Murder at the PTA Luncheon

Susan Henshaw is just as puzzled as the police are when two of her co-workers on the school PTA are poisoned within a short time. She works with a police investigator who thinks that her powers of observation and deduction will be a help to him. As Susan and the police delve into the lives of the PTA families in their wealthy Connecticut neighborhood, they uncover possibilities of adultery and drug abuse. It isn't until the end that they put together the clues and finally come up with the murderer. The motive is pretty thin, but still this book is a fun read and is the beginning of a long-running series.

In this, the first of the Susan Henshaw novels, Valerie Wolzien introduces the reader to a clever, quick-thinking suburban housewife. That may not sound like a winner, but IT IS! Susan is a fantastic character, with depth and real emotions, combined with a talent for detection. She isn't snooty at all, and anyone could relate to her and her family. Wolzien's book is smart, funny, easy to read and a great look into the PTA --where petty jealousies and murder lurk. A must read! Note: the books can be read out of sequence, but starting with #1 is best!

I have read several of the books in this series and wonder how I could have missed this one. Susan Henshaw is a suburban housewife heavily involved in the local PTA. At the annual PTA luncheon, one of the committee members dies after eating a sandwich laced with cyanide. Several weeks later, another committee member is also killed with cyanide, this time in a beverage. Susan is nearby in both instances. The CT State Police are called in to assist the locals and they enlist her help in solving the murder. You never know what lurks beneath the surface of the upscale suburban community.This is a wonderful start to the series. No one is what they seem, and everyone appears to have a secret. Athough in retrospect, the author gives clues, the murderer came as a surprise to me. Great Book!!!!

OK, I admit it. I read "We Wish You a Merry Murder" first. This was the third of the Susan and Kathleen books I read. Loved "Merry Murder" and pretty much hated "40th Birthday Body." This one, however, is a keeper. Both the cops and the suburban housewife who helps them solve the murders here confront their prejudices about the way the "other half" lives, be that rich vs. poor, or married vs. single. Susan is not just another frivolous dilettante wealthy stay-at-home mom. She's a good friend with great sensitivity. This one doesn't have the laugh-out-loud funny moments of "Merry Murder," but it's good nonetheless. Like the other reviewer, I was VERY disappointed in the "Menu for Murder" TV movie based on this book. They butchered it. All of Valerie Wolzien's books would make good Sunday night TV movies or Lifetime TV fare--but only if they stick to the book more faithfully. I love these characters, and what you see here is just the start of a fun series with people you don't mind visiting again. After this one, just skip "40th Birthday Body" and take the rest of the books in order, and things will unfold without missing a beat.

This book was made into a TV movie starring Julia Duffy and Cindy Williams, and the luscious Ed Marinaro, among others, but trust me--the book was better. The movie moved the family from Connecticut to California, left out the Kathleen character (a big no-no, if you ask me), and turned Susan's husband into a workaholic jerk, making her susceptible to the charms of Brett. The only real similarities between the plots of the book and the movie were that the families were for the most part, wealthy, and someone did get murdered at a PTA luncheon. The book, Wolzien's first in the "Susan" series, was more complex and the characters much more believable than the caricatures in the TV movie. In this one, you see more of the contrast between the haves and the have nots. Kathleen's character is the most complex and the most interesting here. It's neat to see what Wolzien does with her in future outings in this series