A Beautiful Blue Death (Charles Lenox Mysteries)
St. Martin's Minotaur - St. Martin's Minotaur
Release date: 2007-06-26
Hardcover
Author: Charles Finch
Mystery And Suspense Fiction, Fiction, Fiction - Mystery/ Detective, Mystery/Suspense, Mystery & Detective - Traditional British, Fiction / Mystery & Detective / General, Fiction / Mystery & Detective / Traditional British, Crimes against, England, Historical fiction, London, Private investigators, Women domestics
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A Beautiful Blue Death (Charles Lenox Mysteries)
Date undefinedIf Charles Lenox were to have his way, all he'd wish for are warm boots, a blazing fireplace, some tea and sandwiches, and an hour or two spent with his maps. But the aristocratic amateur sleuth is always in demand in Victorian London. His childhood friend, Lady Jane, appeals to his innate curiosity and investigative skills. Her upstairs maid, Prudence Smith, who'd moved to the household of Royal Mint director, George Barnard, died under suspicious circumstances. Believed by Barnard and Scotland Yard to be a suicide, Lenox isn't much convinced, and neither is Lady Jane. With the help of his friend, Dr. Tom McConnell, they conclude that she'd been poisoned by the rare and expensive potion called bella indigo, the titular "beautiful blue."
Suspects abound, from Prue's lovers to Barnard's houseguests to Barnard himself, but motives are scarce and flimsy. What to make of this motley crew and their secrets? Soon, Lenox discovers that there's more to this poisoning than meets the eye, and when a second murder is committed, he realizes he'd been looking at this puzzle quite the wrong way.
"A Beautiful Blue Death" is the first of the new Charles Lenox Mysteries. Much of its appeal is Lenox himself, an affable, debonair intellectual very much like Dorothy L. Sayers' creation, Lord Peter Wimsey. He even has his own Bunt--Graham, his butler-cum-spy--who's every bit as smart.
Mr. Finch's pleasure in bringing 1865 London to life is evident, and it really does come to life, from the fashionable abodes of his upper crust sleuth and associates to the shady apothecaries, sinister alleys, and stuffy anterooms of posh clubs. There's even a tease that Lenox and Lady Jane, both proper in their platonic dealings, may find in each other more than the cordiality of friendship, much like Wimsey and Vane.
His characters may seem like a rehash of Golden Age mysteries, but I found it refreshing to start a new series. I daresay many mystery buffs such as myself have long ago exhausted books by Christie, Sayers, Stout, Marsh, Carr, etc. For now, Finch can be forgiven the occasional rudimentary writing and a timeline error here and there; after all it's his debut mystery and if the clever mystery here is any indication of what's to come, it'll be a delightful series. In all likelihood, many of the affable characters we are introduced to here will reprise their roles in future installments and maybe Lenox's deductive prowess will be honed to Holmes perfection. For now, the bottom-line for me, really, is how good was the mystery? And here, it's pretty darn good.
A Beautiful Blue Death (Charles Lenox Mysteries)
Date undefinedPicking up this book turned out to be a good day! The novel is engaging and I find myself liking Charles Lennox, our eristwhile detective, very much. As one would expect, he is intelligent but he is quirky in a fun loving way and kind hearted at the core. This was a very good beginning to a new series as I eagerly wait for the next installment.
There were a few things that prevented me from giving this novel 5 stars: it took me a few chapters (don't worry, they are small) to get used to the stilted conversations between some of the characters. This is meant to indicate a sign of the times and not poor writing on part of the author. Also, the author talks about prior cases (more specifically, Charles' first case) as if we read about the case before reading this installment. I had to read the back of the book to realize I didn't start in the middle of a series and that "A Beautiful Blue Death" is a debut novel.
Overall, I thoroughly enjoyed this book and would recommended it outright. I am looking forward to reading the newest book and find out what Charles and Lady Jane are up to. I believe this author is someone to watch out for in the future.
A Beautiful Blue Death (Charles Lenox Mysteries)
Date undefinedI loved this book! The mystery was tricky and interesting, but what separated it from the usual run of mystery novels I read was the great, individualistic characters and the beautifully evoked setting of winter in London. I hope it's a series.
