NovelTalk:  Rating: 9 out of 10

Review: Hate crimes can leave devastating scars in their wake not only on the individuals but on a community. I have to say that I don't understand hate crimes. I can understand hating someone in particular for something they have done to you but to hate a whole people because of their color, their religion or their sexual orientation is something I don't understand.

In this, the third of Robert Spiller’s series featuring crime solving math teacher Bonnie Pinkwater, Mr. Spiller creates a tale of hidden secrets that lead to a hate crime that leaves the small town of East Plains, Colorado in shock.Years ago, Leo Quinn, the most popular boy at the local high school, rocked his graduating class by announcing that he was gay. Leo’s classmates and indeed the whole town close ranks against the teen.

Now five years later it has gone even further than just shunning him; it has gone on to include murder.In what his former classmates and “friends” thought of as a harmless prank, they strip Leo naked and leave him tied to a barbed wire fence along a deserted dirt road--where he is later found laying with three gunshot wounds to the chest. Did one of Leo’s “friends” come back later to do the deed or was it someone else with a secret they wanted to keep buried?When Bonnie Pinkwater’s phone number is found in Leo’s pocket the police have serious questions for her.

Question number one is why is Leo returning to East Plains now, after all these years?

Question number two is what did he want with her?

Problem is, Bonnie doesn’t have an answer to any of those questions or any of the other questions that are asked when there are more young men found dead.At this point being the busybody that she is, Bonnie can't leave the case alone. As Bonnie and her best friend and boss Lloyd Whitaker delve deeper and deeper into the case they find that hate and fear runs through their fellow citizens of East Plains. But just how deep does this hate run?

Irrational Numbers is one of those mysteries that grabs you from the very beginning. Bonnie and Lloyd’s hunt to find the killer pulls you into the midst of an intense spectrum of emotion felt by all the characters of this story. This gripping whodunit takes a shocking look at "hate", the impact secrets can have on someone’s life, and the consequences. I’m going to be anxiously waiting for the next Bonnie Pinkwater book by Robert Spiller and you should be too.

Reviewed by Theresa
© December 2008
 

NovelTalk:  Rating: 8 out of 10

Review: Having worked with the intellectually disabled in the past, I know how hard it is to get past the image that most of the world sees.  Once you get past that perception, you find that they are just like us.  They have wants, needs and desire to be accepted.  That being said, it was a truly pleasant surprise to find a book that in the end presents a positive image in a mystery.

Veteran teacher Bonnie Pinkwater is at it again, finding trouble that is; in her second adventure, A Calculated Demise.  This time it is the wrestling coach Luther Devereaux who is found dead.  And found standing over the victim with blood on his hands is Bonnie’s mentally challenged aide, Matt.  But who is the true victim here?  Devereaux, a man known to have verbally abused and bullied his students, or Matt, the student whose only fault is wanting to be accepted by everyone including Luther Devereaux? 

Bonnie enlists the aid of Greg Hansen, one of the few students that Matt calls friend, to pursue her investigation and exonerate Matt … and then Greg's marijuana-dealing brother and father are killed as well.

When it looks like Matt's brother Simon is the culprit, he is found dead, too.  The search for the true murderer becomes a race to prevent any further deaths.  Can it get any worse?  Oh yes.

Superintendent Xavier Divine, aka The Divine Pain in the Ass, is after Bonnie’s job unless she stops her investigation. When the murderer kidnaps her beloved dog, Bonnie feels that maybe she should have listened to him.

Robert Spiller pens a thrilling adventure with twists around every corner; this mystery uses math and its history to unravel the secrets of the crime, bringing another killer to justice. What else can I say other that I found A Calculated Demise a total joy to read with fast paced action, characters you wanted to know more about and an ending that made me truly smile.

Do I recommend A Calculated Demise? Yes, yes and yes.  Will I buy another book by Mr. Spiller?  Yes, yes and yes.  I am now looking for Mr. Spiller’s first Bonnie Pinkwater book, The Witch of Agnesi.  And lastly, would I buy the next book ? Oh, most certainly yes.

Reviewed By Theresa
© March 2008
 

NovelTalk:  Rating: 8 out of 10

Review: Teachers these days have lot to deal with, a lot more than the teachers of twenty years ago.  Now, teachers have to deal with weapons and uncontrolled anger issues that can escalate with just the wrong word from the wrong student.

In The Witch of Agnesi, Bonnie Pinkwater has to deal with the most intelligent of the eighth grade class, the geniuses. Unfortunately, they begin to turn up dead.

After a failed competition at the Knowledge Bowl, thirteen-year old Peyton Newlin disappears.  It is assumed that he ran away to avoid his father, the abusive Col. Ralph Newlin.  Since Bonnie was responsible for the boy genius, it puts her in a bad light with the boy's mother Wendy Newlin, Col. Newlin, and the police.  She finds herself instantly transformed from eighth grade teacher to Sherlock, with enamored science teacher Armen Callahan acting as her Watson.

The morning after Payton's disappearance, the situation gets worse. Stephanie Templeton, another genius student and the object of Payton's affections, is found murdered.  Bonnie's job goes from bad to worse, trying to make the connection. It seems that two of the four students up for the same scholarship are now out of the running. Bonnie can't believe that a scholarship would break the close friendship of the four so far as to include murder.

The Witch of Agnesi is an excellent read. The characters are well fleshed out and the story line has enough left turns that it kept me guessing.  Only my own ignorance led me, completely by accident, to discover who the killer was just before the end. (I got it right but for the wrong reason. Having spent much of my teen years in the company of Sherlock
Holmes, I pride myself on observation and deduction.  Sherlock smirked at me on this one.)

The Witch of Agnesi is an exercise in willful misdirection that Mr. Spiller is a master of.  I will be watching for more from this skilled writer.  I would caution that the violent content and language should be taken into consideration for younger readers.  I would recommend this book for readers sixteen and older.

Reviewed By Marge Anna Conrad
© June 2006
 

“Bonnie Pinkwater is a teacher that rules!  The Witch of Agnesi will appeal to everyone who has—or ever had—a cool teacher, a high school rival, or an interest in math.  It’s the Magic School meets Numbers from the moment Peyton Newlin goes missing to the ultimate climax, and keeps you reading under the covers with a flashlight all the way to the grand finale.  It’s a great read.”

Christine Goff
 

School Library Review

SPILLER, Robert.  The Witch of Agnesi  175p. Medallion 2006. pap. $9.99. ISBN 1-93281-572-4. Gr 10 Up

Bonnie Pinkwater is a math teacher with a mission. As advisor and coach for four students involved in the Knowledge Bowl competition, she becomes particularly concerned when one of her competitors goes missing. She does a little investigating and puts forward a number of suggestions to the police officer in charge, an old student of hers. But things start to get out of control when she finds herself the target, and one of her other students is murdered. Undeterred, Bonnie remains on the trail and, together with another teacher, is continually updating her theories as two more of her Knowledge Bowl students are found dead. While this novel has an adult as a main character, teens will be able to relate to it because of the supporting cast; from the school thug to the genius, and everyone in between, the secondary players are all strong characters.

The nonstop action and intrigue will hold most readers; the suspense is ever present, and the mystery has a good balance of clues and misinformation to keep amateur sleuths turning the pages. The love interest between the two teachers is at times somewhat strained, but that does not detract from the main story.

–Dylan Thomarie,  Johnstown High School, NY
 

Five years ago at his high school graduation, the most popular male Leo Quinn the Salutorian announced he was gay. The residents of East Plains, Colorado turn against the teen, feeling he was not the person they thought he was nor should be, One night on Squirrel Creek Road, his former classmates and friends, all homophobes, decide to play prank on him.. The next day his naked corpse is found with three bullets in the heart.

Math teacher Bonnie Pinkwater had Leo as a student and liked the teenager. The police question her as they found her phone number in his neatly folded pants lying next to his murdered body. Later at the rodeo Bonnie finds the dead body of a clown with bullet holes in the chest region just like Leo. Soon other young men are killed with ballistics proving the same gun being used. At Leo's funeral, youth pastor Jason is shot; the critically wounded man was once Leo's lover. Bonnie and her boss Principal Lloyd Whittaker investigate before the serial killer adds more young men to the deadly spree.

IRRATIONAL NUMBERS is a fascinating mystery due to the intense need for the protagonists to end the homicidal assault on the young. The sexual preference choices especially homosexuality is handled deftly so that the audience obtains a wide spectrum of reactions such as Leo's father kicking him out of the house, but later demands justice for his son. Although educators turning into sleuths on a serial killing case seem as if 1 and 1 makes 3. Fans will appreciate this riveting whodunit that takes a deep look at the impact of coming out of the closet.

Harriet Klausner
 

In El Paso County, Colorado recently widowed fifty three year old Bonnie Pinkwater teaches math at East Plains Junior/Senior High School. Although she grieves her loss, her cat and three dogs help her at home while her job keeps her mind somewhat occupied.

Odious but highly regarded wrestling coach Luther Devereaux orders mentally challenged Matt Boone to meet him at the wrestling loft during Bonnie's math class. When the teen fails to return, Bonnie sends Matt's best friend, student council president Greg Hanson to investigate. Greg races back to the classroom informing Bonnie that Matt killed Mr. Devereaux with a knife. Although she has no plans to get involved in the official inquiry led by a former student turned sheriff, a confused Matt pleads with her to help him. Greg offers to assist Bonnie whose early findings implicate Matt in a premeditated homicide. However, as Greg's brother Kyle and father Barty are killed as well as a young woman named Janice, Matt's brother Simon becomes the prime suspect until he too is murdered. Meanwhile Superintendent Xavier "The Divine Pain in the Ass" Divine demands Bonnie either quit her sleuthing or her job at a time when one of her canines is dog-napped to get her to drop her investigation; which means to her dig deeper.

The key to this enjoyable amateur sleuth tale is the heroine's reluctance to get involved coupled with her mathematical solving approach to problems like who is the killer. The story line is action-packed and filled with several twists as each time Bonnie feels she has solved the equation, new variables surface. Although this reviewer has some doubts about Matt's ability to do high school math and not understand his arraignment or his inability to recall recent events, readers will appreciate the feisty teacher investigate the Hypatia Rocky Mountain murders.

Harriet Klausner
 

In Colorado, East Plains middle school teacher Bonnie Pinkwater works with the intelligentsia, but for the first time in a decade, they failed to finish in the top three at the Knowledge Bowl competition. Just after their crushing loss, the team's thirteen years old star Peyton Newlin vanishes. Everyone presumes that the teen ran away than have to face his abusive martinet of a father Colonel Ralph. Peyton's parents blame the defeat and their son's cowardly reaction squarely on Bonnie.

The next morning someone murders brilliant student Stephanie Templeton. Feeling already a bit culpable but not sure why, Bonnie with the help of science teacher Armen Callahan, who is falling in love with her, begin investigating the disappearance and the homicide, which they believe is linked by a scholarship competition, but how is unclear. Other students die including Peyton while Bonnie and Armen seek the truth leaning towards violent student bully Jesse Poole though a coven of witches remain a prime suspect.

THE WITCH OF AGNESI is a terrific teenage amateur sleuth starring a likable pairing trying to uncover who is eliminating the geniuses one at a time. The story line is fast-paced yet contains a strong cast though clearly Bonnie is the star. The mystery is cleverly devised and filled with twists and red herrings as Robert Spiller keeps his audience alert at all times as he shrewdly spills clues with multiple possibilities. Young adult readers will enjoy this wonderful middle school mystery

Harriet Klausner
 

What a fun read! Our school book club read this and everyone enjoyed it. The characters are an excellent reflection of the public school subcultures. As a teacher I loved the primary character. How many times I have had the same
thoughts!!  The students loved the mystery and the idea that teens have secrets.  Great quick entertaining read.

Lori L. Ross
 

I loved Bonnie Pinkwater, the math teacher who is the hero of this series. She's in her fifties, she's a middle school teacher and she's a widow. This is not your typical hero. Bonnie is witty, engaging and sparkling with down-to-earth intelligence. I found her relationship with her former student, now the investigating detective in a homicide, charming and believable. Her budding relationship with Armen Callahan, another teacher, is both romantic and laugh-out-loud funny. Adults should love this book. The mystery is well constructed and every step works perfectly. (You'd think the author was a math teacher, or something.) The characters are strong and unique and the high plains of Colorado are beautifully brought to life.

Now, about you teenagers. I'm going to recommend this for all teens, because I've read Harry Potter and I know what happens in there. What are a few bodies in this book compared to watching Voldemort kill Cedric Diggory? In "The Witch of Agnesi" there are several murders and some very scary, very suspenseful scenes. There are a number of teenagers in the novel, all of them as real as the kids you go to school with. There are no boring stereotypes. This is a story that respects who you are as a teenager. You'll like it.

For parents, I recommend this book for teens. There's no love scenes, though there is a charming and very low-key romance and another, sordid relationship that's revealed at the very end of the book. There are witches, but they are neither the spiritual good guys or the evil bad guys. The "Witch of Agnesi" refers to a mathematical curve, which you see on the cover. There are some suspenseful and very scary scenes, but they never tip over into outright gore. Your teen will enjoy this novel very much and get a lot out of it.

I highly recommend The Witch of Agnesi. I'm looking forward to the next one in the series.

Bonnie Ramthun
 

Bookloons

Bonnie Pinkwater, middle aged schoolteacher, hits the mystery streets running. And a good race she runs. I just latched on to three in a new series featuring Bonnie, of which I read The Witch of Agnesi first. Fortunately I have the next two beside me, so I can indulge in Bonnie's exploits at will.

Fear sets into the school where Bonnie teaches when a thirteen year-old genius is found murdered. As bodies pile up, Bonnie comes under some flak herself. Although tottering around on a badly broken ankle, she manages to bring the killer to justice. A widow, she seems to have captivated the heart of another teacher. Armen follows her, not like a sick puppy, but as a man concerned for her welfare. Though it's endearing to her at times, she occasionally also finds it stultifying. Bodies and suspicions pile up as Bonnie and Armen try to work out just who has done what to whom.

This is a quickly paced book with interesting characters who could be your next door neighbors – even the abusive father. But maybe not the witch, though she might invite you to Beltane. Hopefully, the experiences described here are not visited upon our own next door neighbors. Bonnie is a teacher who is concerned for her students – out of school as well as in her classroom. Her interaction with them shows a concern born of love and a wish to see them go on from her classroom and become responsible and happy people, if they would just dish her up a portion of peace and quiet now and again.
 

Bookloons

If there is trouble to be found, you can count on math teacher Bonnie Pinkwater to be the one to do it. Bonnie stumbles across the body of the school's wrestling coach – stabbed to death!

Although he was a gruff, unfair teacher, she feels that death was an extreme response to his bullying. When one of her special ed students is arrested – unjustly she believes - for the murder, Bonnie can't help herself. She has to get involved. She enlists the help of Greg Hanson, an honor student and a friend of the accused.

Greg's father and brother grow marijuana and peddle it. When they are found dead, the mystery thickens. More people become involved. Bonnie's job is threatened by the school administrator because of her investigating. But her ire is really roused when her beloved dog's life is put on the line.

Bonnie is a delightful protagonist – a fifty-something, grey-haired teacher who has just lost her husband. She deals with this tragedy as any widow would. She bucks the system when she feels it necessary and glories when one of her students shows that wonderful spark of interest that teachers love to see. The storyline is a good one and the action moves at a pace to keep the pages flying.

Author Robert Spiller is fairly new to the mystery scene with two other novels, The Witch of Agnesi and Irrational Numbers to his credit.  I hope there will be more of this series.