The Christmas House

The Christmas House is an Amish fiction novella with a modern twist. While it has the usual romance and faith, I was surprised by the main character's love for the English newcomers. It was published on September 2, 2025. 

The publisher's summary:

With the holidays approaching, Liz Lantz is dedicated to using her Hickory Hollow buggy tour business to share God's love with the Englisher tourists who visit her Lancaster County community. But when her father and brother are called away for a while, Dat finds a young Amishman to assist her on the tours in her brother's place, much to Liz's dismay. Regardless, the popularity of her Christmas House Buggy Tour means she could use the help, so as the countdown to Christmas begins, she works alongside Matthew Yoder, who quickly takes a genuine interest in the tour customers--and Liz.

As an Englisher family in Hickory Hollow expresses their festive spirit with a lavishly decorated house for the second year running, Liz's Amish community becomes increasingly concerned about attracting unwanted traffic and attention, and Liz wonders if there is any way to bridge the gap to help the new neighbors feel welcome. At the same time, she grapples with her growing feelings for Matt, whose position with her is only temporary. Can she find a way to bring harmony to Hickory Hollow in time for Christmas?

I loved this book. It's a heartwarming tale of Liz Lantz's efforts to help her new neighbors. In contrast, the rest of the Amish avoided them and were disgusted by their Christmas decorations. It was surprising to me that Liz began a business taking visitors on buggy rides in Hickory Hollow. This is not something I expected an Amish person to do, let alone a female. It was also surprising that Liz took customers to her English neighbor's home, fully decked out with interior and exterior lighted decorations. Most of the Amish disapproved of the gaudy display. Why Liz did not get spoken to by the bishop is beyond me. 

There is some mystery concerning Liz's father and brother's ability to return home in time for Christmas. Her mother was depressed but there is a hint that it might be unrelated. A severe snowstorm blanketed Hickory Hollow causing the electricity to snap. While it did not affect the Amish, the Englishers lost all power including heat. Liz comes up with a plan to help them and, once again, another surprising twists happens. Let's not forget the romance. Whether Liz and Matthew become a couple is for you to find out.

The Christmas House is a relaxing read. I am rating it 5 out of 5 stars.

Deeds Left Undone

Deeds Left Undone is the 13th installment of Wine Country Mystery series by Ellen Crosby. It was published on August 5, 2025 and is another awesome entry for the series. The Wine Country series is a cozy mystery series that I have loved from its beginning. 

The publisher's summary:  

When a vineyard accident during harvest season leaves Lucie Montgomery without a valuable employee, it’s her worst nightmare. But before she can search for a replacement, there’s more bad news: Paul Merchant, her winery manager’s husband, is found dead at the bottom of his swimming pool.

Police rule Paul’s death an accident, but his wife insists he was murdered because of his leadership of Don’t Pave Paradise, a conservationist group lobbying to keep the region’s beautiful country roads unpaved. And six weeks ago, Paul’s predecessor also died under mysterious circumstances.

As Lucie is drawn into investigating Paul’s death, she discovers more than one motive for the crime—and more than one person in their close-knit community who wanted Paul dead. And when she finds an old photo of a beautiful local heiress who died tragically in a fire eighty years ago among Paul’s papers, she starts to wonder if the modern-day crime might have roots in the past.

Either way, someone is determined to make sure Lucie, who’s agreed to continue the work of Don’t Pave Paradise, hits a dead end before she even gets started. Even if it means committing murder. Again.

I thoroughly enjoyed getting reacquainted with some of my favorite characters. Lucie, Quinn and the gang are all lovable characters who get along with each other. I find it fascinating that all of the characters in a mystery series like each other. Where's the villain? Villains pop up in every novel but they're not associated with the day to day activities on the farm. I especially love that Lucie has a mobility impairment but manages to run a vineyard. It's not your average job for a person with a disability. 

I had some difficulty believing that opponents of the Don't Pave Paradise were responsible for the death of Paul Marchand and maybe another person associated with the group too. It seemed a ridiculous reason to kill someone. However, that is exactly what happened but the reason was totally unexpected. An interesting side story about an eighty year old fire exposed decades of conflict among the families in the region and filled the middle of the story. The families, however, are all connected to the crimes that are being solved in the book. Questions abound concerning whether today's families are attempting to clear their ancestors of crimes committed or whether there is another reason. There is another reason!

Deeds Left Undone is the perfect cozy mystery.  I am rating it 5 out of 5 stars.

Zodiac

In this deeply philosophical graphic memoir, legendary Chinese artist Ai Weiwei explores the connection between artistic expression and intellectual freedom through the lens of the Chinese zodiac. 

The publisher's summary:

As a child living in exile during the Cultural Revolution, Ai Weiwei often found himself with nothing to read but government-approved comic books. Although they were restricted by the confines of political propaganda, Ai Weiwei was struck by the artists’ ability to express their thoughts on art and humanity through graphic storytelling. Now, decades later, Ai Weiwei and Italian comic artist Gianluca Costantini present Zodiac, Ai Weiwei’s first graphic memoir.

Inspired by the twelve signs of the Chinese zodiac and their associated human characteristics, Ai Weiwei masterfully interweaves ancient Chinese folklore with stories of his life, family, and career. The narrative shifts back and forth through the years—at once in the past, present, and future—mirroring memory and our relationship to time. As readers delve deeper into the beautifully illustrated pages of Zodiac, they will find not only a personal history of Ai Weiwei and an examination of the sociopolitical climate in which he makes his art, but a philosophical exploration of what it means to find oneself through art and freedom of expression.

Contemplative and political, Zodiac will inspire readers to return again and again to Ai Weiwei’s musings on the relationship between art, time, and our shared humanity.

I am not as enamored with the book as are other reviewers. There were several dialogues that I just didn't understand even though there are explanations of some of them. A major question for me was why Ai is a member of the Chinese Communist Party (CCP) when he grew up in a rural area with his exiled father. He has been purged more than once and says he believes in free speech and human rights. Why the CCP membership?

Ai's life story is told as each animal of the zodiac is explained. In the chapter on the snake he wrote about Mao. Ai knew Mao personally but says that Mao is a snake, as all politicians are. Ai Weiwei believes that to be an artist you must be also be an activist. If you're not an activist then you are a dead artist 

The black and white drawings, though detailed, did not help me enjoy the book. They are drawn in comic book panels and are rather detailed but the dialogue was more interesting than the drawings.

I had high expectations for this memoir but it fell short. 3 out of 5 stars.

The Intruder

Freida McFadden had a new book published just last week. She is the best psychological thriller author out there these days and I couldn't resist getting the book as soon as it was published. The Intruder meets the requirements of the Calendar of Crime Reading Challenge for the publication month category as it was published on October 7, 2025.

The publisher's summary:

Who knows what the storm will blow in…

Casey's cabin in the wilderness is not built for a hurricane. Her roof shakes, the lights flicker, and the tree outside her front door sways ominously in the wind. But she's a lot more worried about the girl she discovers lurking outside her kitchen window.

She's young. She's alone. And she's covered in blood.

The girl won't explain where she came from, or loosen her grip on the knife in her right hand. And when Casey makes a disturbing discovery in the middle of the night, things take a turn for the worse.

The girl has a dark secret. One she'll kill to keep. And if Casey gets too close to the truth, she may not live to see the morning.

In this taut, deadly tale of survival and desperation, #1 New York Times bestselling author Freida McFadden explores how far one girl will go to save herself.

I LOVED this book! It's another gripping psychological thriller from Freida McFadden. Like all her previous books, it engaged me from the first page and kept me reading until the last page. I could not put it down. The story has a shifting dual timeline, about twenty years apart and from four character perspectives. This made the plot more suspenseful and with short 2 or 3 page chapters, the pacing was quick. 

The story opens with a dark and stormy night and the main character Casey living in a dilapidated rural cabin. She begins to see faces looking in her cabin. This gave me that deja vu sensation. When Casey offered to give the blood covered girl a place to sleep for the night, I was shocked. Who does that? I thought the girl had just murdered someone and I would never personally allow Ella inside my home. Casey, however, let the teacher inside her allay her fears and only considered how she could help Ella. Ella was rude and I half expected Casey to send her back outdoors after making her dinner. I would have been too scared to let her stay. Casey was naive and I didn't think much of her as a character. Ella, on the other hand, played the villain well. She is a victim, though, but the reader does not know this fact in the beginning.

The story continues with plenty of twists and turns. The big reveal was a surprise that I wasn't expecting. In fact, I started reading it a second time to find all of the clues that I missed. If anything, I was disappointed in myself for missing all of the clues.

The Intruder is a winner. 5 out of 5 stars. 

The Crash

 

I love Freida McFadden books so when I needed a title for the Key Word Reading Challenge last month, I chose The Crash. I am a little behind with my reading due to a move last month but I am getting caught up. The Crash was published in January 2025.

The publisher's summary:  

Tegan is eight months pregnant, alone, and desperately wants to put her crumbling life in the rearview mirror. So she hits the road, planning to stay with her brother until she can figure out her next move. But she doesn't realize she's heading straight into a blizzard.

She never arrives at her destination.

Stranded in rural Maine with a dead car and broken ankle, Tegan worries she's made a terrible mistake. Then a miracle occurs: she is rescued by a couple who offers her a room in their warm cabin until the snow clears.

But something isn't right. Tegan believed she was waiting out the storm, but as time ticks by, she comes to realize she is in grave danger. This safe haven isn't what she thought it was, and staying here may have been her most deadly mistake yet.  

And now she must do whatever it takes to save herself―and her unborn child.

Wow! What an amazing ride from reading this novel. It's a fast paced suspense thriller about an unmarried 8 months pregnant woman who takes shelter during a snowstorm with a strange couple. Tegan doesn't want to be rescued by Hank because he is unkempt and scary looking as he approaches her crashed vehicle. She has no choice though as she has injured her foot and cannot put any weight on it. Hank takes her home because the hospital is 10 miles away, impossible to reach in a snowstorm. Hank's wife Polly is a former nurse who cares for her in their basement. A nursing suite had been built for Polly's dying mother but now Tegan is lying in their hospital bed. She doesn't trust Polly at first but is terrified of Hank.

With an intricate plot, plenty of twists, and an unexpected ending, I found it impossible to put the book down. I read it in approximately 2 hours. The story reminded me of the 1990 movie Misery with Kathy Bates. In fact, the plot of the novel is similar to the movie. The pace was pretty fast although the plot was a slow burn. The Crash is one of the best written books that I have ever read. 

I am rating the book way over 5 out of 5 stars.

The Last House on Needless Street

I selected this book for the Key Word Reading Challenge. The Last House on Needless Street was named one of the best horror books of all time by Esquire and Cosmopolitan magazines. It was published on March 18, 2021.

The publisher's summary:  

In a boarded-up house on a dead-end street at the edge of the wild Washington woods lives a family of three. A teenage girl who isn’t allowed outside, not after last time.

A man who drinks alone in front of his TV, trying to ignore the gaps in his memory.

And a house cat who loves napping and reading the Bible. An unspeakable secret binds them together, but when a new neighbor moves in next door, what is buried out among the birch trees may come back to haunt them all.

This book is a stunning read with many plot twists. It is narrated by three characters: Ted, Lauren and Olivia. Ted is the main character. Olivia is his cat while Lauren is his daughter. They all live in Ted's parental home, a falling down old house that no one cleans. It’s a mess. Ted rarely leaves the house but occasionally Ted walks deep into the forest where he feels at peace. Olivia and Lauren never get to leave the house though. Occasionally we read about Ted's childhood and it's not pretty. His father was an alcoholic while his mother, a nurse, was just plain nuts. Mom served baby food to her family!

Eleven years before the current time period a six year old girl went missing. Her body was never found. Known simply as the Girl with a Lollipop, Lulu was playing at a beach with her family when she vanished. The last chapter shows what happened to her but Ted was a suspect all along. Eventually Lulu's sister Dee buys the house next door to Ted's so she can monitor him. Dee firmly believes that Ted killed her sister.

The suspense is taut and pacing fast making this a fantastic read. In fact, I read it in one sitting. It's advertised as a horror story but I would call it a twisted suspense thriller. I saw no horror in the plot and I certainly never became afraid. I didn't know where the plot was going until 2/3 into the story. The name of the street Ted's house was located on was funny. Ever heard of a Needless Street? The title let's you know what type of book you're reading 

5 out of 5 stars.

The Secret of Secrets

The long wait is finally over! We finally have the newest novel by Dan Brown titled The Secret of Secrets. The book continues the Robert Langdon symbologist saga.

The publisher's summary:  

Robert Langdon, esteemed professor of symbology travels to Prague to attend a groundbreaking lecture by Katherine Solomon —a prominent noetic scientist with whom he has recently begun a relationship. Katherine is on the verge of publishing an explosive book that contains startling discoveries about the nature of human consciousness and threatens to disrupt centuries of established belief. But a brutal murder catapults the trip into chaos, and Katherine suddenly disappears along with her manuscript. Langdon finds himself targeted by a powerful organization and hunted by a chilling assailant sprung from Prague’s most ancient mythology. As the plot expands into London and New York Langdon desperately searches for Katherine . . . and for answers. In a thrilling race through the dual worlds of futuristic science and mystical lore, he uncovers a shocking truth about a secret project that will forever change the way we think about the human mind.

I love beginning a novel knowing that it will be fantastic from the first page until the last. This is what I expected from the book. The first half of the book shows Langdon searching for his friend Katherine Solomon, a noetic scientist. He does not yet know what Katherine's big discovery is but it has to do with human consciousness. I enjoyed the search. Toward the middle of the book there is alot of information about consciousness. I did not understand it though. It was too technical for me. Katherine is alleging that consciousness does not originate in the brain but from outside sources. The rest of the book discussed one scientific fact after another concerning remote viewing of the mind. Katherine used dissociative meds in her research which I found distressing. Why would anyone give another person a medication that would make them dissociate. I did not understand anything else about the science and it fills almost every page in the second half of the book. Robert Langdon's job was to solve codes that would give him and Katherine access to a secret lab called Threshold. These codes were few and far between though. 

Overall the book was enjoyable. I was expecting a treasure hunt plot but The Secret of Secrets is a science thriller instead. If science is your thing, you will love this book. As for me, it's a 3 out of 5 star story.

Ginseng Roots: A Memoir

It's always a pleasure to find hard cover copies of graphic novels by my favorite cartoonists. Two weeks ago I found Craig Thompson's newest graphic novel at an odd place: my local hospital's bookshop. Thompson is the author of the world renowned comic "Blankets" so I had high expectations for this read.

The publisher's summary:

Ginseng Roots follows Craig and his siblings, who spent the summers of their youth weeding and harvesting rows of coveted American ginseng on rural Wisconsin farms for one dollar an hour. In his trademark breathtaking pen-and-ink work, Craig interweaves this lost youth with the 300-year-old history of the global ginseng trade and the many lives it has tied together—from ginseng hunters in ancient China, to industrial farmers and migrant harvesters in the American Midwest, to his own family still grappling with the aftershocks of the bitter past.

Stretching from Marathon, Wisconsin, to Northeast China, Ginseng Roots charts the rise of industrial agriculture, the decline of American labor, and the search for a sense of home in a rapidly changing world.

To describe this memoir with one word I would say it is poignant. It is also funny and a visual masterpiece. Thompson gives the story of his life from age seven to the present. His parents were overly strict evangelical Christians and made him work every summer in local ginseng farms alongside his family for twelve to sixteen hours per day. He never had free time the way most American kids have. Thompson grew up in the rural town of Marathon, Wisconsin which is where most of the world's ginseng is grown. When his brother was old enough to join the toil, they worked next to each other telling tall tales and making games out of their labors. The activities included pulling weeds, gathering rocks out of the fields and at the end of summer, harvesting berries. It seemed abusive to me but farm families probably still operate this way. However, I felt sorry for him and his siblings not to be allowed to enjoy in the fun of summer days. Both Craig and his brother left Marathon as soon as they could seeking an easier life. They found it. Craig was lucky to work as a cartoonist, his dream job. 

The story gives the reader all the information you could ever want on how to grow and harvest ginseng. When Hmong laborers joined work on a nearby farm, Thompson tells their story from living in Laos, leaving, and starting over in America. After Thompson developed an immune system disorder, his hands were in alot of pain, affecting his ability to draw. We read about his progress with a Chinese medicine practitioner and the difficulty he dealt with in creating this wonderful book.

The artwork is striking. It has been drawn in vermilion ink with intricate details. The red color is what initially drew me to the book. The reason this color was chosen is explained at the end of the story: because he was told it should never be used.

I cannot say how much this book touched me. I am rating it 5 out of 5 stars.

The Amish Ballerina

The Amish Ballerina is not a traditional Amish novel. Written by the granddaughter of Amish fiction icon Wanda Brunstetter, I expected a story that fit the profile of Amish fiction. After all, Wanda's name is on book cover. The book reads like a traditional fiction story instead.

The publisher's summary:

Eighteen-year-old Arie Kauffman loves to twirl and leap around the barn in her Amish bonnet and dress, practicing ballet moves her English friend taught her. Her parents would be upset to learn that this longtime interest has progressed to her secretly attending ballet classes. Arie even hides her dance skills from her boyfriend, Edwin Chupp, who often invites her to try new things, knowing she has an artistic heart. Her secrecy, however, is causing damage she may not be able to repair. When offered new opportunities to dance, will Arie break from Amish tradition or hold true to the bonds of her faith and family?

I was disappointed with the book. The idea of an Amish ballet dancer is preposterous. Also, neither parent of the main character, Arie, were nurturing. Arie's boyfriend Edwin likewise had interests in taboo Amish activities such as competitive horseriding. He also had parents who were not nurturing in the Amish faith. In traditional Amish fiction at least one parent encourages faith and behaves appropriately. Here, we have parents who just criticize their kids over and over for no good reason.

I usually read an Amish fiction novel in 90 minutes. The Amish Ballerina took me a few days to get through. This is not because the plot was dull. It's because the storyline reads like general fiction. I didn't want to finish reading the book but kept reading because I thought I was missing something. I wasn't. I am sorry to rate the book 2 out of 5 stars.

The Pretender

This is the third book in the Mifflin County Mystery series by Wanda Brunstetter. It is an Amish fiction novel with some suspense and I enjoyed reading it. In this installment of the series we see the return of the prodigal daughter, along with her unborn child and a pretend spouse.

The publisher's summary: 

In book three of the Mifflin County Mystery series, Rosa Petersheim’s return creates more hurt and confusion in the Big Valley. 

Two years  since Rosa Petersheim mysteriously disappeared from her Amish home, there has been no word from her. Her family and friends have suffered in the silence, though they have tried to move on with life.

Then one day Rosa just as suddenly reappears at her parent’s home. . with a husband in tow.

Rosa is ashamed of the choices she made that caused her to leave home. And now that she is back, her father is not welcoming and her siblings and friends want explanations that she can’t give.

Will Rosa’s family accept her and Anthony? Can the Big Valley ever be home again? 

This is a book that is hard to put down once you’ve started reading it. I was drawn into the story from the first chapter. 

The story focuses on how harmful lies can be and how one lie will lead to another one. This focus really grabbed my attention. It made me think. The  author illustrated how a lie can have lasting effects on people. We think that if we hide something it will not be found out but it will. 

The book is a standalone novel but it would be best to read the first two books in the series first. 

5 out 5 stars.

The Pot Thief Who Studied Ptolemy

This is my third book in the Pot Thief series. In this installment of the series, main character Hubie Schuze is planning another pot heist while sipping margaritas with his best friend Susannah. Hubie does not consider himself a thief because he only takes ancient pots from public lands. However, after Congress passed the Archeological Resources Protection Act his digging for treasures became illegal. Hubie also makes reproductions from original pots. He does not consider them to be fakes, though. 

The publisher's summary:

The pot thief is back, but this time Hubert Schuze' larceny is for a good cause. He wants to recover sacred pots stolen from San Roque, the mysterious New Mexico pueblo closed to outsiders. An easy task for Hubert Schuze, pot digger. Except these pots are not under the ground - they're 150 feet above it. In the top-floor apartment of Rio Grande Lofts, a high-security building which just happens to be one story above Susannah's latest love interest. Hubie's legendary deductive skills lead to a perfect plan which is thwarted when he encounters the beautiful Stella. And when he is arrested for murder. Well, he was in the room where the body was found, everyone heard the shot, and he came out with blood on his hands. Follow Hubie as he stays one step ahead of building security, one step behind Stella, and one step away from a long fall down a garbage chute.

Hubie's shop is located in a dilapidated old building in Albuquerque's Old Town neighborhood. Professor Walter Masoir visited Hubie and stated that he believed retired professor Ognan Gerstner kept a set of pots from the Ma people that were supposed to be sent back to the San Roque Pueblo. Hubie decided to try to recover those pots and return them to their rightful owner.  While reading about Ptolemy's idea that using circles around circles can create a path, he comes up with a plan to break into the building Gerstner lived in in order to steal the pots. It would have been nice for the author to explain how Hubie made this connection. However, while Hubie is attending a party in the building Ognan Gerstner is murdered. Unfortunately the murder didn't occur until midway into the story.  That is way too long for a murder mystery. Most of the dialogue beforehand was humorous musings between Hubie and his friends.

There wasn't much of an investigation into the murder. Hubie gathered his friends and his suspects for a meeting wherein he  posits the name of the killer. The author never tells us how Hubie arrives at his conclusions. 

With many unknowns in the plot, the story falls short on several levels. The book is mainly one humorous dialogue after another from the eccentric main character. He's an interesting character so I hate to rate the book only 2 out of 3 stars. It is what it is.

Entitled: The Rise and Fall of the House of York

Entitled is a biography of Prince Andrew and his ex-wife Sarah Ferguson.  For the past couple of years, I have fallen into the trap of reading gossipy books on Britain's royal family. I knew it would be a fast read and would help me relax from a stressful September. 

The publisher's summary:

This explosive biography of the Duke and Duchess of York - - Prince Andrew and his ex-wife, Sarah Ferguson – exposes the secrets and scandals behind their extravagant lives and troubled marriage.

Entitled presents an unvarnished and meticulously researched account of two of the most controversial figures in modern royal history. Based on years of investigation, extensive Freedom of Information requests and more than a hundred interviews with previously silent sources, acclaimed royal expert Andrew Lownie delivers an authoritative and deeply revealing dual portrait of the Duke and Duchess, whose lives and relationship have ben marked by privilege, controversy, and public fascination.

Tracing their stories from childhood through their high-profile courtship and marriage, dramatic divorce, and enduring connection as “the happiest divorced couple in the world,” Entitled digs deeper than ever before into a pair that has long been a source of scrutiny. Lownie examines Prince Andrew’s trajectory from a celebrated naval officer to a disgraced royal accused of sexual assault and stripped of his public duties, and unpacks the truth of his lavish lifestyle and the enduring fallout from his association with Jeffrey Epstein.

More than just a story of personal failings or royal scandal, Entitled examines the broader context of a monarchy navigating public accountability and the pressures of modernity. The result is a compelling and nuanced portrait of a flawed couple whose lives have defined and defied the expectations of royalty in the 21zst century, and whose actions continue to resonate far beyond the palace walls.

Entitled is an appropriate name for the book. I was surprised how entitled Sarah Ferguson became after her marriage to Andrew and how quickly she changed.  I knew Andrew behaved entitled but was not aware that Sarah acted the same way. In many ways she manipulated her husband by appealing to his sense of entitlement. Simularly, Meghan Markle did the same with Prince Harry. Both wives are the dominant partners in their marriages. Andrew and Sarah truly belong with each other. They are two of a kind. 

The book reads fast. All of the chapters are three pages long. Sarah's story was the most interesting to me, probably because I didn't know much about her. The author begins with her birth and follows Sarah up to the present. It seems that after Sarah's mother left the family for another man when she was four, Sarah blamed herself for what happened and covered up her insecurity with boisterous behavior. She never was able to overcome her new boisterous personality which caused her to make so many mistakes as a member of the royal family. Queen Elizabeth tried to rein her in on several occasions but was unsuccessful. Sarah spent money she didn't have and her debts were paid by the Queen or Andrew at least ten times. She never stopped spending. The family wondered whether she was having a nervous breakdown.

Entitled was a relaxing read. I am rating it 4 out of 5 stars.

The Highgate Cemetery Murder

I have wanted to read The Highgate Cemetery Murder ever since it was published in February 2024. It is a historical mystery novel about a murdered woman who was strung up on a wooden cross in a cemetery.  It did not disappoint.

The publisher's summary:  

His heart pounding, the man scribbles the words in his notebook as fast as he can: “Woman dead in Highgate. Man in caped coat. Milky way and red streaks. I’m being followed.”

Hours later, the man’s cold body lies in the city mortuary, alongside the woman he couldn’t save. And his sister, unconventional nurse Gemma Tate, tracks down troubled police inspector Sebastian Bell to unravel the truth.

Sebastian has enough pressure to solve the murder of an aristocratic heiress without Gemma meddling in his case. But the cryptic sentences she brings him from her brother’s notebook could be a crucial lead. If only they knew what “milky way” meant. But as the trail of clues takes them away from the gilded drawing rooms of the nobility and into the dangerous slums of London, how far will their partnership be tested on the quest for justice, and will they both emerge unscathed?

 

The story opened with the discovery of Adelaide Seaborne, a 17 year old girl, tied to a cross in Highgate Cemetery. I was fascinated by this scene and my curiosity kept me reading until I finished the book in one sitting. The man who found her body was killed that same day after seeing a man's face in the cemetery. However, it took a few days for Scotland Yard investigator Sebastian Bell to learn about his demise. Gemma Tate, a nurse, was Victor Tate's sister. Gemma did not make much money even though she had a professional job and she had to consider how she could continue living in Victor's house and pay the bills.

The writing was fast paced. I enjoyed the 1850s London setting with all its glamour. The ladies wore long, demure gowns and lived in magnificent mansions. The reader learns how slow the lives of women were. They were not allowed to work after marriage and must have had dull minds from lack of stimulation. 

Police inspector Bell was shrewd in his dealings with his superiors. Officially his wings were clipped concerning the investigation. His boss did not want him to push the Seaborne family for information as Mr. Seaborne was an aristocrat. However, Bell went ahead and questioned Adelaide's maid and other staff as well as Adelaide's brother and father. Suffice to say  Bell irritated the Seabornes by asking too many questions about Adelaide's lifestyle and the boyfriend whom she wanted to marry. Mr. Parker was not only not an aristocrat he was American. Two strikes against him. Mr. Seaborne refused his daughter's request to marry him. Instead, she was betrothed to someone else. Adelaide had no intention of marrying this person though. She hoped that with time her father would relent. Against this backdrop Adelaide was murdered. 

The Highgate Cemetery Murder is a 

fine example of historical fiction and historical fans will love the book. I am rating it 4 out of 5 stars.