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Tom Mason and Scott Carpenter #11
Everyone's Dead But Us
Tom Mason, former Chicago area high school teacher, recently made a public splash by marrying his long-term lover, former professional baseball player Scott Carpenter. After the hoopla surrounding Scott's public coming out and, of course, the marriage, the couple are in dire need of a quiet vacation -- somewhere far from the fans, the paparazzi and the general noise of Chicago. Escaping to the privately-held Aegean island of Korkasi -- a resort with twenty-two seperate villas for those desiring, and who can afford, absolute privacy. But first a building storm traps them -- and the others -- on the island, cutting them off entirely from the outside world. Then the current owner of the island is found murdered, his body lying on the floor of Tom and Scott's villa. As the storm gathers strength and begins to ravage the island, the guests and employees are being killed off by a person or persons unknown. Trapped on the island with no hope of escape, Tom and Scott must uncover and stop the murderer before everyone dies.
288 pages, Hardcover
First published July 11, 2006
5 people are currently reading
56 people want to read
About the author
Mark Richard Zubro
48 books50 followersAuthor also writes as: Mark Zubro.
Mark Richard Zubro is an American mystery novelist. He lives in Mokena, Illinois and taught 8th grade English at Summit Hill Jr. High in nearby Frankfort Square, Illinois.
Zubro writes bestselling mysteries set in Chicago and the surrounding Cook County area, which are widely praised as fast-paced, with interesting plots and well-rounded, likeable characters. His novels feature gay themes, and Zubro is himself gay.
His longest running series features high school teacher Tom Mason, and Tom's boyfriend, professional baseball player Scott Carpenter. The other series Zubro is known for is the Paul Turner mysteries, which are about a Chicago police detective. The books are a part of the Stonewall Inn Mystery series, published by St. Martin's Press. Zubro won a Lambda Literary Award for Best Gay Men's Mystery for his book A Simple Suburban Murder.
Series:
* Tom Mason and Scott Carpenter
* Paul Turner
I am the author of twenty-four mystery novels and five short stories. My book A Simple Suburban Murder won the Lambda Literary Award for Best Gay Men's mystery. I also wrote a thriller, Foolproof, with two other mystery writers, Jeanne Dams and Barb D'Amato. I taught eighth graders English and reading for thirty-four years and was president of the teachers' union in my district from 1985 until 2006. I retired from teaching in 2006 and now spend my time reading, writing, napping, and eating chocolate. My newest book, Another Dead Republican, is my thirteenth book in the Tom and Scott series which features as main characters, a gay school teacher and his lover, a professional baseball player. One of the keys in my mysteries is you do not want to be a person who is racist, sexist, homophobic, or a school administrator. If you are any of those, it is likely you are the corpse, or, at the least, it can be fairly well guaranteed that bad things will happen to you by the end. And if in my books you happen to be a Republican and/or against workers' rights, it would be far better if you did not make a habit of broadcasting this. If you did, you're quite likely to be a suspect, or worse.
Mark Richard Zubro is an American mystery novelist. He lives in Mokena, Illinois and taught 8th grade English at Summit Hill Jr. High in nearby Frankfort Square, Illinois.
Zubro writes bestselling mysteries set in Chicago and the surrounding Cook County area, which are widely praised as fast-paced, with interesting plots and well-rounded, likeable characters. His novels feature gay themes, and Zubro is himself gay.
His longest running series features high school teacher Tom Mason, and Tom's boyfriend, professional baseball player Scott Carpenter. The other series Zubro is known for is the Paul Turner mysteries, which are about a Chicago police detective. The books are a part of the Stonewall Inn Mystery series, published by St. Martin's Press. Zubro won a Lambda Literary Award for Best Gay Men's Mystery for his book A Simple Suburban Murder.
Series:
* Tom Mason and Scott Carpenter
* Paul Turner
I am the author of twenty-four mystery novels and five short stories. My book A Simple Suburban Murder won the Lambda Literary Award for Best Gay Men's mystery. I also wrote a thriller, Foolproof, with two other mystery writers, Jeanne Dams and Barb D'Amato. I taught eighth graders English and reading for thirty-four years and was president of the teachers' union in my district from 1985 until 2006. I retired from teaching in 2006 and now spend my time reading, writing, napping, and eating chocolate. My newest book, Another Dead Republican, is my thirteenth book in the Tom and Scott series which features as main characters, a gay school teacher and his lover, a professional baseball player. One of the keys in my mysteries is you do not want to be a person who is racist, sexist, homophobic, or a school administrator. If you are any of those, it is likely you are the corpse, or, at the least, it can be fairly well guaranteed that bad things will happen to you by the end. And if in my books you happen to be a Republican and/or against workers' rights, it would be far better if you did not make a habit of broadcasting this. If you did, you're quite likely to be a suspect, or worse.
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Displaying 1 - 10 of 10 reviews
April 5, 2009
Well, I am not sure why I actually liked these books. They are very elementary.
I don't really like mysteries where the people that are constantly finding dead bodies are in no way qualified to try and solve the murders. A teacher and a pro baseball player? Really?
This one was even more far fetched, from the island for rich gay people, to the secret treasure room, to the people committing murder. Just didn't make sense at all.
It got to the point where I didn't really care if Tom and/or Scott died. Nor did I care who was killing people or why. Just didn't care.
I don't really like mysteries where the people that are constantly finding dead bodies are in no way qualified to try and solve the murders. A teacher and a pro baseball player? Really?
This one was even more far fetched, from the island for rich gay people, to the secret treasure room, to the people committing murder. Just didn't make sense at all.
It got to the point where I didn't really care if Tom and/or Scott died. Nor did I care who was killing people or why. Just didn't care.
May 8, 2010
PROTAGONIST: Tom Mason and Scott Carpenter
SETTING: An island for rich gay men
SERIES: #11 of 11
RATING: 1.0
When Tom Mason, a retired Chicago high school teacher, and Scott Carpenter, a former professional baseball player, got married, Tom's gift to Scott was an annual trip to Korkasi, an island in the Aegean Sea which was the most exclusive and expensive gay resort in the world. The staff on the island cater to the guests' every whim; it's an idyllic escape for the privileged as well as a place where some of the visitors indulge in questionable practices and pleasures.
Shortly before New Year's Eve, a ferocious storm hits the island and all contact with the outside world is cut off, and there's no way to leave the island. Someone takes advantage of the situation and murders the owner of the island, sets off an explosion at the resort's headquarters which kills several employees and goes on a killing spree of horrendous proportions. Tom and Scott take it upon themselves to uncover the murderer before everyone dies. Unfortunately, they are successful.
I am actually amazed that I was able to complete EVERYONE'S DEAD BUT US, because just about every aspect of the book was deeply unsatisfying. There was not one character with whom I felt any connection. Tom and Scott seemed like the same person to me; since Tom is the narrator of the story, he has a bit more depth than Scott. They are described by another character as follows: "They are considered to be studs and very hot. Being that studly with decent money, although not old money, makes some difference. I believe they are really in love." The other characters in the book are complete caricatures. No one is likable—they are spoiled and whiny or confrontational, with dialog that is at times laughable.
Zubro may have been trying to play homage to Agatha Christie with the secluded island setting, but he certainly did not succeed at building a plot that was cohesive and plausible. Maybe there's hidden treasure—it seems that some of the guests may have been using the island to hide major art pieces (e.g., Mona Lisa) for some unknown but likely nefarious purpose. There's possibly an evil cabal of gay thieves; let's not forget the pretender to the French throne or the sadistic football player. There's an Israeli agent who may be there to set up the Korsaki as a terrorist base. Every few pages, another character is dispensed with a bullet to the head. Amazingly, the killer is unable to hit Tom or Scott, even after dozens of shots at them. The motivation for the killings is preposterous, at best. The resolution was so beyond belief that I'm still tsk-ing at it.
It may have been possible for me to overlook some of the failings of the book if Zubro had exhibited skill in his writing. Sadly, that was not the case. I was constantly floored by various turns of phrase and construction of paragraphs. It's hard to imagine that the prose came from an author who has won the Lambda Literary Award and published almost 20 books.
- "The rain would sluice off some of the mess on us….And the rain wasn't as good as your Kenmore in the basement for cleaning in the first place."
- "Sounding like an oboe on downers or Eeyore on his worst possible day, Oser said…."
- "I'd dealt with death while I was in the Marines. I wasn't used to it, not like you get used to the color of your refrigerator."
I did find some of the descriptive passages to be very well done and only wished that Zubro had carried his skill in that area to the writing of the rest of the book.
SETTING: An island for rich gay men
SERIES: #11 of 11
RATING: 1.0
When Tom Mason, a retired Chicago high school teacher, and Scott Carpenter, a former professional baseball player, got married, Tom's gift to Scott was an annual trip to Korkasi, an island in the Aegean Sea which was the most exclusive and expensive gay resort in the world. The staff on the island cater to the guests' every whim; it's an idyllic escape for the privileged as well as a place where some of the visitors indulge in questionable practices and pleasures.
Shortly before New Year's Eve, a ferocious storm hits the island and all contact with the outside world is cut off, and there's no way to leave the island. Someone takes advantage of the situation and murders the owner of the island, sets off an explosion at the resort's headquarters which kills several employees and goes on a killing spree of horrendous proportions. Tom and Scott take it upon themselves to uncover the murderer before everyone dies. Unfortunately, they are successful.
I am actually amazed that I was able to complete EVERYONE'S DEAD BUT US, because just about every aspect of the book was deeply unsatisfying. There was not one character with whom I felt any connection. Tom and Scott seemed like the same person to me; since Tom is the narrator of the story, he has a bit more depth than Scott. They are described by another character as follows: "They are considered to be studs and very hot. Being that studly with decent money, although not old money, makes some difference. I believe they are really in love." The other characters in the book are complete caricatures. No one is likable—they are spoiled and whiny or confrontational, with dialog that is at times laughable.
Zubro may have been trying to play homage to Agatha Christie with the secluded island setting, but he certainly did not succeed at building a plot that was cohesive and plausible. Maybe there's hidden treasure—it seems that some of the guests may have been using the island to hide major art pieces (e.g., Mona Lisa) for some unknown but likely nefarious purpose. There's possibly an evil cabal of gay thieves; let's not forget the pretender to the French throne or the sadistic football player. There's an Israeli agent who may be there to set up the Korsaki as a terrorist base. Every few pages, another character is dispensed with a bullet to the head. Amazingly, the killer is unable to hit Tom or Scott, even after dozens of shots at them. The motivation for the killings is preposterous, at best. The resolution was so beyond belief that I'm still tsk-ing at it.
It may have been possible for me to overlook some of the failings of the book if Zubro had exhibited skill in his writing. Sadly, that was not the case. I was constantly floored by various turns of phrase and construction of paragraphs. It's hard to imagine that the prose came from an author who has won the Lambda Literary Award and published almost 20 books.
- "The rain would sluice off some of the mess on us….And the rain wasn't as good as your Kenmore in the basement for cleaning in the first place."
- "Sounding like an oboe on downers or Eeyore on his worst possible day, Oser said…."
- "I'd dealt with death while I was in the Marines. I wasn't used to it, not like you get used to the color of your refrigerator."
I did find some of the descriptive passages to be very well done and only wished that Zubro had carried his skill in that area to the writing of the rest of the book.
March 5, 2012
Ok gay mystery in which Tom and Scott vacation at an island resort and bodies start turning up everywhere. This was beyond silly, actually. And what the heck is up with the book blurb, which says that, "Tom Mason, former Chicago area high school teacher, recently made a public splash by marrying his long-term lover, former professional baseball player Scott Carpenter." The problem is that, as far as I remember, neither of them has retired from their professions. Their wedding a few books back was timed after the end of the baseball season. The next book is set at the school where Tom teaches, and it sure sounds like he's still teaching. The blurb on GRs matches the blurb on the dust jacket.
March 20, 2022
I've liked the Tom and Scott stories generally, but this one kind of went off in a whole other direction.
Lots of murders, lots of egotistical rich people, lots of stereotypes.
I did get to a point where I actually thought it may have been an elaborate ruse to give Tom a mystery to solve and everyone would reappear - it got that much OTT for me.
Will see if it all returns to regular murders on return to the US
Lots of murders, lots of egotistical rich people, lots of stereotypes.
I did get to a point where I actually thought it may have been an elaborate ruse to give Tom a mystery to solve and everyone would reappear - it got that much OTT for me.
Will see if it all returns to regular murders on return to the US
July 1, 2023
Unfortunately, I couldn't get into this instalment at all and my lack of interest made me drop the series for a few months.
December 2, 2023
Where's all the art?
June 26, 2014
I have had this copy for a few years and finally got around to reading it. I usually like the books of this series - don't really know why, maybe it is just the interaction between Tom and Scott. The other books have plots that could have happened. This one was just too over the top, as other people have noted.
I usually like the witty narration and dialogue of Tom. I spotted a word used incorrectly at one point and wondered if it was an editing problem. I also wondered if there had been more that I missed.
It did not help to follow the plot when at page 154, the copy of my book began to have a series of double blank pages. There would be a few normal pages and then two blank pages facing each other. This happened about six times. I don't even remember where I bought it.
I usually like the witty narration and dialogue of Tom. I spotted a word used incorrectly at one point and wondered if it was an editing problem. I also wondered if there had been more that I missed.
It did not help to follow the plot when at page 154, the copy of my book began to have a series of double blank pages. There would be a few normal pages and then two blank pages facing each other. This happened about six times. I don't even remember where I bought it.
July 5, 2008
Like many of the reviews that I read I couldn't put the book down once I started until my body shut down for sleep. Mystery, conspiracy, murder, humor, Nazi's, stolen treasure, etc. It had it all.
A gay resort in the middle of the Mediterranean Sea for the extremely rich and gay. A vacation/get away spot where secrecy is of top priority. But within their own little world on this island there are more secrets that most people know about spanning centuries. Unexpectedly, partners on their yearly vacation to the island find themselves entangled in a web of mystery, murder, conspiracy, stolen treasure and old ties to the Third Reich.
It's the best gay mystery novel I've read yet.
A gay resort in the middle of the Mediterranean Sea for the extremely rich and gay. A vacation/get away spot where secrecy is of top priority. But within their own little world on this island there are more secrets that most people know about spanning centuries. Unexpectedly, partners on their yearly vacation to the island find themselves entangled in a web of mystery, murder, conspiracy, stolen treasure and old ties to the Third Reich.
It's the best gay mystery novel I've read yet.
September 8, 2008
Uugh...
I've read one of his other books a year or so ago, and liked it well enough, but this one...
On page 44 and hating every moment.
A huge tragedy on a resort that causes death and the complete collapse of a building, huge storm going on....No one at all is freaking out or panicing. They are all giving the answers that the lead guys are asking and...WTF??
Maybe I have to read the others because this is part of a series so maybe I would like the main guys enough to forgive the writing.
I hate abandoning books, but if it is going to take me a month to choke this down...forget it!
I have a new Patterson book burning a hole on my shelf that is just taunting me!
I've read one of his other books a year or so ago, and liked it well enough, but this one...
On page 44 and hating every moment.
A huge tragedy on a resort that causes death and the complete collapse of a building, huge storm going on....No one at all is freaking out or panicing. They are all giving the answers that the lead guys are asking and...WTF??
Maybe I have to read the others because this is part of a series so maybe I would like the main guys enough to forgive the writing.
I hate abandoning books, but if it is going to take me a month to choke this down...forget it!
I have a new Patterson book burning a hole on my shelf that is just taunting me!
June 13, 2010
Sorry but I thought this book was horrible. It was overly predictable, and any chance at real suspense was sadly lost.
Displaying 1 - 10 of 10 reviews