A clever idea for a heroine in a murder mystery stroke thriller, totally believable and a good enjoyable read. Chance of maybe a further book in a series?

A linguistics professor at a New England college attempts to solve the murder of her student (and lover) in this suspenseful mystery. Campus politics, drug abuse, the Quaker religion, race relations and a police investigation all combine to make Speaking of Murder a thrilling 5 star read.

Lauren Rousseau teaches linguistics and has championed the research paper her student Jamal has written on black children and language. The head of her department, Dr. Alexa Kensington, rejected the paper and argues passionately with Jamal who is later found dead. Solving his murder and discovering how or if Alexa is responsible is only one part of this well constructed story. Lauren is working on her relationship with Zac, a freelance videographer, who has pushed her to be more committed to him. She’s also dealing with her own family and her longtime friend Elise’s drug problem. Although Lauren believes she’s only helping the police investigation she doesn’t realize how dangerous this will become.

Speaking of Murder is the first in a new series and I’m looking forward to reading the next. I love the college setting, the diverse characters and the plot which gathers speed until the nail biting final moments.

Thank you to NetGalley, Beyond the Page Publishing and Edith Maxwell for this ARC.

I quite liked this story which is engrossing and well written.
I liked the characters, the plot and the solid mystery.
Recommended.
Many thanks to the publisher and Netgalley for this ARC, all opinions are mine.

Thank you to NetGalley and Beyond the Page Publishing for an Advanced Release Copy in exchange for my honest review.

I will admit that the setting of New England was one of the biggest draws for me of this book. I have never read anything by Edith Maxwell before but I do think that I will in the future.

While the "who done it" was somewhat predictable, it was still a fast-moving story with well developed characters and a wonderful description of ths setting. The mood of the story is appropriately dark and overall it was a well written mystery.

I have had this book on my list since I read Tace Maxwell was a pseudonym for Edith Maxwell. When Netgalley offered me the opportunity to read it, I jumped at it.

It is a complicated story with flawed characters but moved rather quickly. I suspected that Alexa had other motives for not approving Jamal’s thesis. Stating it was too mature for an undergraduate just didn’t sit right.

In this dark, suspenseful novel we are exposed to family dysfunction, child abuse, drugs, and few other nasty elements of society.

Jamal wanted to better his community and his thesis just might have helped others understand a way out for low income communities.

This was a good read. I am not required to leave a positive review.

What a great start to a mystery series! As you should never shop when hungry, neither should you read an Edith Maxwell book - food always sounds sooo good!

Lauren Rousseau is a professor at a small New England college; Jamal is her best student and slightly older than most of them. When Lauren wakes up next to him she is shocked at her own behaviour, but when she leaves college a few nights later and finds his dead body on campus, she is even more shocked. Could it be anything to do with his fall-out with her boss, or is there some other reason? With no real leads for the police to go on, Lauren can't leave it alone and determines to find his killer.

Wow, this is one busy book! It's never a straightforward matter of solving one death with this author - she has a wonderful imagination. I really like Lauren, and look forward to more from this series. With her romantic life hanging in the balance, her friend, sister, other family members and her penchant to follow her nose - despite her heart, and mine, thumping in her chest, this is an exciting read! Lauren is much braver than me - creeping around investigating others is most definitely not my forte. Another feature of this author's work is always the fabulous food especially from different cultures and my mouth watered throughout. My only criticism is a personal annoyance: as a Scot, I have no issue with American and Irish spirits being described as whiskEy, but Glenfiddich is most definitely Scottish and therefore WHISKY. A well-planned and beautifully written tale, as always, and one I recommend to all lovers of a good mystery with several strands to follow. I'm happy to give this 5* and await the next one!

My thanks to the publisher for my copy via NetGalley; this is - as always - my honest, original and unbiased review.

A thrilling murder mystery.
Lauren is linguistics professor. One of her favorite students is murdered.
Keeps you guessing who is the killer.
Have read this authors books under Maddie Day and enjoy them too.

What a compelling read this was!
It has that cozy mystery vibe!
a startling murder exposes dark dealings in a quiet New England town!
I really enjoyed this book by Edith Maxwell.
I loved how the characters came to life & the setting of the books felt very real!

Thank You NetGalley & Publisher for this amazing ARC!

Looking forward to reading more from this amazing writer!

Speaking of Murder will intrigue you with all the twists. The characters all seem to be fighting their own problems. You'll find following the clues interesting. "Lauren can't help but try to help her friend and try to solve her student's death.

I really wanted to like this book. I’m a huge fan of this author and I was excited to see this book on NetGalley.
Unfortunately, I just couldn’t get into the story. The characters seemed a bit stiff, which was hard for me.

I will always continue to read the other books by this author.

I really tried to like this novel but the writing seemed a little off and just not for me. I would give this author another shot regarding future novels. It is a light summer read that some people will enjoy.

Linguistic Professor Lauren Rousseau finds one of her students shot dead on campus. The student was writing a thesis that the department chair was dead set against. When Lauren reads the draft he had given her she starts to connect some dots between his paper and the department chair. Did the chair kill Jamal? Lauren may not be sure who the killer is, but she is determined to find the murderer and what it was that caused such a volatile relationship between the chair and Jamal.

Authors often write their stories far in advance, so the fact that the author is touching on some very relevant topics of the day is refreshing. Racial bigotry cannot be tolerated and I love that the author addresses this in the storyline.

I’m a huge fan of Edith Maxwell/Maddie Day, so I was excited to see a new series from her. Though it was a rocky start for me, I finally found my stride about the midpoint of the book. I’m going to wait for the next entry in this series to decide whether I will be reading it religiously, it could be that I need to get comfortable with a new location and characters, or whether this one is going to be a no go for me. I truly hope it is the former as I enjoy her other books.

I really wanted to like this book! I thought it had a super interesting premise and sounded like a book that I hadnt read before. Unfortunately the writing just didnt do t for me