Burning Down the House

The mysteries of Lev Raphael are not only thought provoking but literary as well. The characters are educated and it shows. The actual mysteries is a little strained. But the description of the foods he and his partner eats and the wines they drink are worth the price of the books.

This is the darkest and funniest book in the series. It's brilliant academic satire in the vein of David Lodge, Kingsley Amis, James Hynes and many other distinguished writers. I'm glad to see so many people get it, and saddened by the intensely negative and even mean-spirited comments others have posted. They seem less informed than inflamed--either by unconscious discomfort with the book's lack of political correctness or a lack of connection with the university environment. Trust me, I teach at a midwestern college like the one in this series, and Raphael is only a few steps ahead of reality.

BURNING DOWN THE HOUSE is Lev Raphael's best book yet in the Nick Hoffman series. Unlike the previous Nick book which were called mysteries, the cover says "a Nick Hoffman novel." I think this is indicative of the direction the series is going and that certainly is not meant as a criticism. There is no murder, but there is attempted murder. The tone is darker than the others in the series as Nick continues in his sexual fascination with Juno Dromgoole which both intrigues and frightens him. But things on the SUM campus, especially in his department are becoming more and more bizarre with the launch of a campaign for "whiteness studies" and the diversity tree. To complicate matters, Juno has decided she is going to run for the chairmanship of EAR and wants Nick's help. A not very popular decision as at least two attempts are made on Juno's life and Nick is attacked on campus. As with life, there is no neat ending, but rather more self-awareness on Nick's part of how he is capable of reacting. It certainly leaves me eagerly....even anxiously awaiting the next book. The humor is here, but it seems more biting and certainly less tolerant of the fools that Nick encounters in the academic life. It is more like the campus (and the world) would be a better place without some of these bloomin' idiots. I would highly recommend BURNING DOWN THE HOUSE, but suggest that you read Lev's other books in order of publication. Another point about Lev's books. I've been becoming a little concerned that so many books, movies, tv shows, etc. are using only allusions to popular culture, doing away with those to classical literature, mythology, art, et al. Lev manages to bring both into his writing and that is a real bonus.

Not only is Burning Down the House the smartest mystery I've read in ages, it's the sexiest. And Bravo! to Lev Raphael for daring to explore the complexities of sexuality, for giving an honest account of his hero's desire to dip his toe in the other side of the pool. It's a painfully difficult dilemma for his Nick Hoffman, to suddenly desire a woman(and oh, what a woman!), but Raphael handles this conundrum of the human condition in an intelligent and thoughtful way. All this juicey stuff, plus a page-turning who-dunnit set on a hilarious and action-packed college campus. Definitely read this one.

Bravo to Lev Raphael, an author who dares to take chances andshake off the tired conventions of the mystery genre. I love a book that surprises me and takes risks, which "Burning Down The House" does in spades.I don't want to give too much away, but BDTH is definitely not a conventional mystery "whodunit." It *is* a very good novel, though, full of complex characters and wonderful (and often very humorous) writing. Lev's crazy little academic world, with its "diversity trees" (the politically correct Christmas tree) and riotously petty faculty grudges, is a perfectly delightful place to visit, though I wouldn't want to live there!

If you've followed this delightful, well-written, and moving series from the first book, you've watched Nick Hoffman grow progressively disillusioned with his academic home, though he loves teaching itself. The pettiness hasn't just been petty, it's been murderous, and the university he teaches at has become more and more of an autocracy.Well, in BURNING DOWN THE HOUSE, the hard rain starts to fall andNick is caught in an academic riot--yes!--that is the wildest scene Raphael has ever written. It's as good as anything Jane Smiley or David Lodge has done in this vein.Don't expect a paint-by-numbers mystery, and don't expect political correctness either. Nick enters uncharted territory in a number of surprising and exciting ways.