When his beloved copy of the Oxford English Dictionary falls from its perch and cracks the skull of pedantic Professor Parkinson, few of his colleagues seem to notice--and fewer seem to mind. Only Erica Duncan, a newly appointed Assistant Professor of English, questions the events surrounding the mysterious death of the resident medievalist, a topic that her colleagues studiously avoid.

The new girl in town, Erica must tread lightly if she wants to take a ride on the tenure track at Brixton University. Anything else would be the death of her career, as she is reminded by the man who shares her life, an actor currently on tour, and by the man who shares her office, with an interest in Erica that is not strictly professional. Erica must decide what she is willing to risk, both personally and professionally, to find out the truth about the dead man that nobody really knew. Did the dictionary jump or was it pushed? It will take all of Erica's wit and intellect to answer the questions raised by A Dying Fall.