Addressed to Kill: A Postmistress Mystery
By Jean Flowers
Berkley
July 25, 2017

Review by Cynthia Chow

As the lone postmistress of North Ashcot, Massachusetts, Cassie Miller had thought that her biggest challenge would be dealing with Valentine’s Day, the post office’s second busiest day of the year (second only to Christmas). Promoting the spirit of the season, Cassie has agreed to allow the local amateur musicians the Ashcots rehearse for the Valentine’s Day dinner dance in the office’s community room during closed hours. It was after one of their rehearsals that a very cranky Dennis Sommerville came to her counter complaining about threatening letters from his students. Cassie didn’t think that anonymous notes warning the physics professor that he would be reported to the college oversight committee amounted to an actual prosecutable threat, but it’s an opinion she’s willing to revise when Dennis is found murdered in his home.

Bearing a tremendous amount of guilt for not investigating the letters, Cassie feels compelled to investigate the reasons why the academic ended up dead. A string of home robberies in town at first seemed to her biggest lead, but that’s quickly set aside in favor of the rampant egos and strife prevalent within the college. It seems that battles continually wage between the Math and Physics departments, with warfare being conducted through course catalogues, required classes, and syllabi. Chief of Police Sunni Smargon may raise an eyebrow at Cassie’s need to ease her conscience, but the resourceful and engaging postal worker will prove relentless and skilled at tracking down the final clues leading to a murderer.

The prolific author of numerous mystery series written under her name Camille Minichino, she once again crafts an elaborately plotted and compelling puzzle for readers. The unexpected highlights are the quirky stories and history behind the United States Postal Service. From the most unusual items mailed – there is a standard to the number of allowable honeybees – to the unacknowledged role of women in its workforce, details are sprinkled throughout without interrupting the flow of the novel. Not only is the post office a place for the locals to gather, gossip, and share news, it remains an extraordinarily efficient and inexpensive form of communication. Even in this age of email, Instagram, and texting, the Federal Office remains a force to be reckoned with through its investigative powers and resources. Cassie’s obvious dedication and loyalty to the standards of the Post Office make her all the more admirable, especially since she left Boston to return to her small town. That this author continues to deliver so many original, timely, and very entertaining cozy mysteries is both an achievement and a welcome delight. Camille Minichino’s PhD in physics does make her choice of a victim an intriguing one, and one can’t help but wonder if there’s a little vicarious thrill involved. If the real world of the academia is anything like the nefarious, ego-driven, backstabbing one presented here, no one would blame her.