The year is 1912 and ladies maid Jane Prescott is preparing to travel to Long Island with the Benchley family for Louise's upcoming wedding. Louise is marrying William Tyler, whose uncle, Charles Tyler, is New York's Deputy Commissioner. Their wedding will take place at his grand home. Alas, everything goes haywire when the Tyler family's nanny is found murdered. Was it a kidnapping gone wrong, or a lovers' tiff? Charles Tyler has made enemies among the Italian mafia - could they have tried to kidnap the baby and the nanny got it the way? And what will happen to the wedding now?

DEATH OF A NEW AMERICAN is the sequel to A DEATH OF NO IMPORTANCE, a book I've been interested in reading and definitely more so now after reading this book. I came to like Jane Prescott very much, especially when I learned more about her tragic past, which made her a very interesting character. She's not an amateur sleuth; she's a ladies maid who just happens to be the one who finds the body. Jane found Sofia to be a lovely girl and she's saddened by her death. With the help of her friend, journalist Michael Behan, she is trying to figure out who could have killed her. I found the case interesting to follow and the ending very poignant.

DEATH OF A NEW AMERICAN can definitely be read as a stand-alone. The case in itself is interesting and in many ways heartbreaking. I also quite liked getting to know the Benchley and the Tylers, and of course, Michael Behan, who Jane holds dear. I'm looking forward to reading more books in this series!