Honest Doubt

Kate Fansler Mystery #13

by Amanda Cross, Carolyn G. Heilbrun

Professor Charles Haycock is dead from a hearty dose of his own heart medication. The mystery is not why Haycock was murdered-very few could stomach the woman-hating prof?but who did the deed. Estelle "Woody" Woodhaven, a private investigator hired to find the killer, naturally enlists the help of that indefatigable amateur sleuth, Kate Fansler. Together, they start to pull at the loose ends of the very tangled Clifton College English Department. The list of suspects is longer than the freshman survey reading list. And as the women defuse the host of literary landmines set out for them, Woody suspects they?re only scratching the surface of a very large and sinister plot. . . .

Genres: Mystery, Fiction, Cozy Mystery, Womens, Cozy, Academia, Crime

256 pages, Mass Market Paperback

First published November 28, 2000

About the author

A psuedonym of Carolyn G. Heilbrun.

Librarian Note: There is more than one author in the GoodReads database with this name. See this thread for more information.

Reviews

[Kathy · Rating 3 out of 5]

I guess that leaves about three more Amanda Cross books for me to read eventually. Had I read this book as my first Kate Fansler I would have gone no further. It did not satisfy as the other books have. It is a departure, narrated by a female PI "Woody"who proclaims herself as "fat" repeatedly.
Kate comes into the picture as someone who can help fill in academic background as well as give her Tennyson insights when needed in the case of a murdered tenured professor of literature at a
NJ college.
This was a quick read as I used my speed reading skills to plow through boring details about this PI and her views on life. Not interested.
Kate steers Woody to the solution of murder by poisoned Retsina by inviting her over to watch Murder on the Orient Express.

Library Loan

[Pamela Mclaren · Rating 3 out of 5]

Boy, this book hit home. When you work on a college campus, you find out that no matter how often they talk about working collaboratively, they only mean it so far. In this book, the situation has become toxic: the murdered professor hated everyone and the feeling was just about mutual. And for what it was worth, I don't think the other professors were that chummy either. In that regard, it did seem a little unusual for usually there are people who believe similarly and work together.

One of the things I'm really surprised about is that this was written in 2000 but it sounds really like its more from the 1950s: the way they talk about male professors feeling about female professors is really dated and unrealistic. But all in all, this was a good read. The book had just the right amount of the main character (sometimes she has annoyed me) and I really did like the one who really was the main character this time out, Woody. She is a hoot and a lot of fun.

[Simon · Rating 3 out of 5]

A delayed pleasure. I haven't read this because I wanted one more Kate Fansler mystery before lights out. Alas, Kate is a peripheral character in some ways, but central in ways that don't add up. Heilbrun went out on a sour note with the academic community within which she functioned. The themes in this book pick up on others that run throughout the Fansler ouevre, but with a twist. The protagonist is a fat --- her incessant word, not mine --- female private investigator who tools around on a motorcycle. Woody, as she is known, is sent to Kate about a case involving an academic homicide.

And we're off. Woody is presented as an academic naif, despite the fact that she has attended college and law school, which seems like a lot of higher education for someone who doesn't understand the concept of a core curriculum. Woody looks into the murder of the Chair of the English Department at Clifton College, a small liberal arts college in New Jersey. I myself work at a small liberal arts college in North Carolina. And no one, but no one, uses the language Heilbrun puts into the mouths of the Clifton professors. As long as the stories were told from Kate's point of view, Heilbrun's style made sense. It was like Woody Allen's concept of New York City dwellers' conversation. Something to which one could aspire. But Woody blows it. She wants us to believe that she finds academics odd when she herself uses the word "chap." This is a pet word of Heilbrun's; her characters have always called each other that, and the reader thinks, "oh, well, somewhere there are bunch of WASPS who do that." (I seriously doubt it.) But to have your narrator mocking the oppressor --- because Heilbrun clearly used her swansong to settle accounts with the patriarchy --- while talking just like them? The reader is constantly jarred out of the story. And that isn't hard to do, because there really isn't one. That fact is underscored so hard by the "solution" to the "mystery" that I wound up slamming the book shut with unnecessary violence.

But Kate does float through the story, acting much as she always has, and there is a final glimpse of Banny and Reed. Read it for that.

[Pamela · Rating 3 out of 5]

This series based on different mystery authors has been fascinating! I am glad I have two left to read, as this one was a strange departure from following professor Kate Fansler as she using both her inquisitive mind and knowledge of literature to solve crimes. The investigator in this mystery is Estelle "Woody" Woodhaven, a private investigator out of her depth, hired to discover who killed the head of the English department at a small college and why.
Woody rides a motorcycle, considers herself fat and is directed to Kate as someone who can explain the strange innerworkings of a college English department. For those of us who attended college in the 1960's or 70's, much of the male chauvinism depicted will be familiar, whether the subject is English, history, or the sciences. From that aspect, reading this was like a bumpy walk down memory lane. The mystery is solved by Kate from a classic Agatha Christie plot, although how we were to guess that from all the misdirection of Woody meeting a New Jersey cop also on the case and discovering perhaps more than friendship, is baffling. The mystery will keep you guessing till the end.

[alexander burrus · Rating 2 out of 5]

Totally let down by the ending

It hurt me to go thru this book to get the outcome I got. Felt anticlimactic. It my first Amanda cross book and I was interested in reading another but the book left a bad taste in my mouth.

[EssentiallyMeagan · Rating 1 out of 5]

I wasn't a fan of this book. I couldn't get into the story or follow the characters or plot. I don't think I will be reading anymore books by this author.

[Marci · Rating 3 out of 5]

As a Kate Fansler mystery, this book is quite different, putting Kate offstage much of the time and making the narrator a private eye named "Woody" (Estelle) Woodhaven, chosen to investigate the killing of an extremely obnoxious English professor at a New Jersey college. Kate is asked to consult with Woody, who needs help understanding the constantly-quoting-and-alluding-to-literature manner of communication of all this faculty. It feels like parody, and it is --- the solution is a take-off on Agatha Christie's Murder on the Orient Express, being that probably each of the faculty dropped a pill into the victim's bottle of wine, knowing that nobody else would drink it, so that they could get rid of him before he destroyed their department. But this is no true Christie parody; Christie's work suggests a private jury executing justice on a truly evil killer who cannot be brought to public trial, while this book suggests that the cases are parallel without any attempt at reconstruction to probe motive or justification. Instead, Woody and Kate leave the case deliberately unsolved to preserve the element of "honest doubt." I enjoyed the send-up of the obnoxious professor whose fanaticism about his subject spoils it for everyone else. There are parodies of other professor types that I enjoyed very much too. In fact, I enjoyed most of the book but found the solution a disappointment.

[Charlene · Rating 4 out of 5]

The character of Woody Woodhaven drew me in right away. She is strong and self confident as a private investigator, but vulnerable and aware of her shortcomings at the same time. Woody is large and in charge, rides a motorcycle and knows how to obtain the information she needs to solve her cases. But this case lands her in the middle of a possible murder in a college English Department, and she is struggling to understand the professorial infighting, their language and constant literary references. Even though the victim, chair of the department, was by all accounts a real piece of work, what would cause another faculty member to kill him? Luckily, an associate recommended that Woody contact Kate Fansler, who might be able to help. Woody continues to methodically contact each suspect to interview them, and periodically discusses what she is learning with Kate at her home. The way their mutual respect and teamwork develops is very satisfying.

[Alison C · Rating 2 out of 5]

Private detective Estelle “Woody” Woodhaven is asked by a small college to investigate the death of an English professor there; widely disliked, there is little doubt that he was murdered. Woody turns gratefully to Kate Fansler for her insights both into academia and crime, but while she enjoys their conversations, Kate’s frequent detours into esoteric musings, particularly on the professor’s favourite poet Tennyson, serve more to baffle Woody than to enlighten her. And the interviews she has with the potential suspects serve only to muddy the waters even further…. This is the next-to-last Kate Fansler novel and she herself is barely in it - although it is, of course, Kate who ultimately solves the crime. Woody is a decent character, although her constant harping about how fat she is gets tiresome very quickly. I’m just not sure why Kate was even in the book and, frankly, the solution is lazy, but there are some nice quotes along the way. Really for completists only.

[Marsha Valance · Rating 2 out of 5]

Both literature professor/amateur sleuth Kate Fansler & her St. Bernard, Bancroft, play walk-on parts in this **spoiler alert** homage to Agatha Christie. Woody Woodhaven, a plump former public defender/now PI, is hired 1st by the children of a poisoned literature professor & later by the English Dept. faculty where he taught to solve his murder. As Woody investigates, she discovers the obnoxious professor was universally hated, the department was self-destructing, & only his adult children--none of whom lived nearby--had anything good to say about him (& they all hated his 2nd wife). As Woody falls in love with her local PD liaison, a divorced black cop, she suspects their relationship will be the only positive outcome of the investigation.

[Laura · Rating 1 out of 5]

Ugh. This is not really a Kate Fansler master. The protagonist is a PI who is investigating a murder in an English department in a small New Jersey college, and calls upon Fansler periodically to help her decode the language, culture, and politics of academia. Being in academia myself, I found it a bit too close to home. (Although I'm nowhere near even wanting to murder one of my colleagues.) The protagonist also has a lot of body image issues, which was tedious to wade through. And the resolution is also very unsatisfying.

[Text Addict · Rating 3 out of 5]

I'd probably like this book more if the narrator, Woody, wasn't so anxious to prove she's not miserable about her weight that she talks about it all the time. I don't know where the heck Cross was trying to go with that, frankly, and it made me annoyed and uncomfortable. Otherwise the character has an interesting perspective (and Kate Fansler appeared as a consultant helping Woody out). But as perhaps an attempt to develop a new series character, it just didn't work for me.

[Anne · Rating 3 out of 5]

This Kate Fansler mystery was a little unusual because Kate played only a supporting role and Woody Woodhaven was the star detective. Of course, Kate opened the door if truth for Woody. I'm happy to report I figured this one out before either Kate or Woody. It was still a very good opportunity to carry on about Tennyson and his many admirers and detractors.

[Jocelie · Rating 1 out of 5]

Possibly the worst murder mystery I’ve ever read.
No clues. Seriously. Nothing anywhere near what one could call an investigation.
And suddenly— pow!— mystery “solved.” No explanation.
Terrible, embarrassing.
I only kept going on this so I could add it to my books-read-this-year list.

Amanda Cross: for shame!

[Richard Fursland · Rating 4 out of 5]

Another superbly crafted Fansler mystery. Credible atmosphere, characters and denouement. The negative reviewers seem to be in denial about the realities of fat peoples’ self defence mechanisms, sexual attraction and academia.

[Tobi · Rating 3 out of 5]

As with all her books, though I enjoy them, they are more often than not, a lot of chatting and literary references and not a massive amount of crime solving. I still like them though. "The Theban Mystery" is still probably my favourite.

[Regina · Rating 2 out of 5]

It took an absurd amount of effort to finish this book. No less than four times, I had to check to see if I had skipped a page or some how misread a page. Not having read Amanda Cross books before I am unsure if this is her normal style or not but I do know it isn't conducive to thoughtful flow.

[Susan Beecher · Rating 1 out of 5]

I've read some of this author's other mysteries and remember liking them but this one was a total dud. The main character, a private investigator can't stop "talking" about being overweight. The plot is stupid and very poorly described. The resolution was pathetic.

[Barbara · Rating 3 out of 5]

Aside from the focus of "Woody" on her large size, I found the characters well fleshed out and I liked the literary theme was well, although I am not a Tennyson fan. Woody needs a better self-image and a tougher skin.

[judy weaver · Rating 3 out of 5]

pseudonym. Amanda Cross is Carolyn Gold

[Rhiannon Grant · Rating 4 out of 5]

A friend passed me this and it's a quick, fun read with a nicely structured murder case at the centre of a deftly handled plot. I hadn't read Amanda Cross before but would again.

[Peggi Warner-Lalonde · Rating 4 out of 5]

An enjoyable Kate Fanzler mystery - with a great new character being introduced. I would love to see a new one, but it appears that will not happen.

[Laura · Rating 3 out of 5]

Review to follow.

[Suzi · Rating 3 out of 5]

I wish I hadn't started reading this. It's not the voice I remember and it's told from someone else's viewpoint. I persisted and wish I hadn't.

[Hilda · Rating 1 out of 5]

Too much academia and didn't like the ending.

[Sharon Bezrutczyk · Rating 4 out of 5]

Good book but not for me.

[Elizabeth · Rating 3 out of 5]

I really enjoyed this cozy, well written mystery, but I thought the ending was weak. I really enjoyed Woody with her cycling skills and insecurities about her weight. As a former academic, I was a bit skeptical about the poisonous (pun intended) atmosphere of the Clifton College English department, but Heilbrun was an academic herself. The book made me think that I need to check out Tennyson again. I haven't thought much about him since college.

[Susan · Rating 4 out of 5]

Kate Fansler is only peripheral in this one but its still an academic setting .The woman private eye who is the main character rides a motorcycle, has her flaws and is relatable. Just a touch of romance when she consults with a retired cop.

[Avid Series Reader · Rating 1 out of 5]

Honest Doubt by Amanda Cross is the 13th book of the Kate Fansler series set in late 20th century New York City. Similar to the rest of the series, it involves solving a murder in academia. Far different from the rest of the series is the primary protagonist - a fat motorcycle-riding young female detective with attitude. The English department at Clifton College hires a private detective to solve the murder of universally disliked Professor Haycock. P.I. "Woody" Woodhaven consults with Kate Fansler for academic jargon, insights into power struggles and bureaucracy in general. [But there is nothing special about the department; entrenched male chauvinists resent and try to block women from success in every profession, every office - Boring repetitive theme]. Woody refers far too often to her overweight status, as well as how confused and overwhelmed she is by the mystery. Most of the characters are unlikeable. A police detective who shares the case openly with Woody, to the extent of inviting her to join him and participate in suspect interviews, is not believable. Kate eventually "solves" the mystery. Rather than develop her budding relationship with Don, Woody just drops it at the end of the case. Overall, an uninteresting mystery, unpleasant protagonist and unsatisfying ending.

[Donna · Rating 3 out of 5]

This book is interesting mostly as a thinly disguised rant, a fictional depiction of the world as seen through the eyes of Carolyn Heilbrun, the English professor who eventually disclosed her identity as the pseudonymous Amanda Cross.

It's a world of old-boy networks in which women have to scratch and scrabble for any type of recognition and professional relationships are built on mistrust, dishonesty, and ruthless game-playing. The picture Heilbrun paints of the academic world, both in fiction and in her memoir, The Last Gift of Time: Life Beyond Sixty, is cynical and sad. The elements would probably be much the same if she happened to be one of the first women directors of a large corporation or one of the first women astronauts or one of the first women to do anything. She was a feminist (a literary feminist), and she was chronically angry.

Perhaps that's why this book seems to have disappointed many readers whose comments appear below: it's not really a mystery, and it's not really about her usual protagonist, Kate Fansler, or any other character. It seems to me that Honest Doubt was all about her, Carolyn Heilbrun, and the bitterness that was an established part of her take on the world at the time the novel was written.