The murder seems linked to the work of Emily Dickinson, and the bemused Pilletier is enlisted by Lieutenant Piotrowski -- memorably described as "Father Christmas with a bad wardrobe and an attitude" -- to assist in finding the culprit. Dobson, an associate professor of English at Fordham University, displays a deft and witty touch for academic skullduggery in her first novel, with echoes of A. S. Byatt's Possession.