MURDER IN MORNINGSIDE HEIGHTS is book 19 in the
Gaslight
Mystery series by the talented Victoria
Thompson. The Gaslight Mysteries are a historical
detective series, set in 19th century New York City. The
two main characters, midwife Sarah Brandt and prior police
detective-turned-private inquiry agent Sergeant Frank
Malloy, came from different ethnic and social classes.
Their murder investigations always involve the upper
classes as well as the servants and poor working class of
New York. This allows Thompson to show all walks of life in
her stories, allowing for a continuing great breadth of
interesting facts about 19th century American society and
daily life. These tidbits are smoothly woven in among
the details of the crime and investigation though, so the
lovely historical details are anything but dull. Fans of
Anne Perry will enjoy this series.
Frank Malloy, now happily married to Sarah Brandt, has
opened his new detective agency business called
Confidential Inquiries. Malloy was recently
dismissed from New York's police force because he inherited
millions of dollars. While Malloy doesn't need to work, he
enjoys detecting, and continues doing what he does best by
tracking down criminals. I love the portrayal of New York's
nascent police force with its attendant corruption. Sarah
is figuring out that she misses her previous work as a
midwife now that she's a nabob's wife, but at least Malloy
is allowing her to continue assisting him in his
investigations as his wife. I don't think Sarah gets as
much chance to shine in this investigation as she has in
books past, though.
There
are plenty of suspects and many fun red herrings. The
slow romance between Maeve, Catherine's nanny, and Gino,
Malloy's assistant, is now providing some of the romantic
counterpoint that Sarah and Malloy did in the earlier
books. Most of my favorite secondary characters make
brief appearances here, with a quirky neighbor butting in
with her funny superstitions and Sarah's intrepid mother
assisting with the murder inquiry. While this mystery
series is not a true cozy, New York still feels small and
intimate given the charming cast of characters. Thompson's
light historical mystery MURDER IN MORNINGSIDE HEIGHTS is
an appealing way to happily while away a few hours wrapped
in the scenes of the New York of yesteryear.
The national bestselling author of Gaslight Mysteries returns with a case of murder in the field of higher learning in Victorian-era Manhattan… As Frank and Sarah Malloy adjust to married life—and life in New York high society—they investigate the death of Abigail Northrup. Her parents’ pride and joy, she recently graduated from a prestigious women’s college in Morningside Heights and joined their staff as an instructor. She considered herself a New Woman, determined to live a life without a husband in which she could make her own decisions and make a difference in the world. But while Northrup was an exemplary student and teacher, she lived in a world of secrets and lies…
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