carolesrandomlife

This review can also be found at Carole's Random Life in Books.

I liked this one a lot. I added this book to my reading list on a complete impulse. I liked the cover and when I took a closer look at the book's description, I thought it sounded like something I would like. That impulse worked out well in this case. I did take me a bit to really get into the story but once I was hooked, I didn't want to stop reading. I am so glad that I made the decision to read this book.

I really liked that the book was set during the Victorian period. I thought that the era was well represented in the story and I really liked seeing how a crime might have been solved with the resources that they had on hand. I found the scenes from the mortuary really interesting and found myself wondering how many crimes were missed. There were a lot of descriptions that really made the period come to life so it was really easy to visualize what was happening.

The mystery in this book is very solid. I usually read a book's description once when deciding if I want to read it and then promptly forget any details. I was shocked when the discovery was made about what was taken from the murder victim. I couldn't figure out what the killer's motive might have been and I had no idea who might have been behind the crimes. This is a book that kept me guessing until the very end.

The characters in the book were very well done. Londale was determined to find out what had happened and I liked the way that he went about finding out. He was smart and resourceful. I found myself liking him more and more as the book progressed. Hulda was such a fun character. She is the only female reporter working at the newspaper and she doesn't seem to worry if she is acting like a proper lady most of the time. When she needs to play a part to get someone to open up, she can quickly fit into just about any role and you never seemed to know what she might say or do. Londale and Hulda made a really good team and I liked the way they interacted with each other.

I would recommend this book to mystery fans. This had so many wonderful elements that came together to tell a rather thought provoking and entertaining story. I do hope to see more books featuring this amazing group of characters very soon..

I received a digital advanced reader edition of this book from Severn House Publishers via NetGalley.

Initial Thoughts
I ended up liking this one a lot. I had a rather hard time getting into the story but I think that had more to do with my life than the book. I thought that the mystery was interesting and complex. I liked the characters quite a bit and thought the period was well represented. This one did keep me guessing until the very end which was a big plus.