Published by She Writes PressSeries: Henrietta & Inspector Howard #5
Date Published: April 28, 2020
Pages: 408
Genres: Mystery, Thriller
Format: Paperback
Source: Publisher
Purchase: Amazon
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A spiritualist, an insane asylum, a lost little girl . . .
When Clive, anxious to distract a depressed Henrietta, begs Sergeant Frank Davis for a case, he is assigned to investigating a seemingly boring affair: a spiritualist woman operating in an abandoned schoolhouse on the edge of town who is suspected of robbing people of their valuables. What begins as an open and shut case becomes more complicated, however, when Henrietta―much to Clive’s dismay―begins to believe the spiritualist's strange ramblings.
Meanwhile, Elsie begs Clive and Henrietta to help her and the object of her budding love, Gunther, locate the whereabouts of one Liesel Klinkhammer, the German woman Gunther has traveled to America to find and the mother of the little girl, Anna, whom he has brought along with him. The search leads them to Dunning Asylum, where they discover some terrible truths about Liesel. When the child, Anna, is herself mistakenly admitted to the asylum after an epileptic fit, Clive and Henrietta return to Dunning to retrieve her. This time, however, Henrietta begins to suspect that something darker may be happening. When Clive doesn’t believe her, she decides to take matters into her own hands . . . with horrifying results.
I received a complimentary copy of this book from the Author/Publisher and was under no obligation to post a review, positive or negative.
My Thoughts
This is my first Michelle Cox novel and it’s definitely not going to be my last. This novel combined my favorites into one! Mystery and historical! I loved meeting Henrietta and Inspector Howard in this novel. While it was my first novel by Cox, and the 5th in a series, it was not confusing, and easily read as a stand alone.
I absolutely loved the detail that Cox incorporated into this page turning story. I felt myself being instantly transported to the 1930s falling in love with that era in time. I felt the sadness that Henrietta felt both with her miscarriage and with finding a lost child, I felt the instensity of the world and how crazy it was during that time. The depth that Michelle Cox put into her characters was stunning and really helped this story to come to life for me.
This story is page turning and gripping, and definitely an unforgettable read! I loved every minute of this fantastically written novel by a new favorite author. If you want a novel that will keep you guessing, keep you intrigued and make you want more, then definitely grab this one up! I am looking forward to going back and reading the first 4 books in this incredible series! Get ready for the roller coaster of twists and turns with this one!
About Michelle Cox
Michelle Cox is the author of the multiple award-winning Henrietta and Inspector Howard series as well as “Novel Notes of Local Lore,” a weekly blog dedicated to Chicago’s forgotten residents. She suspects she may have once lived in the 1930s and, having yet to discover a handy time machine lying around, has resorted to writing about the era as a way of getting herself back there. Coincidentally, her books have been praised by Kirkus, Library Journal, Publishers Weekly, Booklist and many others, so she might be on to something. Unbeknownst to most, Michelle hoards board games she doesn’t have time to play and is, not surprisingly, addicted to period dramas and big band music. Also marmalade.
Great review!!