Thank you Libro.fm / Macmillan Audio, for the ALC and Flatiron Books, #partner, for the advanced copy of The Professor in exchange for my honest review.
Publisher: Flatiron Books / Macmillan Audio
Published: November 14, 2022
Summary:
For fans of Tana French, The Professor investigates the darkest corners of academic ambition, lies, and obsession.
On a spring afternoon in Athens, Georgia, Ethan Haddock is discovered in his apartment, dead, apparently by his own hand. His fatality immediately garners media not because his death reflects the troubling increase of depression and mental health issues among college students, but because the media has caught the whiff of a scandal. His professor, Dr. Verena Sobek, has been taken in for questioning, and there are rumors his death is the result of a bad romance. A Title IX investigation is opened, the professor is suspended, and social media crusaders and trolls alike are out for blood.
Marlitt Kaplan never investigated love affairs. A former detective turned research assistant, she misses the excitement of her old job, but most of all the friendship of her partner, Teddy. When her mother, a professor at the university and colleague of the accused professor, asks for her help, she finds herself in the impossible position of proving something didn’t happen. Without the credentials to interview suspects or access phone records, she will have to get closer to a victim’s life than ever before. And she quickly finds herself in his apartment, having dinner with his roommates, even sleeping in his bed. But is she too close to see the truth?
In her relentless pursuit to uncover the mystery behind Ethan’s death, Marlitt will be forced to confront the power structures ingrained in the classroom against the backdrop of a historic campus and an institution that sometimes fails its most vulnerable members.
My thoughts:
Last year, I read The Resemblance by Lauren Nossett and really enjoyed it. I was thrilled to hear that we were going to be getting another book with the same setting and main character, and I’m so happy to say this is another winner!
While this is not technically listed as a sequel or part of a series, I will say that I think it is very beneficial to have read the prior book where you are first introduced to Marlitt Kaplan. Not that the author doesn’t give some backstory here, I just feel you would have a better understanding of the characters and certain situations. This is a a self-contained mystery, though, so no worries if you haven’t read the previous book – perhaps you’ll be inclined to read it after reading this one!
I love that we have another dark academic story here, this time focusing on the relationships between professor and student, as well as the pressures that both professors and students find themselves under, and even going so far as to delving into mental health on campus. I felt this was something that was so realistic and easy to relate to, especially as I remember my days on campus as a student and could easily recall the pressure to do it all and try to fit in.
This is another police procedural, even though technically Marlitt is no longer officially working for the police department after events that happened in the last book. That doesn’t stop her from looking into the death of a student when a professor is accused of wrong-doing. She may not always make the best choices, but she does want to find justice and for that I cannot fault her. I loved the twists and turns the book took, never quite knowing where or how it was going to end up. Secrets abound and that just adds to the overall tension.
This was definitely another engaging, captivating read and I hope this isn’t the last we’ve seen of Marlitt.
Audio thoughts:
I was able to listen to this one and it was narrated by the very talented Saskia Maarleveld who I thought did an amazing job bringing this story to life.
