If you are looking for a mystery that is set back in history with a strong female character, then THE CABINETS OF BARNABY MAYNE by Elsa Hart just might be for you. Overall I like the storyline and enjoyed reading once I got halfway through the novel. It started out a bit slower than what I am used to in a mystery as I love a lot of action but once I got to the point of the actual story it became more interesting to me. Hart used a lot of descriptions throughout the novel so it was heavy in explaining how someone or a room would look. Her wording at times kept the book lively which I also liked and showed a strong sense of the era, 1703.

In London during 1703, Cecily Kay is invited to the Mayne’s house to study her passion for plants. She is in awe of Barnaby Mayne’s cabinets that hold many collections of bones, books, and other artifacts a collector would require. During a tour of his cabinets, he is found murdered and the one who confesses to it seems out of character for him to commit such a crime. Cecily is on a mission to prove that an innocent man should not do the time and is determined to find the real killer.

THE CABINETS OF BARNABY MAYNE is a well-written novel and looks like there is room to continue the storyline with such a strong character as Cecily if Hart wanted to. In the 1700s women were usually not as resilient as a character as Cecily which gives a breath of fresh air to the era. Elsa Hart’s protagonist is one I really enjoy even though it is a different mystery than what I am used to.