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Murder 101 Mystery #3
Quick Study
Alison thought that dating a cute NYPD detective like Bobby Crawford would be exciting, but he hasn’t really invited her on any stakeouts…
Things do rev up when a friend asks her for help finding his nephew—the same missing boy Bobby pulled from the Hudson days earlier. The boy’s employer calls it a suicide, but Alison and Bobby, not convinced, take the case into their own hands.
With matching and sleuthing to spare, staying out of trouble isn’t on the syllabus in this third outrageous outing starring Alison and Bobby.
Things do rev up when a friend asks her for help finding his nephew—the same missing boy Bobby pulled from the Hudson days earlier. The boy’s employer calls it a suicide, but Alison and Bobby, not convinced, take the case into their own hands.
With matching and sleuthing to spare, staying out of trouble isn’t on the syllabus in this third outrageous outing starring Alison and Bobby.
324 pages, Hardcover
First published December 9, 2008
27 people are currently reading
400 people want to read
About the author
Maggie Barbieri
15 books191 followersMaggie Barbieri is the author of the Murder 101 series, which is comprised of Murder 101 (2006); Extracurricular Activities (2007), Quick Study (2008), Final Exam (2009) and Third Degree (due November 2010.) She lives in the New York metro area/Hudson Valley with her husband, and two children. By day she's a writer and editor of college textbooks. She is currently at work on the sixth book in the series, still untitled.
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 82 reviews
March 8, 2018
Ok- so maybe not a 4 star read as I would normally rate a book. But, this is a cozy mystery book- the 3rd in the series- and as far as 'cozies' go- it is a good series to pick up. Sorta like popcorn for the brain.
Alison Bergeron is a divorced English professor at St. Thomas, a small Catholic college in the Bronx, New York City, getting into all sorts of 'trouble' and of course, you have your hunky, handsome detective - There were more than one laugh out loud moments in this book. An all around fun read- nothing more, nothing less. The characters develop as you get into the series- so if you are looking for a cozy to start reading I'd suggest going with book one. I'm not a 'cozy' type of reading gal, but sometimes I just need a break from all the other books I read- so , to me, this is a good one where I look forward to picking up the next in the series.
Alison Bergeron is a divorced English professor at St. Thomas, a small Catholic college in the Bronx, New York City, getting into all sorts of 'trouble' and of course, you have your hunky, handsome detective - There were more than one laugh out loud moments in this book. An all around fun read- nothing more, nothing less. The characters develop as you get into the series- so if you are looking for a cozy to start reading I'd suggest going with book one. I'm not a 'cozy' type of reading gal, but sometimes I just need a break from all the other books I read- so , to me, this is a good one where I look forward to picking up the next in the series.
April 28, 2013
Maggie Barbieri has added yet another fantastic mystery to the Mystery 101 series. Quick Study contained a great mystery that kept me guessing until the very end.
Summary:
Alison Bergeron has a lot going on. It's her birthday, the Rangers are in the playoffs, she is navigating her still new relationship with Detective Bobby Crawford, and trying to dodge a new admirer's affection. Needless to say, she has no time for a murder or the sleuthing involved in solving it. Regardless, it's the nephew of a new friend of hers, and she cant let it go. The body of Jose Escalante, nephew of Hernan Escalante, is found beaten to death in the river. The Escalante family are illegal immigrants, so Alison feels an obligation to snoop and make sure the police are doing everything in their power to solve the crime. Alison is a bit more daring in this novel. Jose was working on a construction site for a highly opposed, but huge money making, condo development. Luckily for Alison, her former paramour, Jack (brother to Father McManus), is buying one of said condos and knows the developer personally. He sets Alison up for an introduction. Meanwhile, Crawford is working the murder case and trying to keep Alison safe and out of trouble. Of course, his efforts don't work in the slightest. Although Alison is getting threatening notes, she is still snooping around construction sites, running down clues, and generally turning up unwanted in police situations. As the case continues to go unsolved, Hernan comes up missing and an undercover federal agent is murdered. With the Fed's in on the party, Alison is starting to feel the heat, and embarrassment for her blunders, but forges on. Between teaching, completing her community service hours (from her previous run-in with the state troopers), meeting Crawford's twin girls, and searching for Hernan, Alison must piece together clues and observe the people close to her in order to stop a murderer and keep her friends out of danger.
I laughed so hard during this book. I loved it. I honestly couldn't piece the mystery together, the romance between Alison and Crawford was nothing short of entertaining, and the comedy was top notch. It's the ultimate book. When I'm laughing so hard I'm crying, I know I've found a winner. My only complaint, or rather irritation was that the dual POV's (Alison's and Crawford's) was missing in this story. I loved that in Extracurricular Activities and was hoping for more as the series progressed. Also, for Alison just meeting Crawford's daughters, it was a short scene. To me that is a big deal, especially with the little bit of animosity from one of the girls. I wish we would have gotten more of that, and generally more of Alison and Crawford together. My favorite scene, though, was the dinner party. Lol. Sounds like something I would do. Lastly, I was not expecting Max's, Alison's best friend, news at the end. Can't wait to dive into the next in the series. <3
Summary:
Alison Bergeron has a lot going on. It's her birthday, the Rangers are in the playoffs, she is navigating her still new relationship with Detective Bobby Crawford, and trying to dodge a new admirer's affection. Needless to say, she has no time for a murder or the sleuthing involved in solving it. Regardless, it's the nephew of a new friend of hers, and she cant let it go. The body of Jose Escalante, nephew of Hernan Escalante, is found beaten to death in the river. The Escalante family are illegal immigrants, so Alison feels an obligation to snoop and make sure the police are doing everything in their power to solve the crime. Alison is a bit more daring in this novel. Jose was working on a construction site for a highly opposed, but huge money making, condo development. Luckily for Alison, her former paramour, Jack (brother to Father McManus), is buying one of said condos and knows the developer personally. He sets Alison up for an introduction. Meanwhile, Crawford is working the murder case and trying to keep Alison safe and out of trouble. Of course, his efforts don't work in the slightest. Although Alison is getting threatening notes, she is still snooping around construction sites, running down clues, and generally turning up unwanted in police situations. As the case continues to go unsolved, Hernan comes up missing and an undercover federal agent is murdered. With the Fed's in on the party, Alison is starting to feel the heat, and embarrassment for her blunders, but forges on. Between teaching, completing her community service hours (from her previous run-in with the state troopers), meeting Crawford's twin girls, and searching for Hernan, Alison must piece together clues and observe the people close to her in order to stop a murderer and keep her friends out of danger.
I laughed so hard during this book. I loved it. I honestly couldn't piece the mystery together, the romance between Alison and Crawford was nothing short of entertaining, and the comedy was top notch. It's the ultimate book. When I'm laughing so hard I'm crying, I know I've found a winner. My only complaint, or rather irritation was that the dual POV's (Alison's and Crawford's) was missing in this story. I loved that in Extracurricular Activities and was hoping for more as the series progressed. Also, for Alison just meeting Crawford's daughters, it was a short scene. To me that is a big deal, especially with the little bit of animosity from one of the girls. I wish we would have gotten more of that, and generally more of Alison and Crawford together. My favorite scene, though, was the dinner party. Lol. Sounds like something I would do. Lastly, I was not expecting Max's, Alison's best friend, news at the end. Can't wait to dive into the next in the series. <3
April 8, 2011
Although I didn't enjoy this book quite as much as the first 2 in the series, I still thought it was a lot of fun and definitely worth reading. I am looking forward to reading book 4 in the series.
A note on the Kindle edition: Terrible formatting! I seriously considered returning it but since I really, really wanted to read it on Kindle I just put up with it. First off, the font was strange (different from the standard Kindle book font). I had to increase the font size to read it, but increasing it made it look overly large (but that was better than overly small, which the next size down seemed to be for me). Anyway, in addition to the strange font, there were strange marks scattered across almost every page, like small tick marks or lines. At first I thought something was wrong with my Kindle screen but I'd go to the next page and the mark would be somewhere else. Maybe I'm over-exaggerating when I say "almost every page" but it was on A LOT of them, enough to make me keep thinking "what the heck"?! Anyway, just wanted to put the "warning" out there. If you can overlook those things (which I obviously ended up doing, although I was kind of annoyed by it), then it's worth buying. There aren't any spelling errors or punctuation or spacing errors, just the weird stray marks on the pages and the strange font.
A note on the Kindle edition: Terrible formatting! I seriously considered returning it but since I really, really wanted to read it on Kindle I just put up with it. First off, the font was strange (different from the standard Kindle book font). I had to increase the font size to read it, but increasing it made it look overly large (but that was better than overly small, which the next size down seemed to be for me). Anyway, in addition to the strange font, there were strange marks scattered across almost every page, like small tick marks or lines. At first I thought something was wrong with my Kindle screen but I'd go to the next page and the mark would be somewhere else. Maybe I'm over-exaggerating when I say "almost every page" but it was on A LOT of them, enough to make me keep thinking "what the heck"?! Anyway, just wanted to put the "warning" out there. If you can overlook those things (which I obviously ended up doing, although I was kind of annoyed by it), then it's worth buying. There aren't any spelling errors or punctuation or spacing errors, just the weird stray marks on the pages and the strange font.
July 3, 2010
Summary: A young man has gone missing and his family asks Alison to look in to it knowing her connections to the police via boyfriend Bobby Crawford. Unfortunately he has been found dead and it's up to Alison and Crawford to solve the mystery behind his death.
Thoughts: I read this right after finishing the second book and I found it even choppier. I don't know why but it seemed to jump around a lot and left me rather unsatisfied.
The mystery as a whole was also unsatisfying. While I cared about the dead man, the denouement was complicated and while the motive was legitimate (hint: it's either sex or money), it rang false.
And also I don't want to be mean but Alison's constant mentions of her French-Canadian heritage really annoyed me. "I'm French and Pointe should be pronounced Pwant. I like hockey. I know about cheese. Blah blah blah." This is just something that rankled me although other people may have found it endearing.
Overall: 3/5. I feel like the fourth book is a lot better; definitely don't start with this book if you're interested in the series.
Cover: It's an okay cover; the outfit is rather similar to that of the second book, which I like.
Thoughts: I read this right after finishing the second book and I found it even choppier. I don't know why but it seemed to jump around a lot and left me rather unsatisfied.
The mystery as a whole was also unsatisfying. While I cared about the dead man, the denouement was complicated and while the motive was legitimate (hint: it's either sex or money), it rang false.
And also I don't want to be mean but Alison's constant mentions of her French-Canadian heritage really annoyed me. "I'm French and Pointe should be pronounced Pwant. I like hockey. I know about cheese. Blah blah blah." This is just something that rankled me although other people may have found it endearing.
Overall: 3/5. I feel like the fourth book is a lot better; definitely don't start with this book if you're interested in the series.
Cover: It's an okay cover; the outfit is rather similar to that of the second book, which I like.
Read
January 26, 2009I blindly checked this out from the library list of new books. Based on the title, I thought it was going to be a guide to murder/forensics. I'm in the process of researching good ways to kill people--so I thought this would be a good reference book. It's bad chick-lit, bad mystery, bad dialog, bad characters, just bad all around. I kept plugging away (needing a distraction from the emotionally charged Algernon) but couldn't take it any more. I don't know who-done-it and I don't care. This is going back to the library asap. I don't understand how a book filled with so much cutesy-cutesy-gag-gag and so little plot could get published.
October 5, 2014
(Mystery, 2008) Found this on the ship as well. Allison cannot keep from following clues when she finds a mystery, much to the distress of her boyfriend, Bobby, and his fellow police. This is third in a series. I read the first portion of the story and stopped. The character is annoying, freely lies to those around her to follow her curiosity, causes trouble and harm to others as she goes. Eventually, since I had read everything else in the room, I finished the story. It was all right, but not one that I will pick up again. She is not a likable character.
June 30, 2010
C'mon, Barbieri, you can do better than this.
March 19, 2011
Good read 2nd half. Slow at the beginning. Couldn't figure out why she cared so much about victims when she had little relationship with them. Love Crawford though.
May 9, 2011
Another in the series involving Alison Bergeron. This time shady building practices the focus. Still like her, though won't continue in this series for awhile.
November 28, 2012
I was really disappointed especially after enjoying the last two books. Alison reason for putting everything on the line for this case did not make sense. Max was really annoying in this book.
March 29, 2023
To be totally honest I struggled to finish this book which would have been a shame because by the end it had gotten a lot better. It was just too slow, I know you have to set the scene but there was too much information that had nothing to do with the mystery and a lot of love life drama that didn't come to anything, the murder didn't even happen until about half way through the story. I liked the nuns and the humour they inadvertently brought to the story but not sure how I felt about the main character, who I took a while to warm to and you never would have known she was a professor as she hardly silent anytime feathering to busy going to sports games. The mystery was good when it got going and in fact you ended up with two dead bodies and a missing person to investigate but that is only if you stick with it. Not sure if I will jump straight back into this series though.
Alison while doing community service at a local church, serving food to the needy, she makes friends with a family. Wanting to help them she hires them to decorate her lounge, the father is a hard worker but the nephew seems less inclined to work and she isn't surprised when he doesn't return after lunch. She is surprised when his uncle who is missing a green card then to her for help in finding him. Her cop boyfriend know all about the boy, as he helped pull his body out of the river. Even though it's know become a murder enquiry Alison can't help but get involved. Can she help her friends by finding the killer? Especially as the uncle while carrying out his own investigation goes missing. It gets even more complicated when another body connected to his work place is discovered and the FBI get involved.
I liked the narrator. She gave each character there own voice.
Alison while doing community service at a local church, serving food to the needy, she makes friends with a family. Wanting to help them she hires them to decorate her lounge, the father is a hard worker but the nephew seems less inclined to work and she isn't surprised when he doesn't return after lunch. She is surprised when his uncle who is missing a green card then to her for help in finding him. Her cop boyfriend know all about the boy, as he helped pull his body out of the river. Even though it's know become a murder enquiry Alison can't help but get involved. Can she help her friends by finding the killer? Especially as the uncle while carrying out his own investigation goes missing. It gets even more complicated when another body connected to his work place is discovered and the FBI get involved.
I liked the narrator. She gave each character there own voice.
May 25, 2020
I thought ditsy broads went out of style in the 50s. I kept waiting for Ricky Ricardo to yell, "Lucy, you gotta lotta 'splaining to do!" Despite no experience in police work, Dr. Alison Bergeron, an English professor and Joyce scholar, feels that she can out sleuth professional detectives, such as her boyfriend and her best friend's husband and the FBI, in investigating the murder of a casual acquaintance. The facts that she puts her relationship and life in danger, doesn't get in her way. Nevertheless it was a witty, enjoyable read.
July 5, 2021
This was a great book!! Well written and funny! I am always surprised by the turn of events! I didn't really like the cliff hanger at the end. I liked seeing that person with the person she was with. I hope they either get back together!!! But I think I know who will be her next choice! I like him too!!
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
May 19, 2022
Enjoyable read
The characters were well thought out and had good personalities. I have been to Dobbs Ferry so it was fun to imagine it in my head as I read the book. I liked the interactions between the characters. Overall a fun read.
The characters were well thought out and had good personalities. I have been to Dobbs Ferry so it was fun to imagine it in my head as I read the book. I liked the interactions between the characters. Overall a fun read.
October 27, 2022
Such fun!
This series is a lot of fun. You will never get bored sleuthing with Allison! The mystery was good and I was kept guessing and enjoying all the twists and turns along the way.
This series is a lot of fun. You will never get bored sleuthing with Allison! The mystery was good and I was kept guessing and enjoying all the twists and turns along the way.
February 1, 2018
I think the best line out of this was My vagina is not a filing cabinet ...that was what Max said when she and Alison were discussing something. Another fun mystery read with great lines.
July 7, 2018
A good read that is light but also a good who done it.
August 29, 2019
Predictable and main character got on my nerves
June 16, 2020
A fun read
May 7, 2021
Funny parts with the Nuns toward the end of the book...
September 10, 2022
Loved it. On to the next book in the series.
February 6, 2023
It was ok. Light easy read which is what I need right now.
April 8, 2024
Girl dates cop thinking it would be exciting. It’s not until a friend asks to look for her brother. Cop already know about boy. He’s dead. Looking for killer
February 4, 2025
Hilarious!
I'm really glad we get to enjoy this series with our membership. I wanted to read these books ever since I saw the movies!
I'm really glad we get to enjoy this series with our membership. I wanted to read these books ever since I saw the movies!
March 4, 2025
I enjoy the Maggie Barbieri books very much! Love the characters and the nuns!!!! Great read!
March 17, 2017
I very nice read. I want to read more by her. Some parts were funny and and I liked that.
Read
March 11, 2017(E-Lib) Good one. I like how Allison is a huge Rangers fan...and that she got to meet her idol. I also like that Allison befriended Frankie's mom. All of the characters seem to be realistic in their reactions/actions, which I appreciate.
February 21, 2017
Twists and turns of relationships with Alison and her friend Max (who married Crawford's partner Fred).
January 10, 2010
Quick Study is the third book in the Murder 101 Mystery Series featuring professor Alison Bergeron. While participating in community service (as a result of an incident that occurred in Extracurricular Activities, book two), Alison befriends Hernan and his family. Needing painting done in her home, Alison hires Hernan and his nephew Jose. When Jose goes missing, Hernan reluctantly seeks Alison’s help.
Little does Alison know her police detective boyfriend, Crawford, has been assigned to a John Doe case. A man’s body was found floating in the river. Convinced it’s Jose, Alison begins to investigate on her own. As she delves deeper into Jose’s disappearance she uncovers a world of illegal workers and their employers. Can Alison solve the mystery before the killer stops her?
As much as I enjoy this series, I have to say Quick Study fell flat for me. The back and forth between Alison and Crawford’s relationship, the convenient run-ins Alison has with Jack, the man she dated while on she and Crawford were on a break, and the slow-moving plot, stalled my interest. I found myself skimming pages just to learn the killer’s identity. Towards the end, my interest started to peak just a bit when Max, Alison’s best friend, makes a surprising confession.
Despite my opinion about this book, other readers feel differently as it currently has a 4.5 star rating on Amazon.com. Hopefully my excitement for this series returns again with book four, Final Exam.
Little does Alison know her police detective boyfriend, Crawford, has been assigned to a John Doe case. A man’s body was found floating in the river. Convinced it’s Jose, Alison begins to investigate on her own. As she delves deeper into Jose’s disappearance she uncovers a world of illegal workers and their employers. Can Alison solve the mystery before the killer stops her?
As much as I enjoy this series, I have to say Quick Study fell flat for me. The back and forth between Alison and Crawford’s relationship, the convenient run-ins Alison has with Jack, the man she dated while on she and Crawford were on a break, and the slow-moving plot, stalled my interest. I found myself skimming pages just to learn the killer’s identity. Towards the end, my interest started to peak just a bit when Max, Alison’s best friend, makes a surprising confession.
Despite my opinion about this book, other readers feel differently as it currently has a 4.5 star rating on Amazon.com. Hopefully my excitement for this series returns again with book four, Final Exam.
January 21, 2012
This is the third book in this series.
Alison is a prof at a Catholic university. She stumbles into situations that wouldn't happen to anyone else. The rest of us would walk away. Instead she charges in to solve the problem.
This time she is trying to solve the murder of Jose, a fella she knows from the soup kitchen she volunteers at once a week. Even though her cop boyfriend tells her to back off and someone is leaving her threatening notes, she still tries to find out what happened.
Jack McManus, the brother of her friend who is a priest, still pursues her even though he knows she has a boyfriend.
Max, her recently married friend, is having problems with her husband, who is Alison's boyfriend's partner. I'm not a fan of Max's ... I find her self-centered.
I enjoyed the writing style and it kept me interested even though I found the plot not overly exciting. The ending was quick and I didn't really care about the bad guys who got caught in the end and what they were involved with.
I look forward to reading the next one in the series.
Blog review: http://www.teenaintoronto.com/2011/10...
Alison is a prof at a Catholic university. She stumbles into situations that wouldn't happen to anyone else. The rest of us would walk away. Instead she charges in to solve the problem.
This time she is trying to solve the murder of Jose, a fella she knows from the soup kitchen she volunteers at once a week. Even though her cop boyfriend tells her to back off and someone is leaving her threatening notes, she still tries to find out what happened.
Jack McManus, the brother of her friend who is a priest, still pursues her even though he knows she has a boyfriend.
Max, her recently married friend, is having problems with her husband, who is Alison's boyfriend's partner. I'm not a fan of Max's ... I find her self-centered.
I enjoyed the writing style and it kept me interested even though I found the plot not overly exciting. The ending was quick and I didn't really care about the bad guys who got caught in the end and what they were involved with.
I look forward to reading the next one in the series.
Blog review: http://www.teenaintoronto.com/2011/10...
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