With a Minor in Murder is a standalone romance/mystery by Karis Walsh. Released 10th May 2022 by Bold Strokes Books, it's 252 pages and is available in paperback and ebook formats. It's worth noting that the ebook format has a handy interactive table of contents as well as interactive links and references throughout. I've really become enamored of ebooks with interactive formats lately.
This is a campus murder mystery, full of historical minutiae and academics. It's told in third person PoV and surprisingly well written. There were some plot points on which my suspension of disbelief got stuck, however. I couldn't, for example, find any sources online where campus police ever investigate serious crimes, especially not murder. For readers who get past that hurdle, it's a readable and engaging book. The main characters are well rendered and three dimensional. Most of the secondary characters are lightly sketched in and seem to primarily be there to provide plot advancement.
I enjoyed the discussions of art and architecture and history. I get the feeling that the author has a deep and eclectic interest in the subject and she does a good job of making it accessible and interesting. Readers who are interested primarily in a murder mystery in a rarefied academic setting (Kate Fansler, Inspector Morse, Hilary Tamar) will likely be outraged and/or disappointed. Readers who are after a lightly drama filled F/F romance which is well written and smut-free will find a lot to like here.
There is no NSFW sexual content. Some of the on-page descriptions are moderately graphic (throat slashing and blunt force trauma).
Three and a half stars. It's unclear if this is a series starter.
Disclosure: I received an ARC at no cost from the author/publisher for review purposes.
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