Tag Archives: Historical mystery

Currently Reading

Posted on by

I have been a fan of Barbara Hambly’s since she wrote fantasy and science fiction. (The series about the Dog Wizard is an especial favorite.) I love the Benjamin January books.

January is a free man of color in New Orleans. Although trained as a doctor, as a black man he is not allowed to practice so he supports his family as a musician.

In 1840, William Harry Harrison, an Indian fighter, was running for president. January pays only a little attention to politics but since the run up to a large rally in New Orleans is filled with balls and other events, he is busy playing. One day after a fist fight between two suitor for a beautiful flirt named Marie- Joyeuse Maginot, she is found murdered and the only black person there is promptly arrested. January immediately begins investigating to save his friend.

A story that begins with an attack on January by an escaped slave (for his clothes) ends with January racing across roofs to prevent an assassination.

As usual, Hambly’s mystery is excellent. But, also as usual, what strikes me most is the difficulty of living in a slave state as a free man. January always carries his papers, and even then risks being sold into slavery and possibly ending up in the cane fields. A smart man, he must hide his intelligence from the wealthy white men who hire him as a musician. This dynamic gives the Hambly mysteries an added dimension beyond the historical facts, great characters and wonderful puzzles.

Highly Recommended.

Currently Reading

Posted on by

First, a shoutout to let everyone know I’ll be at Clifton Park Mall this Saturday, June 21, 10 – 4. There will be a lot of authors there and so a lot of fun.

This week I read two very good books.

The first was the new one by well-established author, Anne Perry. The One Thing More takes place during the French Revolution on the eve of the execution of the King. Celie, born into minor aristocracy, is now a laundress. She is also working with a group trying to arrange the King’s escape. Several other people, including the owner of the house, are not only involved but leaders. But the plans are halted when Bernave, the house’s owner and the leader of the plot, is murdered during an incursion by a mob. Who murdered Bernave and why? Now the house is surrounded by the police, including the dogged Menou. Celie, in an effort to connect with another plotter, has to go over the roofs.

The murderer and the motive are not identified until almost the final page after some pretty hair raising scenes. Perry has not lost her touch. Recommended.

Death upon a Star is Amy Patricia Meade’s newest mystery. Evelyn Galloway travels to Hollywood in the late thirties to work as a script girl for Alfred Hitchcock on Rebecca. On Evelyn’s first day, she meets a kind older actor who had been a silent movie star. They make arrangements to meet for lunch the following day but he doesn’t show. Evelyn can’t let it go and begins her own sub rosa investigation.

Meade’s trademark humor and interesting characters are on full display but the real star is the setting. From the activity in the studio to the long ago stars to Alfred Hitchcock himself, Meade hits every note perfectly. Although not as funny as the Country Living series, Death Upon a Star is charming and fun. It deserves a wide readership. Recommended.

Currently Reading

Posted on by

This past week I read two books that could not be more different, both suggested to me by Amazon.

While I read Murder for Christmas by Francis Duncan, I kept thinking that it had a very old fashioned feel. The action takes place at a Christmas Party, at a fancy house, in the snow. The detective, Mordecai Tremaine, is a bland fellow with piece-nez.

Christmas morning, the guests are shocked to find the body of a fellow guest wearing a Santa suit. He is the guardian of a young girl. (This is where the old-fashioned nature appears; the description of the girl, and the other women in fact, is very dated.) As usual, as Tremaine investigates, he discovers everyone has secrets, from Benedict Grame’s sister (planning to elope) to the seemingly dull married couple, to Benedict himself.

Dated in some respects but the mystery holds up. Recommended.

The second book I read was Singapore Sapphire.

Harriet Gordon has moved to Singapore to live with her brother after a stint in Holloway prison for her activities as a suffragette. Her brother is a minister and the headmaster of a boys’ school. Desperate for some income, she advertises her services as a stenographer and typist. When she goes to the home of her first client, Sir Oswald Newbold, to retrieve her typewriter, she finds his body. This introduces her to Robert Curran, the Detective Inspector of the Police force. Needless to say, Harriet involves herself in the investigation. She develops a friendship with Curran, something she wishes would be more. But he is already involved with a beautiful Chinese woman.

This mystery has it all: interesting characters, an exotic and well-drawn locale, and a captivating mystery.

HighlyRecommended.

Currently Reading

Posted on by

The Orchid Hour by Nancy Bilyeau is a historical mystery set in the 1920s.

After the death of her husband, Zia De Luca lives a quiet life working in the public library and her in-laws store as she raises her son. But when a regular patron is murdered outside the library, Zia is questioned by the police. Shortly after, someone comes into the store to question Zia and then her father-in-law is murdered in his store. A man is arrested but Zia is positive Nettuno is not guilty.

Zia realizes that to find the answers, she will have to investigate herself. Through a connection with her cousin Salvatore, and using her maiden name to hide her identity, she goes to work for an upscale speakeasy called The Orchid Hour. Will she find the murderer of the library patron and her father-in-law before the mobsters find out who she really is?

I really enjoyed this well written historical mystery. My own complaint is that the ending is wrapped up very quickly. But the characters are fascinating and the mystery gives a very good picture of the Italians in New York in the Twenties. Recommended.