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The Oxford Murders

by Guillermo Martinez Translated by Sonia Soto



      A twenty-two year old Argentine graduate student (never named) has a year's scholarship to study mathematics at Oxford University in England. He makes his lodgings at the home of Mrs. Eagleton, a widow who worked on the Enigma Code during World War II. Arriving home one day he finds renowned logician Arthur Seldom at the door. Seldom has received an anonymous note directing him to Mrs. Eagleton's home. When they enter the house they find Mrs. Eagleton dead. At first it seems she died a natural death but further investigation proves she was smothered.

Seldom, the author of a book on mathematics which includes a chapter on the connection between serial killers and mathematics, thinks the note he received is the first of a series. More bodies pile up, each indicating apparent natural causes, but each has a message bearing a new mathematical symbol. Arthur and the student, working closely with the police, ponder whether the deaths are the homicides of a madman seeking to match wits with Seldom. They seek to find the mathematical pattern behind the killings. Or is this all a cover-up for a single homicide?

This is a fascinating application of logical mathematic sequences to crime scene investigation. There is a comprehensive, detailed explanation of mathematical theories and theorems ....almost too detailed for the average reader. The plot is sometimes obscured by the technicalities. The characters are not fully developed. The dialogue is stilted. The setting of Oxford is delightful with many familiar locales. The final solution comes suddenly and as a great surprise.

The Book

Penguin Books
Reprint edition: Sept 2006
Paperback
014303796X
Mystery
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Excerpt
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The Reviewer

Barbara Buhrer
Reviewed 2007
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