MURDER 101 by Maggie Barbieri (St. Martin's Minotaur)

After Professor Alison Bergeron's old Volvo is stolen, she's shocked to find two detectives in her English Department office days later. Her surprise is appropriate—the're from homicide; her car has been found, with a student's body in the trunk. Alison loses her suspect status when she becomes the target of kidnappers—twice. In a non-traditional-cozy way, Alison doesn't succumb to terror, she fights back. Barbieri inserts several twists that prevent die-hard mystery readers from knowing who-done-it until the very end. This excellent debut mystery should be in the running for several major awards.