Dead Man and the Sea

by Janice Steinberg

Book Overview

After expert seaman and oceanographer Hob Schreiber drowns, reporter Margo Simon discovers his death had not been accidental and that there are a variety of suspects from his personal, professional, and political lives to choose from.

• Format: Mass Market Paperback
• Language: English
• ISBN: 0425160378
• ISBN13: 9780425160374
• Release Date: October 1997
• Publisher: Berkley Books
• Length: 248 Pages
• Weight: 0.33 lbs.
• Dimensions: 0.7" x 4.2" x 6.7"

Customer Reviews

Lots of Characters

This was my first Janet Steinberg novel. It was fast paced and realistic. You can't rush through this novel, she does introduce a lot of characters. If you aren't paying attention, you'll need to flip back and remember who's who. Also, I felt left out by her past experiences which were fairly significant in this book. Those comments aside, it was a great romp through academia, oceanography and La Jolla, California. She is a descriptive author who doesn't tangle you up in endless scenery setting. I will definitely read her again.

What a great way to get an education about oceanography!

I really loved Death of a PostModernist and was delighted to learn that the Margo Simon series continues. In this book, I especially love Steinberg's use of oceanographic terms as epigraphs for the chapters. I am also enjoying watching Margo's relationships with her stepchildren unfold from one book to the next. And I also like looking at other women through the eyes of Margo, because she looks at them with such a compassionate and intelligent eye. I am eager for more books in this engaging series of mysteries.

Love title - buying another for friend

The title of this book struck me as very funny - a take-off on Hemingway's "The Old Man and The Sea." But I didn't know if I'd like the book.It actually is very well written. The plot involves the death of a gay character - and boy is he a character! We find out a lot about him after he's dead. He's outrageous and quite amusing.The San Diego locale is accurately portrayed. The action takes place at an oceanographic institute that seems to be like Scripps Institute.Anyhow, I'm coming back to buy another copy for a friend.

A good read

Reporter Margo Simon has still not recovered from the fire she was in last year. The last thing she needs at this time is more stress. Unfortunately, she goes into overload when her spouse and his diving partner pull a dead body from the water. Margo recognizes the deceased as Hob Schreiber, an oceanographer, who loved causes more than men (except in the biblical sense). Hob was a promiscuous gay who had more enemies than friends. When it is discovered that Hob was murdered, there is an overabundance of suspects who wanted the caustic professor dead. When Margo comes upon the drowned body of a graduate student, she feels that there is a link to the Hob murder and begins to investigate the two deaths. However, the killer will do anything to keep Margo from learning the truth, even if it means killing her. Janice Steinberg's latest addition to the Margo Simon series is an intellectually stimulating who-done-it. Part cozy, part amateur sleuth, and part academic mystery, THE DEAD MAN AND THE SEA will appeal to a wide range of mystery fans. This work reads like a modern Americanized version of an Agatha Christie novel, challenging the reader to ferret out the killer's identity. This book is an entertaining way to spend a cozy fall day. Harriet Klausner