Author: Charles Finch
Published: November 1st 2016 by Minotaur Books
Format: Hardcover, 304 pages
Genre: Historical Mystery
Series: Charles Lenox Mysteries #10
First Sentence: London was silent with snow; soft flakes of it dropping evenly into the white streets; nobody outside who had somewhere inside to be.
Synopsis: Charles Lenox has received a cryptic plea for help from an old Harrow schoolmate, Gerald Leigh, but when he looks into the matter he finds that his friend has suddenly disappeared. As boys they had shared a secret: a bequest from a mysterious benefactor had smoothed Leigh’s way into the world after the death of his father. Lenox, already with a passionate interest in detective work, made discovering the benefactor's identity his first case – but was never able to solve it.
Now, years later, Leigh has been the recipient of a second, even more generous bequest. Is it from the same anonymous sponsor? Or is the money poisoned by ulterior motives? Leigh’s disappearance suggests the latter, and as Lenox tries, desperately, to save his friend’s life, he’s forced into confrontations with both the most dangerous of east end gangs and the far more genteel denizens of the illustrious Royal Society. When someone close to the bequest dies, Lenox must finally delve deep into the past to uncover at last the identity of the person who is either his friend’s savior – or his lethal enemy. (Goodreads)
My Opinion: You know it’s a dull book when you reach the end, and if not provided a recap of sorts, you would not remember how it started. For every one step forward in a Lenox novel, there are three side steps where Charles Finch needs to give the reader a description of the room, the clothing, the underside of a rock, or the norms of the time. There are a few interesting historical tidbits, but for the most part, the narration drags on. The author pulls you back during the last 50 pages, but that too began to feel long-winded.
Charles Lenox is another series where I will continue to muddle on since I have made it this far. For me, there is always hope that Charles Finch will spark the right mix of storytelling and history where I won’t, in mid-sentence, wonder when I last cleaned out the hall closet.
Synopsis: Charles Lenox has received a cryptic plea for help from an old Harrow schoolmate, Gerald Leigh, but when he looks into the matter he finds that his friend has suddenly disappeared. As boys they had shared a secret: a bequest from a mysterious benefactor had smoothed Leigh’s way into the world after the death of his father. Lenox, already with a passionate interest in detective work, made discovering the benefactor's identity his first case – but was never able to solve it.
Now, years later, Leigh has been the recipient of a second, even more generous bequest. Is it from the same anonymous sponsor? Or is the money poisoned by ulterior motives? Leigh’s disappearance suggests the latter, and as Lenox tries, desperately, to save his friend’s life, he’s forced into confrontations with both the most dangerous of east end gangs and the far more genteel denizens of the illustrious Royal Society. When someone close to the bequest dies, Lenox must finally delve deep into the past to uncover at last the identity of the person who is either his friend’s savior – or his lethal enemy. (Goodreads)
My Opinion: You know it’s a dull book when you reach the end, and if not provided a recap of sorts, you would not remember how it started. For every one step forward in a Lenox novel, there are three side steps where Charles Finch needs to give the reader a description of the room, the clothing, the underside of a rock, or the norms of the time. There are a few interesting historical tidbits, but for the most part, the narration drags on. The author pulls you back during the last 50 pages, but that too began to feel long-winded.
Charles Lenox is another series where I will continue to muddle on since I have made it this far. For me, there is always hope that Charles Finch will spark the right mix of storytelling and history where I won’t, in mid-sentence, wonder when I last cleaned out the hall closet.
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