The Collected Stories of Amanda Cross

December 30, 1996
This slim volume of 10 short stories deftly demonstrates Cross's mastery of the nonviolent, literary puzzler. Cross is the nom de plume of Carolyn Heilbrun, who explains in her introduction that, while she prefers novels to short stories, her series character, sleuthing English professor Kate Fansler, demanded attention while Heilbrun finished her nonfiction book Writing a Woman's Life (1988). Consequently, as Cross, she wrote three of these stories in which Fansler's niece relates her aunt's adventures: "Tania's Nowhere," concerns a professor who vanishes; "Once Upon a Time" hinges on the mysterious parentage of a student; and the lost dog of a stuffy professor's daughter animates "Arrie and Jasper." While these contain a hint of academic life and no dead bodies, the more successful stories acquaint readers with unique, colorful characters and their dilemmas. In "The Baroness" (not a Fansler story), a New York woman is asked by her British friend to surreptitiously return a stolen artwork and then is conscripted to help catch the thief. In the most successful story (and the only previously unpublished one), "The George Eliot Play," readers get a short course on the author's life as well as an ingenious mystery surrounding a resurfaced manuscript. Those who want their minds engaged in a whodunit will do well to turn to these short Cross sections.

Starred review from December 15, 1996
Before McCone, Warshawski, and Millhone, there was Kate Fansler, and, behind the veil of "Amanda Cross," Columbia University professor (now emerita) Carolyn Heilbrun, who wrote the largely academic mysteries pseudonymously because, until recent years, acknowledging their authorship would have terminated her employment. Fansler, who is midway between an earlier generation's Wimsey and the younger female PIs she has inspired, is an academic of independent means, married but unburdened by children and household chores, a nonprofessional with a name for quietly solving puzzles. Mayhem and murder figure in the 11 Fansler novels, but Kate never wields a weapon and seldom corners a criminal; her investigative strengths are her intimate knowledge of literature and academia. Heilbrun has written just eight Fansler short stories over the past decade; all but one ("The George Eliot Play," written for this collection) have been published in mystery magazines or anthologies. The collection's final tale, "The Baroness," is Heilbrun/Cross' only non-Fansler mystery story and only first-person narrative. A feast for fans of Heilbrun/Cross; expect requests. ((Reviewed December 15, 1996))(Reprinted with permission of Booklist, copyright 1996, American Library Association.)

May 1, 1997
YA-Kate Fansler, a university professor normally involved with things academic, also dabbles in solving mysteries. In these short stories, she deals with cases ranging from missing persons to murder. Cross presents a complex jumble of seemingly enigmatic clues that Kate proceeds to study and resolve into a simple answer based on logic and deduction. The author camouflages the clues, facts, and answers by placing them in total view during the entire story. Readers then face the intriguing challenge of logically arranging the given information to solve the mystery, just as Kate must. While the protagonist becomes more clearly defined as the stories progress, the secondary characters take on their own distinct personalities right from their points of introduction. The plots move quickly, succinctly including the necessary people, places, and things. Cross's nonviolent stories will appeal to YAs who enjoy solving mysteries through careful reasoning.-Pam Johnson, Fairfax County Public Library, VA