Rating: 
Summary: A fast and compelling read.
Review: I enjoyed this book and finished it in one gulp. The setting is vaguely similiar to the small college I went to, and scenes in the library brought back memories of, in fact, being locked there all night. I think the author had a good mix of dialogue and description. I didn't get some of the slang terms, and maybe she put in a few stereotypical African-Americans to ease it along for those WASP's (me) who like to read a new mystery and learn about other cultures, albeit superficially. But the job atsmosphere that exists in an institution dominated by white males is one experienced by all women. The author did a good job of describing the different methods women use in those situations: get-along, go-along, get righteous or get out. I am recommending this book to other mystery lovers who like a female protagonist with intelligence.
Rating: 
Summary: A thrilling yet intelligent page turner!
Review: I thoroughly enjoyed A DARKER SHADE OF CRIMSON from beginning to end. As an avid mystery reader, I was thoroughly engrossed from the first page, containing the contrasting expressions about Harvard in the fight song and in the quote from W.E.B. Dubois ( "I was in Harvard, but not of it"), to the last page revealing the surprising solution to the question of whodunit! Not only was I enraptured by the plot development and the attention to details that are many times overlooked by some mystery novelists, but I also enjoyed Ms. Thomas-Graham's intelligent writing style and references to familiar names and places. I particularly enjoyed the way she wove together various characters and sub-plots, dealing with issues ranging from race to romance, without distracting too much from the main mystery at hand. Additionally, as an African American Harvard alumna, I appreciated the way that the novel expertly expressed the unique perspective of African Americans at Harvard (both as students and faculty); one that even other groups of alumni many times do not understand or appreciate. As a long time mystery fan, I have long complained about how few quality modern mysteries there are with Black women as the detectives and I appreciate her for filling this under-served gap in the market for us mystery fans. Veronica (Nikki) Chase, though a bit naïve at times, is intelligent, passionate, honest, and sincere. Regardless of what some of her critics may say, Nikki is on the front line of the struggle for the acceptance and celebration of diversity rather than just the mere tolerance of it. Instead of backing down in the face of her opposition, which always seem to outnumber her in her academic circles, she is able to maintain self-confidence enough not to allow other people to cause her to doubt her own perceptions about what she knows to be true, both about her self and about the mystery that she is intent on solving. I am recommending Pamela Thomas-Graham's first novel to everyone I know (mystery buff or not!), and I can't wait for her next one.....I hope she doesn't keep us waiting too long!
Rating: 
Summary: Easy read with a little suspense
Review: This was a nice inside look at an African-American's view of what is like to attend Harvard and ultimately teach there. Moreover, I think the author does a good job of demonstrating how we (African-Americans) can often mistake tolerance for acceptance. Thomas-Graham's characters are well-rounded and believeable. However, I think the professor-turned-PI was often too naive and trusting while conducting a murder investigation. This book was the July selection of my book club. Overall, I enjoyed the book. I wish Thomas-Graham the best and hope she continues to write books featuring her professor/PI character - giving the character depth and breadth with each new adventure.
Rating:
Summary: enjoyable Black eye-view of Harvard told in a good mystery
Review: Enjoyed this a lot, despite flaws - I agree that the landlady is too much the stereotype "southern Black momma caretaker ", and named Magnolia, yet! (Yes, I know she's named after one of the author's relatives, but real life is never an excuse for stereotypes in fiction; in fiction, if you name a Black woman Magnolia, then let her be a rake-thin, flinty, Calvinist Black woman who wears Chanel suits--if people still wear Chanel suits--and an executive terror on Wall Street--a STEEL Magnolia.) The other truly irksome part of the book was the relationship with the Italian-American boyfriend. This relationship seemed lifted straight from the weaker romance novels -- an annoying, self-satisfied "hero" with no appeal whatever except his looks, and an otherwise intelligent heroine who folds at the knees in his presence -- and yes, again, this does happen in real life, but that doesn't justify doing it in fiction! Other than that: I disagree with the reader who grumbled about its slow pace and lack of action: like many contemporary mysteries, DARKER is in large part about its setting and characters. For example, I enjoyed reading about the heroine's difficult relationship with her department mentor. I enjoyed the tone, beginning with the opening paragraph, which bluntly lays down the "rules" Blacks feel they must follow to survive at Harvard. For me, the mystery/adventure was satisfying but secondary to the exploration of how Blacks deal with a place like Harvard. I've done a lot of work at many colleges and universities and found the portrayal of power relationships and racial relationships (and Harvard hypocrisy) quite convincing. I'll definitely be looking out for this author's next book.
Rating: 
Summary: Dull, Dull and Duller
Review: I felt Pamela Thomas-Graham took too long to develop the plot, there was a limited amount of action and most of the characters were dull and reassure with dull characters you are sure to have a dull book. I was being generous by rating this book at 4. The only reason the book captured a 4 is because the ending was not expected and one or two characters of the book were interesting but Pamela Thomas-Graham needs to go right back to the drawing boards. Better luck next time.
Rating:
Summary: CAPTIVATING, INSIGHTFUL AND FRESH
Review: Did the other amazon.com readers read the same book I did? Pamela Thomas-Graham's book was great, and I commend it to anyone who enjoys good writing and a good story. Updating the standard mystery to accomodate contemporary reality -- in this case, the existence of talented women of color in elite environments -- is bound to bring out the critics. As other reader comments on this site attest, when someone dares to tell a fresh story, offer a new perspective, and present characters that think and feel authentically, the arm-chair critics and frustrated commissars come out of the woodwork, armed as always with Capitalized Outrage. Take a chill pill, folks! I thoroughly enjoyed the mystery of A DARKER SHADE OF CRIMSON but enjoyed even more the heroine and her mind. Nikki Chase is smart, honest, ambitious and insecure -- kinda the way most of us see ourselves. Pamela Thomas- Graham is a witty, artful writer and I look forward to more books from her.
Rating: 
Summary: Nah-Nah Nah-Nah-Nah, I Went to Harvard and You Didn't
Review: In this blatant example of reverse snobbery not only the Black author but also the Black characters are telling the reader " Nah-Nah Nah-Nah-Nah, I Went to Harvard and You Didn't." The book's heroine Veronica Chase thankfully has no connection to the Kirstie Alley character of the same name in the TV sitcom "Veronica's Closet," but the character might as well be as White as Kirstie Alley. From the full-body color picture on the backcover, the only things Black about Ms. Thomas-Graham seem to be her clothes - she looks about as White as Kirstie Alley, (in fact, she looks just like her). There are some clever lines, and the accented speech sometimes sounds brilliant, but all of that soon gets old and gimmicky as the cleverness turns into redundancy. You have to have a Harvard degree to follow the convoluted plot alone. There is a certain arrogance about the whole book that's hard to describe; an undertone that shows in everything from the Harvard setting to the pompous writing style. As with all books that have a failed dramatic structure, "Crimson" needed a concluding summary chapter that resolves its numerous plot problems. I am Black myself, and maybe if I had had the fortune to have gone to Harvard, I might better relate to this book. But until more Black people get privileges like Ms. Thomas-Graham, this book remains reserved for that tiny Exclusive Club of the African American Elite of Ivy League graduates. Non-members, Black and White alike, will find this book about as compelling as a bad gothic romance. If you want a powerful, luminous book on race relations in Boston (that includes Harvard) set your browser to Danzi Senna's "Caucasia" which leaves pretentious trash like "Crimson" in the literary dust.
Rating:
Summary: Not bad for a first start, but strays from academia
Review: While the text has the typical first-novel flaws, it's not a bad first-try. However, for all the author's accomplishments, it's clear that she isn't from academia. An assistant professor does not write papers *for* the chair; at best she'd be a co-author. Nor does an assistant professor write editorials for the chair, nor does the chair threaten to take away a class in the middle of the term (unless the professor is grossly negligent, not showing up for class for example). Any Ivy League professor would be happy to have a class taken away so they could concentrate on research, which is what gets them tenure. Nor does success come from performing on committees, nor does the president control tenure decisions. For those of us in the academy, more fact-checking would make the book more enjoyable and believable.
Rating:
Summary: Disappointing.
Review: When I first heard about this book, I was really excited because of its African-American author and characters, but it soon became obvious that the reader has to have been at an ivy-league college to get into this book. Not being an ivy-grad, I found it very hard to relate to much of anything in it. The writing style seems like the front page of the Wall Street Journal. The characters seem either flat or cliche (and by cliche I mean REALLY cliche). Books about successful African-American characters should inspire to be like them, but this one sure doesn't. Don't waste your time with this one.
Rating: 
Summary: Kirkus Review, February 15,1998
Review: An impressive first outing introduces Nikki Chase, a young black economics professor at Harvard and a feisty addition to the roster of female amateur sleuths. Nikki has discovered the body of Ella Fisher, the outspoken black dean of students, on a staircase in the Littauer building--this after a meeting of the prestigious Crimson Future Committee, to which both women had been appointed. The police are calling it murder, and Nikki's snooping indeed soon evokes a barrage of suspicions: Was Ella having an affair with the college's newly appointed President Leo Barrett? Where did that leave Barrett's blue-blooded wife Victoria? What is going on between Nikki's mentor Ian McAllister, of the Managment Board, and Comptroller Christian Chung, as the Committee struggles to project the school's finanical needs accurately? Why was Nikki attacked in the stacks of the Widener Library-- her backpack snatched? Who had poisoned her escort Justin Simms at the Fogg Museum Gala, and why? All this, and much more, as Nikki tries to resolve her rocky romance with charismatic Dante Rosario. Answers come slowly, and there are crucial secrets to uncover, before a high-noon standoff brings a surprising denouement. Despite an oversized, albeit intriguing, cast of players and a needlessly complex network of confrontations and subplots, Thomas-Graham's precisely rendered campus background, vivid characters, easy dialogue, and fluidly entertaining narrative mark a robustly talented new recruit to the genre.
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