From Publishers Weekly
At the start of Alcorn's uneven third Norman de Ratour mystery (after 2009's The Love Potion Murders in the Museum of Man), Norman, the Museum of Man's director and the book's bloviating narrator, discovers a murdered man in a parked car near the museum, located in the New England town of Seaboard. Unfortunately, the victim is honorary numismatics curator Heinrich Heinie von GrΓΌmh, a wealthy MOM contributor. Worse, Heinie turns out to have been shot with Norman's revolver, making him a prime suspect. Meanwhile, Norman must find a new home for a highly articulate chimp, fend off neighboring Wainscott University's efforts to take over the MOM, and look into whether the antique coins Heinie gave the museum are fakes. Alcorn's barbed darts at academia and the rarified world of top-notch museums amuse, but humor alone isn't enough to redeem a rambling tale of wavering morals populated by mostly unattractive characters. (May)
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Review
"Before one can do justice to Alfred Alcorn's third Norman de Ratour mystery novel, it helps to haul out such adjectives as smart, sharp, fresh, sly, wise, original , and wildly funny. Alcorn can keep a story moving with the swiftness of a dirty look and the brilliance of a fine satire. Set in a mythical academic institution (read Harvard) lucky readers of this novel will meet and get to know characters they won't soon forget--especially Alphus , the most memorable of contemporary philosophers."
β Anne Bernays
Praise for Murder in the Museum of Man and The Love Potion Murders in the Museum of Man :
βThe Marx Brothers would be very welcome at this quirky institution. . . . A stylish, fiendish detective story.β β _The New York Times Book Review
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βAn adroit, hilarious send-up.β βThe New Yorker
βReaders will be choked with laughter.β β The Boston Sunday Herald
βDelicious details on every page.β β_ The Chicago Tribune_
βSly and spicy from start to finish . . . a just-right balance of innocence, subtle malevolence and cheeky irony.β β Publishers Weekly