I’ve always been fascinated by what inspires an author to write a book. Think about it—authors have to come up with an idea compelling enough to sustain months, sometimes years, of writing. That idea then needs to be strong enough to get published, and ideally, resonate with readers. When you really stop to consider all that, it feels like a minor miracle that any book gets written at all. I’ve read and enjoyed several of Laura Lippman’s novels over the years, so when her publisher offered me a copy of her latest, Murder Takes a Vacation, I jumped at the chance. I was even more intrigued to learn that the protagonist is a side character from an earlier Lippman novel, one that the author now feels was shortchanged by the cultural blind spots of the time. That kind of creative reexamination is fascinating. But it left me wondering, can that kind of reflective impulse truly serve as the driving force for an entire novel?
Muriel Blossom never played the lottery, so it came as a shock when she stumbled upon a discarded ticket in a parking lot—one that turned out to be a winner. She tried to do the honest thing and return it. After all, she hadn’t purchased the ticket, so how could she claim the prize? But when no rightful owner came forward, the lottery board awarded the winnings to her. Suddenly, the widowed retiree found herself with more money than she’d ever dreamed, and she was determined to make the most of it.
That’s how Mrs. Blossom finds herself at the airport, about to embark on a European adventure and French river cruise. It feels like a turning point—a chance to shed the skin of the overweight, sixty-something grandmother and embrace something new. So when she meets the charming Allan in the airport security line, she allows herself to feel desirable again, something she hasn’t experienced since losing her husband a decade earlier. But when Allan turns up dead in Paris, a city he wasn’t even supposed to be visiting, Muriel’s suspicions grow. They only intensify aboard the river cruise, especially when Danny, a mysterious man with a knack for appearing at the wrong moments, begins shadowing her. He claims Allan was involved in smuggling a stolen, priceless work of art, and insists Muriel knows more than she’s letting on about both the artifact and Allan’s murder.
What began as a trip to reinvent herself is quickly turning into much more than she ever bargained for.
In the author’s note of Murder Takes a Vacation, Laura Lippman reflects on Muriel Blossom’s first appearance as a hired surveiller for her heroine Tess Monaghan back in the mid-2000s. At the time, Muriel was presented mainly as a caricature—an elderly grandmother figure defined by her flowery attire and weight. Now, Lippman writes of wanting to correct that, giving Muriel far more agency over her life, her appearance, and her desires. In this novel, that effort is largely successful. Muriel may retain many of the same surface characteristics, but she is now portrayed as a woman grappling with grief, aging, and a renewed determination to live life on her own terms. She remains a larger woman, but she embraces that fully. The stigma surrounding weight has rightfully shifted, and Lippman writes Muriel as vibrant, desirable, and a hero in her own right.
But does that transformation make for a compelling read? The answer is more complicated. Murder Takes a Vacation works well enough as a diverting summer mystery, but it often feels like a mash-up of genres. It leans toward the cozy mystery tradition, but there’s a darker undercurrent here that pushes beyond the usual conventions. While Lippman clearly set out to right some of the perceived wrongs of the character’s original portrayal, that effort sometimes feels more self-conscious than seamless. In the author’s note, she mentions learning more about obesity and aging, and working with sensitivity readers, but at times this seems to dilute the sharp, distinctive voice she’s known for. The result is a light, quick read whose aims I admire, even if the execution feels a bit more forced than organic.
For more information, visit the author's website, Amazon, and Goodreads.
(2025, 47)
Interesting focus which I think many may related to.
ReplyDeleteI'll admit, I'm probably not the intended audience for this one.
DeleteIt's a fun premise. Maybe the author was too self-conscious of being PC with her character instead of just letting the story unfold organically. It's a very hard thing to write books. I admire anyone who does it well.
ReplyDeleteYeah, something just felt a bit forced about this one. Like it never really chose a lane and just rolled with it.
DeleteIt amazes me that there are so many great books out there. I wanted to write a book but I can't come up with enough storyline to write more than a short story. So I blog. lol This sounds like an interesting story, especially the beginning where she wins the lottery with a ticket she finds.
ReplyDeleteI've started dabbling with an idea recently, but the idea of turning it into a full novel still seems so daunting!
DeleteNot perfect then, but quick and easy can be good. And I did get cozy vibes at once
ReplyDeleteAgreed.
DeleteToo bad it feels forced. But I do love a good mystery.
ReplyDeleteI do too!
DeleteI've never read any Lippman, though the covers have consistently caught my attention! I appreciate she took the time to work with sensitivity readers, too, even if it didn't quite work out to the best interest of the book. That's a pretty hard line to walk, because a sensitivity reader might ask an author to step away from their initial impulses (and then the author might not know how to take that critique and mold it to their own voice).
ReplyDeleteI definitely applaud the effort she put into making changes.
DeleteAuguri per il suo blog, buona giornata 🤗
ReplyDeleteBenvenuti nel mio web: https://lacascinadeisogni.blogspot.com/
Grazie
DeleteI did see another review with mixed reactions on this one. I haven't read anything by this author, but I think I should probably start with something else.
ReplyDeleteThe Lady in the Lake was a good one by here. Pretty sure there's a review on my site somewhere haha
DeleteI've never read anything by this author, but I always appreciate when an author reflects on previous work and finds ways to represent characters in a better way.
ReplyDeleteAgreed. I commend the effort and reflection, even if this didn't end up being my favorite from her.
DeleteAs soon as she didn’t change her hotel room after someone went through all of her things, I had to DNF this book. I can’t read a book with a character that ignorant of her own safety and someone who had worked for a PI no less should be smarter than that. She decided not to tell the hotel staff of the event or to ask them to look out for her safety. I came here hoping for a full synopsis to find out the full story. If someone breaks into your hotel room folks, change hotel rooms or change hotels entirely.
ReplyDelete