Opium and Absinthe

Lydia Kang's Opium and Absinthe is a worthy entry in the historical mystery genre. It is an occult mystery because the presumed killer is a vampire. Not much is written into the plot about vampires other than that the presumed perp happens to be one of them. There is none of the usual astrology, alchemy, magic or spiritualism that a reader would normally find in an occult novel. The story is a straight murder mystery that centers on solving the crime.  There are two amateur sleuths that work together in this novel. Tillie Pembroke is an heiress who longs to be taken seriously instead of having to marry and host parties. As she tells Ian Metzger, her thirst for knowledge would not be met by going to college, an impossibility anyway in nineteenth-century New York. Metzger is a poor Jewish immigrant who sells newspapers for a living. When Ian sells Tillie a newspaper that covers the death of her sister Lucy, they both feel an attraction and begin to meet secretly.

Tillie Pembroke is the youngest girl in the Pembroke family. Her older sister Lucy has always gotten all of the attention. Lucy's engagement to James Cutter, which will unite two prominent American families, only increases her family's interest in her. While the Pembrokes have money, Cutter, a descendant of the illustrious Astor family, is cash poor. However, Cutter will give the Pembrokes the pedigree they have always sought. When Lucy is found dead with bite marks on her neck and an empty bottle of absinthe nearby, the Pembrokes are devastated but their thirst for acceptance into the upper echelons of society drives them to not show their feelings. Behaving in society is more dear than grief. Tillie is different, though. She cannot stop asking questions about her sister as well as about the status of the police investigation into her death. A random introduction to Ian Metzger while on an outing proves to be fortuitous. Tillie only hears the details about her sister's death from Ian while he is selling his newspapers because he shouts out loud the headlines. She buys one but a note written by Ian on the front page gives Tillie his contact information. She is intrigued by him as he seems to be the only person interested in solving her sister's murder. Tillie and Ian are able to write to each other even though the Pembrokes forbid it. Tillie uses her maid and the family's new security guard to mail letters for her and escape from her home after midnight in order to meet Ian. Together they discuss how Lucy may have been murdered and do research to try to solve her murder.

Tillie's introduction as a sleuth was quite natural. She has an interest in figuring out how and why her sister died. Ian tells her she would make a great journalist and would like her to help him in writing articles for his newspaper, the World. They come from completely different backgrounds but Tillie and Ian are a great crimesolving couple. Their differences actually help them think better. With many twists and turns to solve before they can find answers to their questions, the two of them work together to determine who killed Lucy.

5 out of 5 stars!