Murder on Sister’s Row (Gaslight Mystery, book 13) by Victoria Thompson
Review by Brenna B. (demiducky25)
For those of you not familiar with the Gaslight Mystery series, they are a charming collection of cozy mystery books set in turn-of-the-century New York City. The main character is the widow, Sarah Brandt, who comes from a wealthy family background, but she set that life aside in order to follow her calling as a midwife. She has the knowledge and resources to do this due to the fact that her deceased husband was a doctor. Sarah’s path crosses with Frank Mallory, a widowed NYC cop who tries to stay honest amidst city corruption and does his best to provide a life for his young special needs son. This series introduced me to the concept of “cozy mysteries,” something I had heard of when I first started perusing the forums on PBS, but never really took the time to explore until randomly selecting one of the books to read as part of a challenge I was participating in. In a recent post PBS blogger VickyJo did a fantastic job describing what a cozy mystery is, so I implore you to check out her post for more information on that by clicking here.
Anyway, the first book I read in this series was Murder in Little Italy which is the 8th book in the series. Initially, I didn’t realize it was part of a series but decided to start reading from book 1 after enjoying Murder in Little Italy so much. The author, Victoria Thompson does a great job of briefly incorporating recaps from other books when necessary in order to catch up readers who might not have read previous books in the series. So really you could start reading this series from any point or just pick the books that sound interesting to you, but I STRONGLY recommend starting from the first book Murder on Astor Place and working your way forward from there.
The book that I am concentrating on for this review is the most recent one Murder on Sisters’ Row which just came out this summer. Sarah Brandt is called to a delivery and doesn’t suspect anything unusual until she realizes that the house she has been brought to is a brothel. She assists a young woman, Amy, in delivering her baby. Amy expresses to Sarah that she needs to escape this life and has a plan that involves an organization that rescues prostitutes from their current lives led by the wealthy Mrs. Van Orner. Fearing for Amy and the baby, Sarah agrees to help and they successfully get Amy out (don’t worry- I’m not giving away anything that’s not already established on the book jacket). Frank Malloy warns Sarah not to get involved because this particular brothel caters to New York’s rich and powerful and the madam, Mrs. Walker, pays large bribes to the police force for protection and to stay in business. Things then become very complicated indeed, especially for Frank Malloy, when Mrs. Van Orner is murdered and her husband recruits Frank to find out why. Victoria Thompson provides an eclectic cast of characters as potential suspects.
Of all the books in the series, this one gave me the most trouble in figuring out who could have done the crime. Just when I thought I had it figured out, Victoria Thompson throws in another clue and drags me down a completely different path. Not being able to predict the ending right away made this a very enjoyable and difficult to put down read. My only complaint is the stagnant relationship between Sarah and Frank. It is clear that their relationship has settled into something comfortable but it is clearly not defined due to the fact that during this time period it wouldn’t be socially appropriate for two unmarried adults to be casual friends (even though they are a widow and a widower). Victoria Thompson has built up so much potential chemistry throughout the series, but they just don’t seem to be going anywhere. This particular reader wants more, and judging from other reviews I’ve read, I don’t seem to be alone.
At 292 pages this can be read and enjoyed at a fairly quick clip. So settle down with a cup of hot chocolate, pull up a blanket, and get ready to get lost in the past with a good mystery. All in all, I give this book 4 ½ out of 5 stars.
Brenna, I read all of these as well and I have the same feelings you do, especially about Frank and Sarah.
looks like an interesting book!
Excellent review, Brenna!
I wish my library had more in this series. The ones I’ve read have been very good.
I’ve been eyeing this series for a while…you may have increased my TBR pile with this great review. But also, you made my day with your kind words about my earlier review. 😉 Thanks, Brenna, for such a warm compliment!
oh a cozy mystery huh.. Im going to ck ut that link ad this looks like a good book or series.. something I don’t read mush are mysteries but when I was a kid I used to read lots.. does anyone remember a kids series called the happy hollisters? anyone? lol that ages me huh? I did read books like that.. which were kid mysteries.. I loved them..and when I was a little bit older I read every hickcock mystery I could find in the school library… maybe the to get back to them again..( grown up ones though!)
I’ve read many books in this series and have enjoyed them all. I think the author does a wonderful sense of time/place.