In curious new book, ‘Winter,’ campus murder forces couple to confront loss, loyalty and the strains of middle age
OBERLIN, Ohio — In Winter, the newest installment in H.N. Hirsch’s Bob and Marcus mystery series, the central question isn’t just who killed a professor—but whether a long-term relationship can endure life’s hardest seasons.
On a quiet December day, Marcus George, a UC San Diego professor, returns to his office and finds a colleague’s lifeless body sprawled on the floor. Suddenly, Marcus is a suspect in a murder investigation. His partner of nearly two decades, Bob Abramson—a defense attorney juggling a painful family loss—is quick to offer support. But as the stress of the investigation builds, cracks begin to show in their carefully built life.
Kirkus Reviews praises the book’s emotional depth, writing: “Hirsch evocatively captures two gay men navigating middle age, career stress, and a long-term relationship together.”
Drawing upon his own 40-year career as a professor of political science and law-related courses, Hirsch weaves real-world historical and political context into the fabric of the characters’ lives, as Bob and Marcus face their most difficult challenges as a couple.
Winter is Hirsch’s fourth book featuring the crime-solving duo Bob and Marcus. The first novel in the series, Shade, is set against the backdrop of 1985 Boston, where Marcus, a sharp-minded assistant professor at Harvard, finds his world upended when one of his students is murdered. Enter Bob, the murdered student’s summer roommate. As Marcus and Bob work together to untangle the mystery, a deeper connection forms between them—one that blossoms into a loving relationship. When Bob finishes law school, the couple relocates to San Diego, where Marcus joins the faculty at a University of California campus while Bob begins his career as a lawyer.
The series spans decades, with each of the four installments leaping forward in time. Shade is set in 1985, and Winter, in 2004. Through the evolving lives of Bob and Marcus, the novels trace not only a personal love story but also the broader cultural and political shifts shaping the lives of gay men in America.
Hirsch’s Bob and Marcus mystery series is filled with complex characters, colorful locations and plenty of thrills for anyone who loves a good ”whodunnit.”
