The Curious Case of Miss Clementine Nimowitz

by Rachael Acks

Unfortunately, life can't be all merry acts of rail piracy and death-defying escapes from security forces belonging to various angry Grand Dukes. Sometimes Captain Marta Ramos and her right-hand man Simms make their living in a more commonplace and boring breaking and entering, followed by burglary.

During one such burglary, the Captain and Simms get far more than they bargained for—a corpse, a hungry little dog named Chippy, and a multitude of wills. Compelled to wait for Chippy to pass the expensive jewelry he's eaten, Captain Ramos engages in her favorite of hobbies and sets out to discover just who killed Clementine Nimowitz.

Family feuding quickly muddies the waters of the investigation. And when one of the suspects turns out to be Clementine's beautiful—and potentially criminal—niece Deliah, Captain Ramos soon realizes she may be in over her head.

53 pages, Kindle Edition

First published June 13, 2013

About the author

Alex Acks (formerly known as Rachael Acks) is a writer, geologist, and sharp-dressed sir. Their debut biker gang space witch novel, Hunger Makes the Wolf, was published by Angry Robot Books under the pen name Alex Wells. They’ve had short fiction in Strange Horizons, Crossed Genres, Daily Science Fiction, Lightspeed, and more, and write movie reviews for Strange Horizons and Mothership Zeta. They’ve also written several episodes of Six to Start’s Superhero Workout game. Alex lives in Denver (where they bicycle, drink tea, and twirl their ever-so-dapper mustache) with their two furry little bastards. For more information, see http://www.alexacks.com

Reviews

[Oracleofdoom · Rating 5 out of 5]

You should not even read this review if you have not read 'Murder on the Titania.' It is impossible to avoid spoiling that novella. That is your warning.

This was an incredibly fun story to read. It was immediately engaging, from the very first page. It opens with a vivid description of an elderly woman's parlor, spoiled by the mangled dead body lying on the carpet. Captain Marta Ramos and her colleague, Simms, come upon the grisly scene and decide to get to the bottom of what happened.

Captain Ramos is a much more enjoyable character than the main character from 'Murder on the Titania.' She thinks much more progressively, and isn't completely scandalized by the slightest impropriety. The story was cleverly humorous, with intriguing characters whom I really hope to see again in the future. If you enjoy humorous mysteries with a strong, female character, if you like anti-heroes, and great dialogue, you are likely to enjoy this story.

[Pat · Rating 5 out of 5]

Although written out of chronological sequence, any momentary confusion is more than compensated for with the proper introduction of Deliah Nimowitz. I'm sure we'll be seeing more of her! (And Chippy, I hope.)I know I'll be wanting more than two more installments of the adventures of Captain Ramos and her band of merry pirates.

[E. · Rating 5 out of 5]

Ramos and Simms are fantastic. There is a great sense of humor here, but also a sense of more serious things building, and a terribly cute dog named Chippy. Would love to see an omnibus edition of all these stories, yes.