Review: Murder in Chelsea by Victoria Thompson

Kimberlee Moore

Description (from cover):

‘In the tenements of nineteenth-century New York, the destitute victims of injustice have no one to speak for them–except midwife Sarah Brandt and Detective Sergeant Frank Malloy. Now, an innocent child close to Sarah’s heart is threatened in the latest novel in the Edgar Award-nominated series…
Sarah Brandt is shattered when she learns that a woman has inquired at the Daughters of Hope Mission for Catherine, the abandoned child she has taken as her daughter. The woman claims she was Catherine’s nursemaid, now acting on behalf of the girl’s mother to reunite them.
Unwilling to simply hand Catherine over to a complete stranger, Sarah asks Malloy to investigate. But when he goes to interview the woman at her tenement in Chelsea, he finds she has been murdered.
Though her death leaves Sarah’s claim to Catherine unchallenged, her sense of judgment compels her to work with Malloy to find the killer. Their search tales them from the marble mansions of the Upper West Side to the dilapidated dwellings of lower Manhattan and into the deepest and darkest secrets of Catherine’s past.
And while Malloy helps Sarah determine the fate of the child she loves, he faces a challenge of his own–and his decision could change both their lives forever…’

My thoughts:

I really hate it when book series get stale after a long run. Well, don’t worry about that with this one, because it was absolutely one of the best in the series. We get to learn about Catherine’s beginnings and how she came to live with Sarah and the ending was one that I’ve been waiting some 14 books for. I am excited about this series and really curious to see what the future holds for Sarah and Malloy. You would think that after 14 books that the series would become a little less than exciting. Not so. Victoria Thompson is still bring her wonderful writing skills to one of my favorite historical mystery series.

I relish these books with delight and hate having to wait for the next one to be released. I always can’t wait to read the newest one and then I am always sad when they are over. This series continues to please this reader and I am impressed. I think that the part I really enjoy the most about this one was that the main storyline was based on Sarah and Catherine and Catherine’s beginnings. It was a interesting to read about something that has been so mysterious in the previous novels and see how things came to be and the ending was to die for.

The mystery was a good one, not one too easy to figure out, but not a really complex one. Plenty of suspects with lots of sinister motives that will keep you guessing the solution until the very end. A story that takes the reader through historical New York City through the tenements where newly arrived immigrants live and amongst the rich and powerful of the Upper West Side. A great portrayal of gas-lit New York City that will leave you the historical fiction lover in you satisfied and a mystery that will leave you breathless with anticipation. A read to pick up whether you are a fan of this series or not.

Overall Rating: 5

Title:  Murder in Chelsea
Author:  Victoria Thompson
Series:  Gaslight Mystery #15
Publisher:  Berkley
Publication Date:  May 7, 2013
Pages:  305
Genre:  Historical Mystery
Get It:  Amazon; Barnes & Noble

Disclaimer: This book was selected from the library by myself and I reviewed this book without compensation of any kind. All thoughts and opinions are solely mine.

Published by Kimberlee Moore

One thought on “Review: Murder in Chelsea by Victoria Thompson”

  1. This series is one of my favorites; Victoria Thompson does such a good job with her characters and the historical aspects of her books. I'm glad to know that her new one is just as good as all the rest! I can't wait to read it.

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