Murder on St. Nicholas Avenue by Victoria Thompson

Historical Mystery

From Goodreads:

The author of Murder on Amsterdam Avenue returns to nineteenth-century New York City to find Christmas in the air, a police detective and a midwife with love in their hearts, and a wealthy newlywed with blood on her hands…

Detective Sergeant Frank Malloy and Sarah Brandt are not the only ones who have recently tied the knot. Family friend Mrs. O’Neill was delighted when her daughter Una wed the seemingly wealthy and charming Randolph Pollock. She didn’t wonder why such an affluent man would want to marry a poor Irish girl, no matter how pretty she was. But now Mrs. O’Neill has a problem.

Pollock’s servants have found their employer bludgeoned to death with Una cradling his body. Rendered mute by the horror of her husband’s death, Una cannot explain what happened, so the police have charged her with murder and locked her away in the Tombs to await trial.

Mrs. O’Neill would like Frank to investigate the case and save Una, yet with Frank and Sarah still on their honeymoon, it’s up to the other members of their newly formed household to do some detective work. But solving the mystery behind Pollock’s death means first discovering the truth about who he really is.

Murder on St. Nicholas Avenue is a bonus book in the Gaslight Mystery series and it is a very good bonus.  Thank you Victoria Thompson for this great Christmas gift.

Frank and Sarah are off on their honeymoon but that does not stop the mysteries that arrive on their door step.  Maeve and Gino join forces with Mr. and Mrs. Decker to solve what turns out to be more than a murder.

This book is great fun.  I loved the scenes between Mr . and Mrs. Decker.  She thinks she is keeping her involvement in this and previous cases from him but it turns out he has his suspicions.  There are some really laugh out loud moments when reading the dialog between the two.

This is a great set up for furture books.  We know more Maeve, Gino, Mrs. Decker and of course Mr. Decker.  A great side note.  Mr Decker did not realize his life was boring until he started helping solve some of the cases.

I look forward to these four have a more important role in future books.  It will add a new dimension to one of my favorite series.

Berkley Crime published Murder on St. Nicholas Avenue by Victoria Thompson in 2015.

Murder on Amsterdam Avenue Gaslight Mystery #17) by Victoria Thompson

Historical Mystery

From Goodreads:

In this Gaslight Mystery from the national bestselling author of Murder in Murray Hill, midwife Sarah Brandt and Detective Sergeant Frank Malloy investigate foul play in the secretive high-society world of nineteenth-century New York City…

In the midst of Sarah and Frank’s wedding preparations, Sarah accompanies her mother on a condolence call to the Upper West Side, where Charles Fairfax, the son of family friends, has died unexpectedly after suffering from a mysterious disease. It is a tragic and all too common story—or so it seems. Charles’s father asks to speak with Sarah privately. He believes his son was poisoned and would like Sarah and Frank to look into the matter with the utmost discretion.  

Putting their own personal affairs on hold, Sarah and Frank soon learn that not everyone wants to know more about Charles’s death, particularly if he was murdered. As they unravel secrets that reach back to the War Between the States, they also discover that they are in the company of a very present danger.

With this 17^th book Frank and Sarah finally marry but not until the very end of the book.  Frank is not longer with the police.  He could not  be effective there but he can function as a Private Detective and in Murder on Amsterdam Avenue that is what he does.  He is approached by Charles Fairfax’s father who thinks that his son’s death may be murder.  Both Frank and Sarah become a part of the investigation, as do Maeve, Sarah’s Mother and Gino.

Thompson has woven some of the characters from previous books into the story. Gino is one example.  We meet him as a young policeman who left the force to join Teddy Roosevelt in Cuba.  He comes home in this book and Frank hires him to help with the investigation.

Like previous cases this one is full of false clues and complicated history.  I did suspect that one character was not what she appeared and I was right.  However I did not pick out the actual murderer until the very end.

I always know I had a year to wait for the next book but guess what.  Not this time.  Frank and Sarah are off to Europe for their honeymoon and Gino and Maeve will help a young woman falsely accused of murder in Murder on St. Nichols Avenue.  That book will be published in November of this year. There is also a promise of many more adventures for Frank and Sarah.

Just a note.  I have wondered what Sarah is going to do now that she and Frank are married.  She can no longer work as a mid-wife and while Frank goes on to be a private detective Sarah is not one to sit and do nothing.  What does Thompson have planned for her to do?

Berkley Prime Crime published Murder on Amsterdam Avenue by Victoria Thompson in 2015.

Murder in Murray Hill (A Gaslight Mystery #16) by Victoria Thompson

Historical Mystery

From Goodreads: 

When facing injustice, the residents of nineteenth-century New York City’s tenements turn to midwife Sarah Brandt and Detective Sergeant Frank Malloy to protect their rights. Now, as the Edgar® and Agatha Award–nominated series continues, the two must track down a cruel criminal preying on the hopes and dreams of innocent women…

A Gaslight Mystery

Frank Malloy has never known any life other than that of a cop, but his newfound inheritance threatens his position within his department. While trying to keep both his relationship with Sarah and his fortune under wraps, he’s assigned to a new case—finding a missing young woman for her worried father, Henry Livingston.

It seems the girl had been responding to “lonely hearts” ads in the paper for months before she disappeared. Her father thinks that she’s eloped with a deceptive stranger, but Malloy fears the worst, knowing that the grifters who place such ads often do much more than simply abscond with their victims. But as Sarah and Malloy delve deeper into a twisted plot targeting the city’s single women, it’s their partnership—both professional and private—that winds up in the greatest peril…

The Gaslight Mystery Series is one of my favorites.  I have to wait a year for each new book and I have to say Murder in Murray Hill was worth the wait.

I love Frank and Sarah.  They are such a mix-matched couple and it has been fun watching their relationship develop.  Murder in Murray Hill has the two looking for a killer and helping woman who have been kidnapped.

 Mixed into the story are some of the issues they have to resolve before they marry.  One major issue is how to tell Frank’s Mother about their upcoming marriage and the money Frank has inherited.  .  I loved the scene and have gone back to re-read several times.  Then there is Frank’s job or the lack of job once the news of his new wealth comes out.  Added to all of that is the issue of where they will live.  Look for Mrs. Ellsworth’s hand in that issue.

The plot is great, the writing smooth and the action kept the story moving.  A additional plus to the series is how  the history of  New York at the turn of the century is worked into the story line.  Murder in Murray Hill can be read as a stand-alone but if you are a new start from the beginning. 

Berkley Crime published Murder in Murray Hill by Victoria Thompson in 2014.

Waiting on Wednesday - April 23, 2014

 

 Waiting on Wednesday is a weekly feature sponsored by Breaking the Spine.  It is a great way to share upcoming releases.

Victoria Thompson's Gaslight Mysteries are one of my favorite mystery series.  Only one book a year is published and the next one comes out in May.  I am waiting for Murder in Murray Hill (Gaslight Mystery #16).  

From Goodreads:

"When facing injustice, the residents of nineteenth-century New York City’s tenements turn to midwife Sarah Brandt and Detective Sergeant Frank Malloy to protect their rights. Now, as the Edgar and Agatha Award nominated series continues, the two must track down a cruel criminal preying on the hopes and dreams of innocent women…

A Gaslight Mystery

Frank Malloy has never known any life other than that of a cop, but his newfound inheritance threatens his position within his department. While trying to keep both his relationship with Sarah and his fortune under wraps, he’s assigned to a new case—finding a missing young woman for her worried father, Henry Livingston.

It seems the girl had been responding to lonely hearts” ads in the paper for months before she disappeared. Her father thinks that she’s eloped with a deceptive stranger, but Malloy fears the worst, knowing that the grifters who place such ads often do much more than simply abscond with their victims. But as Sarah and Malloy delve deeper into a twisted plot targeting the city’s single women, it’s their partnership—both professional and private—that winds up in the greatest peril…."

Book Beginnings on Friday, May 18, 2012

Book Beginnings on Friday is a meme hosted by Gilion at Rose City Reader. Anyone can participate; just share the opening sentence of your current read, making sure that you include  include the title and author so others know what you're reading.



I just started Murder on Fifth Avenue by Victoria Thompson.  This is book 14 in The Gaslight Mystery Series.  Here is how it starts.

"Detective Sergeant Malloy?"

Frank hated answering stupid questions from goo-goos when he was in the middle of an investigation." 


I had to keep reading to find out what a goo - goo was.  I love this series and Murder on Fifth Avenue is off to a great start.