AN EXTRAVAGANT DEATH

5 stars out of 5

Oh my - what a delightful book! I requested it from NetGalley just because I suspected it would be a nice change of pace for me - a detective story, yes, but set in London in the late 1870s. What I got was history blended with superb (for the times) detective work interspersed with decidedly British witticisms that made me smile throughout. Alas, I didn't read any of the 13 preceding novels featuring detective Charles Lenox, but for sure I don't intend to miss another one. And for those who, like me, aren't familiar with the character, I assure you I had no trouble following this one.

Lenox is living in London with his wife, Lady Jane, and young daughters Sophia and Clara (to put the setting in perspective, the Prime Minister, with whom Lenox is well acquainted, is Benjamin Disraeli). It is Disraeli, in fact, who challenges Lenox's comfort level: He asks him to leave his successful detective agency and travel to America to make nice and share his considerable detective expertise with police in several major U.S. cities. Reluctant at first despite his longing to travel, Lenox caves in and sets off by boat - arriving first in New York, where his insights on New York society are a real treat. 

But on his way to Boston, the train is stopped so Lenox can be handed a personal letter asking him to stop in Newport, Rhode Island, to look into the death of a beautiful young debutante. At first blush, it's thought that she committed suicide; but some insiders, including the young woman's best friend, are convinced she was murdered. In hoity-toity Newport, Lenox gets an up-close-and-personal look at how society of the era operates as he tries to figure out what happened and, more importantly, who did it.

Needless to say, Lenox gets there - but there's many a slip between cup and lip, and one of them threatens his very existence (as well as provides fodder for the next book). My overall assessment? Thoroughly entertaining, and I thank the publisher for providing me with a pre-release copy to read and review.

An Extravagant Death by Charles Finch (Minotaur Books, February 2021); 288 pp.