A trio of menopausal women trade quips and investigate a murder in Isenberg's (Midlife Can Be Murder, etc.) chatty cozy starring 50-something college professor Bell Barrett. Things become decidedly unpleasant at River Edge Community College when one of Bel's students, the dyslexic Belinda Judd, disappears following an outing with the Urban Kayaking Club and turns up dead a week later. The police suspect Jason Carillo, a club member on whom Belinda had a crush. Aware of Bel's penchant for "figuring stuff like this out," Jason appeals to her for help, and Bel, believing in his innocence, once again enlists her cohorts Betty and Illuminada, a private investigator, to find the real culprit. Sol, her always supportive companion, is on hand, as is her mother, who lives nearby. In the midst of the investigation, Illuminada finds she has a lump in her breast, and her girlfriends rally round throughout the scare. Meanwhile, local politics conflict with environmental concerns, setting the community on edge. Bel's sleuthing is frequently interrupted by personal concerns, but seeing her deal with them is nearly as compelling as watching her unravel the mystery. References to the World Trade Center ground the story on the Jersey side of the Hudson, and Bel's enduring friendship with Betty and Illuminada flesh out an otherwise thin mystery. (Sept. 3)
