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This is one of my favorite books of 2023, ticking, as it does, all the boxes —in a nicely clever way — for what makes me enjoy this approach to a mystery story.
Bodie Kane, a well regarded podcaster and instructor in film studies, is invited back to her prestigious former boarding school — Granby — to teach two January mini-mester classes. The podcasting class is the focus of this story. Bodie gives the students prompts to develop their podcast based on some aspect of Granby. Among the prompts of the murder of a teacher and, very personal to Bodie, the murder of a student, Thalia Keith: Thalia had been Bodie’s roommate. The case was quickly solved and the athletic director convicted and sent to prison. But as two students re-investigate the case they begin to question the original investigation.
The narrative is first person from the viewpoint of Bodie. Much of the narrative is addressed to Mr. Bloch, a former teacher and music director at Granby. Why she does this we learn as the narrative progresses. First person is one of my favorite devices, probably because I read noir which frequently uses this voice. I like knowing only what the narrator knows, especially in this case, where Bodie finds herself having to re-evaluate her theories based on what is uncovered.
The author does several things that I thought were pretty cool. One is the quasi epistolary style of many of the chapters which adds an intriguing element to the story with the author keeping us guessing. Another is the way students are incorporated into the story. It isn’y heavy handed and Bodie give them just the right amount of nudging and giving them free rein to pursue their investigation. Having been involved in co-teaching college English classes, the students are very believable in their behavior, reactions, and enthusiasm.
This is a slow burner rather than a thriller, another approach I appreciate. With jump-backs to Bodie’s days as a misfit, out of place student and her student’s contemporary investigation, the book is nonetheless a page turner. Toward the end, the chapters get shorter which has the effect of increasing tension for the reader.
The author works in other issues: cancel culture and the fickleness of the public; the ethics of true crime reporting and the efects of such reporting on the people involved; rape culture; preditors taking advantage of the vulnerable.
Keywords: mysteries, podcasts, true crime, murder, boarding schools.
