The exploding wastebasket is a prank, but slaughtered lab rats have graduate student Maggie Ryan, Monica Bauer and the rest of the lab on edge. When the custodian is murdered, actor Nick O’Connor goes undercover to investigate, help that Maggie does not appreciate– or does she?
While Nick and Maggie search for the killer, Monica struggles to connect with a veteran who was shot in the head in Vietnam.
About MURDER IS PATHOLOGICAL (Maggie Ryan 1969)
“[Carlson’s] work offers a unique combination of empathy for her characters, her sense of history, and her ability to weave the social and political currents of the ’60s and early ’70s into the stories.” –– The Drood Review of Mystery
“The vandal is elusive. When at last the mystery is solved, the conclusion is stunning.”––The Armchair Detective
Excerpt:
Neurology grad student Monica Bauer after helping out at nursing home, 1969.
Finally Monica said good-bye, signed out, drove away. Mary and Jock, Bibbsy and Ted never would. Four friends, trapped by their own broken brains. Especially Ted, who still struggled courageously to fuse the bits of his shattered world into coherence. Who still remembered that things had once been different, that he had once been whole.
Maybe she would never discover anything that could help them. But with Dr. Weisen’s help, she meant to give it a damn good try. Back in Laconia, she parked in front of her square brick house, then paused to wait for Maggie, who was at the corner mailing a letter. “Trying to send a message to the outside world?” called Monica.
“Yeah. My friend Nick.” Maggie, exuberant, sprinted from the corner, ending with a cartwheel. Then she pulled herself up with dignity and asked, “How were your friends today?”
“Soaking up sun.”
“Good for them. Listen, we’re going to the concert tonight. Can you come?”
“No, I’ve got to get back to the lab right after dinner. Have to check on those baby rats I delivered today.” And so Monica was second on the scene. She unlocked the main door of the lab, and at the sound of her steps Norman erupted from the door of the animal quarters, gaping in terror.
“Miz Bauer! Come quick!” he pleaded. “Something terrible happened!”
Monica ran after him into one of Dr. Weisen’s animal rooms. She said, “Oh, Christ!”
In the center of the room lay a heap of slaughtered rats, their backs broken and mangled, their skulls smashed.
About The Author:
P.M. Carlson taught psychology and statistics at Cornell University before deciding that mystery writing was more fun. She has published twelve mystery novels and over a dozen short stories. Her novels have been nominated for an Edgar Award, a Macavity Award, and twice for Anthony Awards.
Two short stories were finalists for Agatha Awards. She edited the Mystery Writers Annual for Mystery Writers of America for several years, and served as President of Sisters In Crime.
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Sounds like a compelling read.
Thanks, Rita! I feel the stakes are very high for Monica and researchers like Monica. The work they have to do is difficult and makes many of us queasy, but I agree with her that it’s important to discover what we can about human brains, so that we can better help people whose minds are unbalanced from trauma or pathology. Monica’s connection to the patients keeps her grounded and focused.
Sounds intense and intriguing!
Thanks, Trix. Of course Maggie Ryan is up to her usual pranks, and her actor friend Nick O’Connor is on the scene trying to figure out how to become more than a friend, so there’s humor and even romance in this science-lab mystery.