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Title: Death on the Mississippi: A Mark Twain Mystery by Peter J. Heck ISBN: 0-425-15512-9 Publisher: Berkley Pub Group Pub. Date: October, 1996 Format: Paperback Volumes: 1 List Price(USD): $5.99

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Average Customer Rating: 3.33 (6 reviews)

Rating: 5
Summary: Mystery Meets History
Comment: Anyone who is a fan of Mark Twain will enjoy this book. This delightful debut of Detective Clemens includes an exciting riverboat trip on the Mississippi, a tale of buried treasure, a gang of tricky gamblers, and tons of period detail. Peter J. Heck's portrayal of Twain is every bit believable from his quick wit to his southern drawl. He and his traveling secretary, Wentworth Cabot, make an unusual team. I found this book to be suspenseful, entertaining, and informative. It left me wanting to read more.

Rating: 4
Summary: An Enjoyable Trip
Comment: William Wentworth Cabot has just graduated from Yale, and for his first job, he becomes Mark Twain's traveling secretary. Interested in travel, Wentworth is over his head when a body is found in New York with Mark Twain's name in his pocket. Does it have anything to do with Twain's plans to dig up a fortune in gold mid-trip? And is the killer on board their ship all the way on the Mississippi?

This book is an enjoyable jaunt down the Mississippi with Mark Twain on a riverboat. The main characters were enjoyable, and I especially enjoyed the portrayal of Twain. The plot was a little weak, however. The information on riverboats and the river was interesting, but too much attention was paid to it, with little advancing the story. Still, once a second body is found, the plot kicks into high gear. I was caught off guard by the revelation of the killer, but everything fit together logically.

I'm looking forward to reading the rest of the books in this historic mystery series.

Rating: 2
Summary: Only Twain makes it readable.
Comment: While Heck creates a decent Twain for his book, the rest is a sorry excuse for a mystery. An obvious villain and an insipid narrator make for a painful read. If not for a decent grasp of Twain's general demeanor and commentary this book would have been unreadable. A good idea but the execution does not make me want to see if the author grows into a better mystery writer.