The Slime Mold Murder: An ecological thriller set in the dark woods of the Pacific Northwest

Mushroom Thriller #4

by Ellen King Rice, Duncan Sheffels (Illustrator)

Kirkus Reviews says, “Characterization is Rice’s strength; she’s packed this volume with memorable characters, including a sexy sculptress, an elusive nature photographer, and a prickly visiting professor. As with her earlier works set in the Pacific Northwest, she effectively shines a spotlight on nature, in this case, slime molds. Helping to bring these little-known organisms to life are the striking illustrations by Sheffels. . . A whimsical whodunit both educational and entertaining.”

A Winner of the 2020 IPPY Gold Medal for best regional fiction, Ellen King Rice is back with a fourth biological adventure set in the woods of the Pacific Northwest, this time exploring the fascinating world of the Myxogastria slime molds.

At nineteen, Dylan’s brilliant mind is an asset as he struggles with severe ADHD and deteriorating living conditions. He’s one semester away from completing his college degree in ecology, but he’s out of cash, out of soap, and about to be evicted.

A post-pandemic opportunity to survey a rural property sounds like a lifeline. The owner of a creepy faux-chateau is ready to pay a handsome wage for a list of species found on the property. Dylan can’t believe his good luck. He’s about to be paid to wander in the woods. How hard can it be to make a plant list?

Dylan’s contract is threatened when a body is found in the woods. Dylan seeks the reason for the death, but his lightning-fast mind is constantly undermined by his poor executive functioning. He can discourse eloquently on the significance of Chaucer’s The Canterbury Tales, but he can’t find his wallet. He longs to adopt an orphaned West Highland terrier, but he’s not sure he’d remember to feed a dog. He certainly can’t afford a bag of dog kibble, much less the repairs needed on his vintage Honda.

How can Dylan’s intuitive grasp of ecology and the complex life cycles of the Myxogastria help to expose a killer? And how does he protect his friends and a small, confused dog from those who eagerly embrace violence?

Ellen King Rice is a wildlife biologist who explores the woods while wearing leg braces. Her slow pace has provided opportunities to learn about the Northwest’s small and cryptic species. Her vivid adventures shine a spotlight on the richness found on the forest floor, augmented by crisp illustrations from Olympia artist, Duncan Sheffels. This award-winning pair have been charming woodland lovers since 2016.

Genres: Mystery

304 pages, Kindle Edition

Published June 24, 2021

About the author

Ellen King Rice is a former wildlife biologist with passions for epigenetics and fungi.

In her younger years she served as a wildlife conservation officer, a big game manager, an endangered species biologist and as an lobbyist for environmental issues.

After a spinal cord injury halted her field work, Ellen studied dominance and territorial behaviors while parenting toddlers and adolescents.

One year she entered a Hank the Cowdog story contest and won a twenty two volume set of Hank adventures. This trained her brain in the fine art of being a misunderstood genius.

Ellen posts interesting tidbits about fungi every Tuesday at:

https://www.facebook.com/mushroomthri...

The best fun is the fungi!

Reviews

[Elentarri]

Apparently I read a completely different book to all the other people who gave this novel 4 and 5 stars.

****************SPOILERS**********************

The Slime Mold Murder has a murder (or at least a corpse) and a ridiculous amount of info-dumping about slime molds. There is however, no connection between the murder and the slime mold, which is rather disappointing. No vengeful, carnivorous slime mold; no use of slime mold as a murder weapon; or even the opportunistic feeding habit of any particular slime mold on the corpse. Just a few mycologists pottering around the woods in the Pacific Northwest setting, identifying fungi, plants and slime molds... and eventually a corpse.

There is also a limited amount of investigating going on in this book - either by the official police department or by the main character and friends - and the "murder mystery" is rather weak if you can figure out who did even before the body shows up. There was a great deal of socialising of one sort or another occurring on the page, but no detecting, unless you call flash-bulb moments by the main character investigating.

The main character is supposed to have ADHD, but just comes across as scatterbrained and messy. Most of the characters did not have individual personalities and tended to blend together - they were all overly..."agreeable"... and so helpful and... so sweet... that any diabetic reading this is likely to go into a coma. There was no tension. It was fairly obvious a few pages in that "nothing bad was going to happen." The whole thing comes to a rapid close once the villain starts declaiming his obligatory villain monologue explaining to all and sundry (the whole cast pitched up for the show down) what his grand plans and schemes were - I just found this bit silly. It came out of nowhere.


This book was neither suspenseful or thrilling and the whole novel was rather disappointing. I was waiting for the slime mold to play a part in the novel, not just in the title and as info-dumps.

[Judy Kiehart]

I was given an Advanced Reader's copy of The Slime Mold Murders. Ellen does not disappoint. Her books include characters you love and one or two characters who are not-so loveable. For those who don't have biology backgrounds, the illustrations by Duncan Sheffels are helpful as Ellen creatively weaves science with clever analogies between characters and fungi. Her book includes a mystery and is placed in our post-pandemic timeline. Because I am new to the PNW, after reading Ellen's books, my treks in the PNW woods are much more interesting as I search for ecological treasures. I definitely recommend this book to those interested in science, biology, the PNW, and those who look for a good read!

Not sure why Goodreads indicates I read this book 2 times....probably a reflection of my tech skills when reviewing. :)

[Ben]

Great! The initial attraction was the title reference to slime molds, a personal interest since finding a Fuligo septima in my backyard a few years past. (I highly recommend the Slime Mold Identification and Appreciation Facebook group.) The author is also local and the work is set in my county which added some allure, but there were characters with dimensions I'd never seen such as the ADHD genius protagonist, and a tight plot. This is the fourth in a series with the common theme of fungi and/or non-vascular plants and I'm looking forward to reading others!

[SE Lyons]

I rarely write reviews, but I just have to for this book! It started slowly, but piqued my interest in no time. It’s such a combination of intriguing science, art, and interesting characters. Add in extra bonuses like a character with ADHD & current politicosocial issues, this ecological thriller is a winner! I’m looking forward to reading another book by Ellen King, EvoAngel.

[Nan Hurley]

This book is incredible in so many ways. It is very educational regarding slime molds and how truly amazing they are, I love the diversity of the characters. I love that the importance of ecology is included. I can hardly wait to read more from Ellen King Rice. Thank you for writing this wonderful book!

[Joshua]

I had the delight of stumbling into this book at a booth at a local festival. I was instantly captivated by the description on the back of a book about Dylan, who has a genius IQ and severe ADHD. That the setting is "post-pandemic," 2021 settled it in my mind that I had to read it.

Overall, this was a great discovery where I couldn't put the book down. Ellen King Rice has a good style of writing short chapters and interesting, well-realized characters that make for a captivating blend. The book's subtitle prominently states that it is an "ecological thriller," but it reads much more like a cozy mystery.

One aspect of this book that I really enjoyed is all the learning about slime molds, which is not something I would have expected myself to be saying! The author is a biologist, and this expertise seeps out of the pages. She does well to thread the line between giving just enough information and straight-up info dumping about slime molds. I did learn quite a bit a found myself googling for real pictures frequently to see what these creatures look like! I'm honestly eagerly awaiting some October rains this year so I can go slime mold hunting myself.

So how does the central aspect that interested me in this book hold up? I found the depiction of ADHD in the main character, Dylan, to be rather true to life. There were some features of Dylan that were far from my own experience with ADHD, namely his ability to recall a great number of things. But the picture of his life at 19: unpaid bills, neglected laundry, etc., had me going through flashbacks (some slightly more recent than 19). Dylan's ADHD didn't always crop up where I thought it should have, but the presentation of ADHD can vary quite a bit in some of the specifics, so this was understandable. It is clear that the character is written with care.

I would recommend this book to anyone looking for a cozy mystery, books that really evoke the vibe of the PNW, fans of slime molds (I assume there have to be some out there somewhere), or someone looking for ADHD representation in their fiction.

[Stephanie]

Review for The Slime Mold Murder
Ellen King Rice has done it again. Combining a world of mystery, murder, mayhem, seduction and humor in both humans and slime molds with an intelligent hero with ADHD sounds impossible, but this clever author seems to revel in the magical challenge. As in all of Ellen’s books, the suspense creates a tension and exciting wonder about evil intentions that is only resolved with each character at the end. Ellen being a scientist, her novels teach about the flora and fauna of the Great Pacific Northwest as well as entertain. Her lively characters pop off the page as fully and believably real, even the evil Bad Guys.
Thank you Ellen! I am so looking forward to your next brilliant adventure.

[Robert Littrell]

I love Ellen King Rice books and just finished her last mushroom/fungal murder mystery (in this case, Myxomycota, which are not actually either mushroom or fungi). This was an easy read with lot's of characters to keep up with, but Dylan ends up being the one you care most about. A poor, genius with ADHD Evergreen State College (?) student working on his masters while in search of financial stability, he is caught up in the murder near the property where he is hired to do a ecological study.

Living near Olympia, WA, I really like how Ellen incorporates the area into her studies and I plan to read more of her books in the future. I love her work and the way she incorporates her biology background and love for mushroom/fungus science into her stories.

[Marycatlin]

Ellen King Rice writes about the natural world with a side of slime molds in an entertaining, original, and charming novel. For all the new novelists who struggle to incorporate scientific topics without dumping data, Ms Rice provides a fine example. Also appreciated are her inclusive characters that range from a person with ADHD, to impoverished graduate students and even a trust fund baby with a heart of gold.

This is popular fiction that entertains and educates about a world in the Pacific Northwest. Those broadly interested in plants and alga in for a special treat.

[Johanna Flynn]

King Rice does it again with memorable characters, a fast-paced plot, and interesting facts about what grows in PNW. Like her other books this one is intergenerational, depicting a community of diverse individuals working together. What I love about her work is learning about what grows under our soil and rises to surprise and delight, if only we take the time to look. This novel is well worth taking a look.

[Darlene Granberg]

I thoroughly enjoyed the mixture of science and murder mystery in this novel. Also enjoyed the local aspect of the story. I have an avid interest in all this slime mold, lichen, and fungi, so see the remainder of these books in my near future.

[Conchetta]

Nice tale and you get to learn about slime molds.

[Ed Carter]

Movie needed!

Ellen serves up a good meaty stew with her mysteries! I always get a kick from her illustrations and the quotes she uses! Great characters with fun feisty nerdy conversations! I love the way they think!

[Sonja Bremen]

The story was nice and plotted along, nothing too exciting, but I loved all the characters. Everyone was charming and three dimensional and they had real interests and passions. I also really loved learning about slime molds.
And the illustrations were divine!