Dr Toni Day, the pathologist of a small hospital in Idaho, discovers a body in her own office - that of her arch-nemesis Dr Sally, no less. Dr Sally may have been at the hospital for only a month, but she succeeded in her mission to make it the worst month of Dr Toni's career. The evidence seems to point to Dr Toni as the murderer. It is up to Dr Toni to find more evidence that will clear herself, and implicate the real murderer.

This is a fast-paced book, one that I didn't want to put down. The storyline is very good, or, rather, storylines. In addition to the mystery of the whodunit, there is a second mystery – one involving a person from Dr Toni's past.

The characters and story are well written. My favorite character, by far, is Dr Toni. Dr Toni defends her lab staff when conflicts arise between her staff and the other doctors, because she knows her staff is using proper laboratory procedures and protocols. I am a Medical Technologist, as are her lab techs, and so I am partial to such supportive behavior. I also enjoyed reading about a realistic lab and hospital, where the lab work is performed by actual Medical Technologists. (Did you ever notice on the TV show House, that the lab was always inexplicably deserted except for Dr House's minions, who were running the lab tests themselves?)

There is some cursing – including several F-bombs. The language is not used gratuitously, however, and does not detract from the book. I feel that many people would use the same language under the same circumstances.

This is the debut novel by Jane Bennett Munro, a semi-retired pathologist of a small hospital in Idaho. The advice to “write what you know” certainly applied in this situation. Murder under the Microscope is an excellent book. Dr Munro has written a second book about Dr Toni, Too Much Blood, which I am anxious to read.

If you like Romantic Crime mysteries, with a medical aspect similar to that of the old TV series Quincy, M.E., you'll love Dr Toni and Murder under the Microscope. I rated it 5 out of 5 stars, and highly recommend it!
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I didn't like the main character. I just felt like she was complaining the entire book, which made me dislike the book as a whole.

Also, I noticed several grammatical errors that seemed to revolve around commas. ( )

Jane Bennett Munro has orchestrated the ultimate novel.

In the world of Dr. Antoinette Day, a pathologist at Perrine Memorial Hospital in Twin Falls, Idaho, reputation is everything. Never has it been more crucial to necessitate the preservation of her professional integrity than the present.

The appearance of Dr. Shore, a temporary replacement for a regular resident, begins the rapid decline into strange occurances such as misread reports and missing patient data. The sudden onslaught of murder doesn't help matters. It seems that practically overnight, Dr. Day has become the focus of a police investigation that places her as the prime suspect.

It is an intriguing tale of murder, deceit and, strangely enough, faith. The author's background lends a deeper perspective into the medical world, illuminating and merging complicated data into an intelligent and appalling story. Munro demonstrates her talents of narration throughout the book.

Read the full review here:
Bookend Chronicles ( )

I love medical thriller and initially thought I would love this book. Unfortunately, the further I got into the story, the more certain things detracted from my enjoyment.

I'll start with the good stuff. Munro has the kind of writing style that draws me right in. I was happy to step into the characters' world and forget everything else. Being a doctor herself allows Munro to give the medical aspects of the story a realistic feel. The main character is likable. And the plot held my interest, with a few twists many readers won't see coming.

Now the not so good stuff. While Toni, the main character, is fairly well developed, the rest of the cast serves more as props and they lack personality. I didn't feel I knew any of the characters aside from Toni.

The other negative for me came with solving the crime. The police are portrayed as pretty much useless, with Toni driving the investigation forward. There are certain things police generally do in a murder investigation, regardless of the size of the town or city, and those things just weren't done here. This stretched credibility too far for me, making the mystery less enjoyable. ( )

I found this to be a real thought provoking novel, with twists and turns on every page. I was hooked from page one, the characters and the setting were superb.

Based around a memorial hospital in Twin Falls, Idaho, a new doctor, Sally Shore, arrives and starts to tarnish the image and credibility of the pathologist Dr Antoinette Day. After an argument between the two Dr Shore is found deady in Dr Days office.

The above scenario is excellently played out throughout the book, the text and language is easy to read and understand and any jargon is clearly explained. The knowledge and expertise the author has gained from her own profession as a pathologiest is expertly crafted and scripted into a first class novel.

As murder mysteries are my favourite ready material, for a debut book and author this really rates highly in my library of literature. I hope this is the first of many novels featuring Dr Day. ( )