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Rating: 
Summary: A must read!
Review: Delightfully witty with just enough of a mystery edge to make even the most ardent mystery novel officiando interested in the plot twists, Lev Raphael has woven yet another skillful installment in the life (and deaths) of Nick Hoffman. Raphael's depiction of American academia is, perhaps painfully, right on the money. He captures not only the politics of American higher education, but also some of its more colorful characters. Yes, the plot's good: all of his novels thus far have exhibited the nice twists and turns one expects--wants--from a murder mystery novel. However, Raphael goes beyond that and peoples his novels with wonderful characters who bring life and wit to the novel. His are not plodding sleuth sagas. Raphael blends mystery plot with style, satire, and character development (hey, when was the last time you read a murder mystery series in which the main character developed over time?). As a writer, Raphael has a keen ear for dialog and a keen eye for description. A must read for readers of any genre!
Rating: 
Summary: Picking UP Steam
Review: I was reluctant to read DEATH OF A CONSTANT LOVER. I had read the first two Nick Hoffman mysteries, LET'S GET
CRIMINAL and THE EDITH WHARTON MURDERS, and had come away from both with a bittersweet taste in my mouth.
While each was generally well written and entertaining enough, they each suffered from the same set of irritating flaws, not the
least of which was a narrator dog-determined to show off his own erudition at every turn.But I am glad I read CONSTANT LOVER. In fact I find it the superior entry of the series so far (I've got two more to go
before I can set a final tally). Yes, Nick/Raphael still shows off every chance he gets (why, he can quote Henry James verbatim,
years after reading him - can you?), but he leavens the pretension with references to pop culture. And there are plenty of other
compensations here as well. The characterizations, while veering towards exaggeration (I'm talking about supporting characters
now), are uniformly good, even compelling. The mystery is genuinely interesting, exciting, and tension-racked. And the little
scenes of lovers Nick and Stefan at home are fun to read (I especially love their dinners, composed of exotic, delicious
sounding meals). But most of all I love Hoffman's barbs at the present state of academia - the backstabbing, the boredom, the
pretension. For Hoffman, academia is a world where the professors hate books, hate their students, and hate each other and
are there not out of love of learning or teaching but to fortify their own lofty positions in the Ivory Tower. And the
administrators are even bigger cads. As a university teacher I can truthfully verify that, yes, for the sake of fiction, Nick/Raphael exaggerates some but not by much. Although the reviews for LITTLE MISS EVIL and BURNING DOWN THE HOUSE are mixed, I am looking forward to
what Nick Hoffman gets himself into next.
Rating:
Summary: Academic satire series acquires darker edge
Review: If you can't go home again, you can always return for a visit or two. Self-described recovering academic Lev Raphael left university teaching for a full-time writing career. In between producing more literary works -- a novel, a collection of short stories and an analysis of Edith Wharton's fiction -- he's also written three witty mysteries skewing the academic world he left. His comic alter ego, Nick Hoffman, came to the State University of Michigan to teach classes in the English, American Studies and Rhetoric Department and to be with Stefan, his partner. He also wants to make tenure. But his sharp tongue, lack of allies and preference for teaching over research hurts his chances enough if it weren't for all the bodies he keeps discovering. By the time Raphael's third book opens, Hoffman's career is foundering and sinking fast. His involvement as amateur detective has brought unfavorable publicity to the university, and his chances darken further by simply being within eyeshot of a murder -- this time of a young man killed during a melee between a campus preacher and a group of students. "The Death of a Constant Lover" -- the title is a reference to 19th-century English novelist Benjamin Constant --is more a novel of university life and politics than a murder mystery. The investigation moves in fits and starts as Hoffman finds himself also dealing with other problems: death threats are being sent to his office mate, a woman hired to fulfill SUM's diversity quota, and the effect on his relationship with Stefan when he is dropped by his publisher. Raphael's third book is slightly darker than his first two. Hoffman's joie de vive is dampened by the violence around him, making "Death of a Constant Lover" not so much a darker book -- we're not talking about James Ellroy here -- but simply not as bright and vivacious than the first two books. That's not a criticism so much as an observation that Raphael has put his finger on a key problem with the detecting genre. Death is serious business, and cracking jokes like Noel Coward around the body doesn't ring true. And yet, some sense of humor is needed to keep one from turning Gothic. Homicide detectives and crime reporters tend to develop a callous form that can be shocking to those who The tradeoff here is that Raphael has a sure grasp of his leading characters, and "Constant Lover" is a deeper and more thoughtful mystery that approaches the depth of P.D. James or Martha Grimes.
Rating:
Summary: Fine novel about academia with mysterious deaths to solve
Review: In addition to crafting an intricate plot (I didn't know "whodunit"), Lev Raphael's third Nick Hoffman novel delivers entertaining insights into the making, canonizing, selling, and teaching of literature and micro- and macropolitics in and around a multiversity. He also provides interesting examples of building and sustaining gay and Jewish identities. Reading Raphael will probably lead to reading or rereading several novels by Edith Wharton, who was Raphael's research specialization, and is also Nick Hoffman's -- at what is turning into the State University of Murder around him in English/American Studies/ Rhetoric amalgamated department at SUM.
Rating:
Summary: A smart, engaging and elegant read - and great fun, too.
Review: Lev Raphael does academia better than anyone. This book takes a clever and delightful series up a notch. The story grabs the reader's attention immediately, then twists and turns as clues and characters are introduced in a very engaging manner. Throughout the solution of the crime, we are entertained by Raphael's sharp wit and humor (look for Minnie, and the Michigan "trend" of older women in relationships...), his skillful use of literary references, and the wonderful growth in the relationship between Nick and Stefan. Mystery fans will love all the allusions to writers and trends within the genre. This is an absolutely delicious read!
Rating:
Summary: I loved LOVER!
Review: Lev Raphael is our star reporter from the brutal battlefield of academia, and readers couldn't have a wittier, more seasoned correspondent. If you've ever spent time at a university, you'll howl at his portrayals of petty bureaucrats, self-important scholars, groveling grad students, and snarky professors. Thank goodness Professor Nick Hoffman has his rock-steady friend and lover Stefan to lean on, because it's a jungle out there at the State University of Michigan. If you're looking for a dumbed-down mystery you'd better take a pass, because Raphael assumes intelligence on the part of his readers. That's a treat in itself, but the real payoff with Raphael's work can be found in the deeper themes beneath the laughs: The magic of beauty; the power of love and acceptance; the redeeming nature of faith. LOVER is a wonderful read.
Rating:
Summary: I loved LOVER!
Review: Lev Raphael is our star reporter from the brutal battlefield of academia, and readers couldn't have a wittier, more seasoned correspondent. If you've ever spent time at a university, you'll howl at his portrayals of petty bureaucrats, self-important scholars, groveling grad students, and snarky professors. Thank goodness Professor Nick Hoffman has his rock-steady friend and lover Stefan to lean on, because it's a jungle out there at the State University of Michigan. If you're looking for a dumbed-down mystery you'd better take a pass, because Raphael assumes intelligence on the part of his readers. That's a treat in itself, but the real payoff with Raphael's work can be found in the deeper themes beneath the laughs: The magic of beauty; the power of love and acceptance; the redeeming nature of faith. LOVER is a wonderful read.
Rating:
Summary: Love the humor!
Review: The main character, Nick Hoffman, is a college professor obsessed with obtaining tenure, but is repeatedly embroiled in situations (i.e. murders) that threaten that goal. The premise has potential, but the author lacks the writing skills necessary to go beyond the mundane. The dialogue, in particular, was irritating because the characters constantly spoke in what was supposed to be witty quips, but came off as catty. It's ironic that the author chooses a campus setting for his tedious mysteries, because if his writing was part of a college course, he would definitely flunk.
Rating:
Summary: A fun, but spooky read.
Review: This is a fine mystery. First off, we have a body on page 18. Die-hard mystery lovers notice this. Christie could open with a body, but modern writers often don't introduce the victim until half way through the book.
Nick, the protagonist, is upset about the death of a former student and from time to time, asks questions, talks to people who might know something. Stefen, his pardner, advices leaving it to the police. In between, we have fun peeking into the lives of these academic types. They cook gourmet meals together, drink exotic and expensive wines and whiskies, listen to classical music, watch old movies and ogle the yard boy working in the neighbor's yard. That handsome yard boy, who is student of the professor whose yard he's mowing, soon insulates himself into Nick's life, maneuvering to be his teaching assistant and flattering him. Stefen seems jealous. There are women associates storming around and behaving erratically. There are no nice women in this mystery, with the exception of a cameo by Stefan's step-mother, Minnie, a sweet Jewish mama type who handles her husband well, by ignoring him. So, anyway, the reader gets interested in what they are doing about the death of the student and how they are relating to each other and their associates and soon you're caught up in the whole thing and can't put it down, until the neat ending when everyone gets what they deserve - maybe.
Rating:
Summary: A must read!
Review: This self-billed academic mystery has reviewers divided into two schools of thought: loved it or hated it. I'm forced to enroll in the school of hard knocks (against the head) instead of the school of soft pats (on the back). The book squanders too many pages presenting campus as canvas, then fails to paint anything of worth. The stabs at wit were blunt and distracting, despite the supposed satiric nature of the story. I don't mind that the author is an elitist bent on displaying how much more clever he is than the reader. I just wish he'd do it through a mystery that delightfully stumps us. He came about as close as the next galaxy.
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