Avon Books (Paperback), ISBN 03808028210
Jane Isenberg continues the saga of Bel Barrett, the 50-something menopausal professor and quasi-sleuth. Bel and her band of merry women -- Betty and Illuminada -- solve yet another crime in this new mystery, Mood Swings to Murder, the third in the series.

Hoboken, N.J., becomes one of Isenberg's main characters. Nestled on the bank of the Hudson River, this big little community with one foot in the new millennium and the other bopping to the big band era, embraces its favorite son, Frank Sinatra. It proclaims to all that "This is Sinatra's home town!" Years after his death Sinatra continues to bring in revenue. His music floats on the watery breeze. Stories of his childhood and teen years pass from lips to ears as tourists search for remnants of "Old Blue Eyes," and younger generations learn of his legacy.

Ah, but evil dwells in paradise. Bel and her significant other Sol stumble upon the victim. "It was Frank Sinatra, dead as a doornail and not looking a day over twenty-five." The ersatz Sinatra lies in the shadow of the famous Manhattan skyline near the Hoboken waterfront in a pool of his own blood. The victim, a Sinatra wannabe and Hoboken native, devoted his life to being more like Frank than Frank.

Crowds flock to see Sinatra impersonators perform, embracing all those who revive memories of the real "Chairman of the Board." Who would want to kill this Sinatra acolyte? One of Bel's students begs her to find out, and Bel does between e-mails from a daughter in the midst of major life decisions, "discussions" with an adult son determined to return to the womb and teaching a summer course in communications. Despite this, Bel finds time to drink enough Corona to float a fedora and eat greasy, spicy, crunchy, even good-for-ya food with the girls. Those aren't hot flashes, girlfriend, they're power surges.

Isenberg creates lovable, multi-faceted, imperfect people then turns them loose in the familiar streets of Hoboken to see what happens. Many life issues vie for attention, and Bel depicts the foibles and pressures experienced by the sandwich generation through e-mail messages that appear at the beginning of each chapter. When not worrying about her kids, she runs errands for her elderly mother. When not involved in family, she pursues a career and a relationship with friends and a lover. She epitomizes the traditional roots of the baby boomers and the emancipation of the Sixties' Summer of Love.

If only Isenberg handled her mystery as well as she creates characters, she would offer a near perfect package. Her understanding of the menopausal set and her use of e-mails add to a pleasing, history-laced read.

Dawn Goldsmith

Click here to read Suzanne Frisbee's review of Mood Swings to Murder.
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