John Bookman is the greatest detective the city of Palmerston has ever known. When socialite Sue Ellen Pinkus is murdered, she uses her dying breath to implicate a book club in the crime.
Bookman and his partner, Alec Berg, pay a visit to the club. Fresh off a divorce, Berg has a hunch that the solution to the case lies in the content of the various books championed by the eccentric club members. As the interviews progress, Bookman, a hard-nosed Catholic and alcoholic, begins to believe that his partner just might be right. More important, he uncovers facts and connections that offer a path out of his addiction, but at the same time rock his belief system to its core.
This book is for you if you're interested in self-improvement, spirituality and/or philosophy touching upon the nature of reality (i.e. the meaning of life). This is truly a metaphysical mystery. And as an added bonus, within the pages of this whimsical novel the name of the antichrist is revealed!
"[Y]ou will be riveted to the story for one reason or another. And soon you may be introducing this book to a book club of your own." -Portland Book Review
From Tom Butler-Bowdon, author of 50 Self-Help Classics
"Major ideas in self-development and spirituality wrapped in a murder mystery? This weird combination actually works, providing a perfect entree to the field in an entertaining way. Wright has thought deeply about his material and it shows. This book gives self-development a new dimension."
From Portland Book Review:
"This is not a typical murder mystery novel. Yes, there is a murder and detectives who are trying to solve the case, but the murder is superfluous to the point of the novel. The Self-Improvement Book Club Murder is the first novel written by Russell T. Wright, a lawyer and retired naval officer who has taken an interest in the Self-Improvement genre. The compendium of the Self-Improvement Philosophy and its history is exposed to the reader through the entertaining medium of a murder mystery. For students of philosophy who typically fall asleep within three minutes of opening a text book, this novel is the remedy.
"Two detectives, Bookman and Berg (names inspired by the 1990s television show Seinfeld) attempt to solve the murder of a woman who happens to be a member of a Self-Improvement Book Club. The book club is unique because none of the members will read each other's contributions to the club. Each character is thereafter defined by the Book they have obsessed over presenting to the club. The two detectives attempting to solve the case represent the variety of perspectives non-initiates might have. One detective is a middle aged man, strong in his religious faith who approaches this knowledge with a jaundiced, disbelieving eye. The other one is a younger man, eagerly searching for answers to his life's failings. As the detectives question witnesses, delve into the life of the victim and interact with each other, they clarify not only the case but the nature of reality. Bookman and Berg come away from the case irreparably changed by having gained this new knowledge. Whether you are an avid reader of Zen and the Art of Motorcycle Maintenance or new to these types of books, you will be riveted to the story for one reason or another. And soon you may be introducing this book to a book club of your own."
