alison Grove, a beautiful but shallow young woman waiting to apply for her position. Winnie is quite territorial about Owen and Emily Dickinson.

Homer Kelly is a friend of Owen and is sharing his home while teaching a class in town. Homer is an ex-police officer and when two women are killed he helps investigate.

This is not the best mystery nor the worst I've ever read. It did keep me entertained. I did not think that the main character was too much involved in the story until the very end.

[V. Briceland · Rating 4 out of 5]

The fifth Homer Kelly installment is less mystery and more thriller, with a pair of antagonists spreading chaos during a literary conference. In Emily Dickinson Is Dead, Langton explores the concept of readers staking literary ownership of the poets who inspire them: in this case, how far will individuals go to ensure that their Emily Dickinson is the real deal?

Again, on this re-reading of a novel I enjoyed very much on its original publication, I marveled at how in most respects it has aged very little. Save for one mention of a portable typewriter, it could have taken place in recent months. Our times are more sensitive as well—or at least we purport to be—about body types. However, I would argue that the unfortunate negativity about one character's weight, throughout the book, is less a representation of the author's views than it is how that particular character sadly sees and judges herself.

Overall the novel is a tense, swift-moving, and cleverly-plotted entry in Langton's output.

[Craig Masten · Rating 2 out of 5]

“Emily Dickinson Is Dead: a novel of suspense” by Jane Langdon is one of the oddest premises I’ve come across. The book book is macabre, and more off putting than appealing to its potential readership.
It supplies tidbits here and there about Emily Dickinson, but expressed in generally unbelievable stereotypical characters and bizarre situations. It has a number of unlikely bizarre murders to satisfy lovers of the crime gender, although belabored with plot twists, coincidences and tidy endings which exceed the limits of credibility. And on top of this a variety of love stories for readers seeking romance, yet likely finding the routine perils, disappointments and happy endings of
a soap opera.
I don’t like to be a downer to a book. Unfortunately this one fits that kind of critique.

[Susan · Rating 3 out of 5]

This one was a bit slow, and Homer and Mary didn't have much presence in the story until close to the end. It's more about Winnie, an obese woman with a huge crush on her professor employer at Harvard (? or maybe it was Amherst?) and all the things that happen to her or that she is involved in. The story centers around an Emily Dickinson symposium being held at the college and the various people who are either running it or attending. A lot of short quotes from Dickinson's poetry -- boy, I thought I was bad for using a lot of dashes!
Either it was not as riveting as the others I've read, or else I've read too many in a row - I may switch to another author for a while before finishing the rest of these. The book did hold my interest, but it was also easy to put it down. Could also possibly be that most of the characters were not very likeable or even pleasant people.

[Katherine · Rating 2 out of 5]

Some of the writing in this novel is superb. Good dialog, nice use of tension and switching points of view, solid observations of humanity. It's not a whodunnit: we see with an omniscient eye who did it, how, and why--a throwback to the Victorian adventure mysteries where the story is mostly about how the detective finds the answers.

The big drawback is that one of the main characters in this book--and one with whom we spend much time--is only ever described as fat. Immense. Huge. She is made entirely unsympathetic, unlovely, unintelligent, unfriendly. Perhaps more societally acceptable in the '80s, but never really acceptable. Unpleasant enough that this one will not find a home on my shelf.

[Judy · Rating 4 out of 5]

I enjoyed this book very much. I have read some of the other reviews and see them ranging from 1* - 5*. I give it 4 stars. I liked the characters and was very pleased with the setting of Western Massachusetts. I am very familiar with the towns of Amherst and Ware. I know the history of the Quabbin Reservoir. I enjoyed that these places were mentioned in the book. I am looking forward to reading another book by the author.

[Pamoliverio · Rating 4 out of 5]

Jane Langston’s books are so readable & I am never disappointed in her characters, settings & plots. I imagine Homer Kelly as a lanky Jimmy Stewart nonchalantly ambling through the murderous stories until it’s time for him, usually with the help of his highly intuitive wife, to solve the pieces of the mystery. Since most of the books are set around Boston, I like them even better.

[Sarah · Rating 4 out of 5]

Not sure how I found this book but glad I did. Such an engaging read. Reminded me of when I first discovered grisham. Suspenseful and I couldn't help but care about the characters - the good, the bad, and the flat. Funny and tragic and real and caricatured. Made me more interested in Emily Dickinson too.