A Dangerous Business

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A Dangerous Business
A Dangerous Business.jpg
Author Jane Smiley
CountryUnited States
LanguageEnglish
Publisher Alfred A. Knopf
Publication date
2022

A Dangerous Business is a 2022 novel by American author Jane Smiley. The novel is a mystery set in California. [1]

Contents

Writing and publication

Smiley read about the history of Monterey, California and walked through the city during the period she wrote the novel. [2] [3]

Reception

Critical reception of the book was mixed. [4] In a review published by The Guardian , Erica Wagner wrote that the novel was "startlingly flat and unsatisfying". [5] Writing for NPR, Heller McAlpin noted that the novel was inspired by the works of Edgar Allan Poe, and referred to it as "a sort of perfumed 'Poe-Pourri'". [1] McAlpin also noted that the novel was one of several by Smiley with "inspiration in classic fiction". [1] Smiley's novel A Thousand Acres draws from King Lear , and her novel The All-True Travels and Adventures of Lidie Newton draws from The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn . [1]

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References

  1. 1 2 3 4 Heller, McAlpin (7 December 2022). "'A Dangerous Business' is an entertaining, Poe-inspired murder mystery". NPR. Retrieved 10 April 2023.
  2. Ciabattari, Jane (6 December 2022). "Writing the Historical Mystery Novel: Jane Smiley Explains Her Process". Literary Hub. Retrieved 10 April 2023.
  3. Neumyer, Scott (8 December 2022). "30 Published Books Later, Jane Smiley Is Still Finding the Joy in Writing". Shondaland. Retrieved 10 April 2023.
  4. "A Dangerous Business". Book Marks. Retrieved 10 April 2023.
  5. Wagner, Erica (29 December 2022). "A Dangerous Business by Jane Smiley review – madams and murder". The Guardian. Retrieved 10 April 2023.