Bimbos of the Death Sun

 Bimbos of the Death Sun (1987) by Sharyn McCrumb

Jay Omega (Professor James Owens Mega) is attending his first ever science fiction convention--as a featured author. Under the pen name Jay Omega, he has written a hard SF novel--which has been given the title Bimbos of the Death Sun and a lurid cover by his publishers--and his partner, Marion Farley (Professor of English, science fiction specialty) advises him that he should go to a convention and promote his book. So he does. He doesn't expect the weekend to involve sharing author honors with one of the most odious fantasy authors, Appin Dungannon, or judging a writing contest or serving as Dungeon Master for a live "Dungeons & Dragons" game...or becoming involved in a murder investigation when somebody decides they've had enough of Dungannon and shoots him in his hotel room. Dungannon's fantasy series may have been beloved by fans...but he certainly wasn't. His idea of author/fan interaction was to insult their intelligence at every opportunity.

Poor Lieutenant Ayhan doesn't know what to make of the case when it's assigned to him.There are elves, Star Trek officers, vampires, storm troopers, and more wandering the hallways of the hotel. Since 90% of the convention attendees are in costume, it's difficult to pin down who's who--and he's never sure when someone mentions a name if it's a real person or not.

"I didn't see....Yes, I did. Going down the hall toward the room, I passed two Imperial Storm Troopers, and when I came out, I ran into Dracula." [Louis Warren]
Lt. Ayhan sighed, "I love this case."

He wonders which of these crazy SF/Fantasy folk went off the murder deep-end and decided to rid the world of the rude author. But, having just met him that weekend, Jay Omega wonders who didn't want to kill him? When Jay's expertise is needed with the victim's computer, they realize that portions of Dungannon's most recent novel have been deleted. Could the deletions hold the key to the murder? 

So, this was hilarious--dated views of women notwithstanding. I never attended a SF convention--I was too young when I was in my full-throttle science fiction phase. But I did write Star Trek parodies and poetry and, had I been able, I'm sure I would have attended a con in full Trek costume. I'm pretty familiar with the rabid fan mentality that McCrumb portrays. I see that some of the reviewers on Goodreads take exception to her poking fun at these things. But I can definitely recognize the types and enjoy the fun being had. I don't think she's being cruel and, quite honestly, some of the behavior is very funny. Full points for setting, background, and general ambiance.

The mystery plot itself is a little obvious. Mainly because I didn't think McCrumb built up enough solid motives among the "suspects"--and really didn't have the lieutenant do much in the way of investigating those suspects. The death occurs rather late in the game and so the ending was a bit fast and forced. An earlier murder with more investigation and motive development would have been welcome. I'm not as familiar with McCrumb's work, so I looked to see if this was her debut mystery, but she had at least three under her belt at that point (and possibly four--depending on the timing between this and Paying the Piper). Still, this was a highly entertaining book and I enjoyed reading it. ★★★ and 1/2.

First line: The visiting Scottish folksinger peered out of the elevator into the hotel lobby.

Science fiction writers build castles in the air; the fans move into them; and the publishers collect the rent. [from the Author's Note; ix)

"Just tell Dungannon it can't be done," said Omega reasonably.
They both looked at him as if he were tap-dancing on a minefield. (p. 9)

"I was just thinking how nice it would be to be famous enough to be difficult." (Jay Omega; p. 10)

Ah, well, he thought, closing the door, it will make a fine story to tell back home. "What did you do in American, Donnie?"--"I loaned chocolate bars to the Martians." (p. 11)

Miles Perry didn't think that homicide detectives ought to giggle while investigating a murder. Still, he supposed, it was better than a granite-faced Joe Friday look that radiated suspicion. (p.80)

Last lines: Apparently they were talking about real life. Real life bored him. Bonnenberger stopped listening and went back to his book.

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Deaths = 2 (one shot; one electrocuted)