'Murder at B-School' Hits Harvard Target

“B” stands for “Business” in Jeffrey Cruikshank’s murder mystery debut Murder at the B-School. And the serial murderer on the loose in this tale of deception, corruption, and elitism truly means business.

The MacInness family, steeped in old money, clashes with what Cruikshank calls “the oldest corporation in the western hemisphere”—Harvard—when son Eric suspiciously drowns alone in a hot tub after hours at Shad Hall, the “B-School’s” private fitness facility. The novel’s protagonist, junior finance professor Wim Vermeer, finds that his upcoming tenure review is the least of his problems.

The blue-blooded MacInesses suspect that the relationship between Eric and Vermeer was more than just teacher-student. And they also believe that Vermeer might have been the murderer of his suspected ex-lover. The result is a crimson-tinted twist on the old whodunit template.

Jeffrey Cruikshank, a writer for over 20 years, is well-recognized for his works of non-fiction, including a history of Harvard Business School released earlier this month, but as he noted in a recent interview, Murder at the B-School is his first stab at fiction.

“I’ve written a lot of special-interest non-fiction that not too many people read,” Cruikshank says. “I wanted to write a book that there was a chance a lot of people could read. I’ve read some mysteries, and thought, ‘I can do better.’”

Cruikshank, a former editor of the Harvard Business Review, chose the top-ranked institution for the backdrop of his story because “it is a setting in which many different walks of life bump around together.”

The resultant interplay of individuals from diverse backgrounds foments class conflict among Cruikshank’s characters. Every word from the street-smart Somerville native Barbara Brouillard, a Boston Police Department detective, seethes with the disdain—and desire—for the life the MacInnesses lead. Meanwhile, the MacInnes family members’ stiff speech betrays their sheltered upbringing.

Cruikshank says his characters “are not based on real people,” even though the mystery is largely set in Cruikshank’s old haunt.

“This is not a ‘kiss and tell book,’” Cruikshank says.

In fact, his characters often don’t seem human at all: their dialogue is somewhat unrealistic and at times robotic. But the plot is intriguing—and Cruikshank keeps his reader guessing right up until the very end.

Author and protogonist are both in the business of solving mysteries. For Vermeer, the investigation is a matter of life and death; for Cruikshank, the carefully-crafted mystery is the key to commercial success. And they both take their business very seriously.

--—Staff writer Jessicca A. Berger can be reached at berger@fas.harvard.edu.