Author: Charles Finch
Published: November 10th 2015 by Minotaur Books
Format: Hardcover, 304 pages
Genre: Historical Fiction
Series: Charles Lenox Mysteries #9
First Sentence: It was a blustery London Morning in the autumn of 1876, wind and rain heavy in the trees lining Chancery Lane, and there, damn it all, stood before Charles Lenox something that nobody should have to tolerate before breakfast: a beaming Frenchman.
From the Publisher: It's London in 1876, and the whole city is abuzz with the enigmatic disappearance of a famous foreign pianist. Lenox has an eye on the matter - as a partner in a now thriving detective agency, he's a natural choice to investigate. Just when he's tempted to turn his focus to it entirely, however, his grieving brother asks him to come down to Sussex, and Lenox leaves the metropolis behind for the quieter country life of his boyhood. Or so he thinks. Something strange is afoot in Markethouse: small thefts, books, blankets, animals, and more alarmingly a break-in at the house of a local insurance agent. As he and his brother investigate this accumulation of mysteries, Lenox realizes that something very strange and serious indeed may be happening, more than just local mischief. Soon, he's racing to solve two cases at once, one in London and one in the country, before either turns deadly. (Macmillan)
My Opinion: I can never make it past the midway point of a Charles Finch/Charles Lenox book without feeling the need to skim the rest of the way. That is where the story bogs down with the author’s need to over-describe people, places, and customs. Home by Nightfall contains the usual repetition and cast of characters found in previous books, with the only bright spot being Lady Jane. Her humor and normalcy outshine her husband and his brother Edmond, who tend to sideways think their way through a situation.
So why do I keep reading this series? I have no answers other than the time invested so far into this series and the hope the next will capture me since a quarter of them do.
From the Publisher: It's London in 1876, and the whole city is abuzz with the enigmatic disappearance of a famous foreign pianist. Lenox has an eye on the matter - as a partner in a now thriving detective agency, he's a natural choice to investigate. Just when he's tempted to turn his focus to it entirely, however, his grieving brother asks him to come down to Sussex, and Lenox leaves the metropolis behind for the quieter country life of his boyhood. Or so he thinks. Something strange is afoot in Markethouse: small thefts, books, blankets, animals, and more alarmingly a break-in at the house of a local insurance agent. As he and his brother investigate this accumulation of mysteries, Lenox realizes that something very strange and serious indeed may be happening, more than just local mischief. Soon, he's racing to solve two cases at once, one in London and one in the country, before either turns deadly. (Macmillan)
My Opinion: I can never make it past the midway point of a Charles Finch/Charles Lenox book without feeling the need to skim the rest of the way. That is where the story bogs down with the author’s need to over-describe people, places, and customs. Home by Nightfall contains the usual repetition and cast of characters found in previous books, with the only bright spot being Lady Jane. Her humor and normalcy outshine her husband and his brother Edmond, who tend to sideways think their way through a situation.
So why do I keep reading this series? I have no answers other than the time invested so far into this series and the hope the next will capture me since a quarter of them do.
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