Jonetta’s
Comments
(group member since Dec 29, 2014)
Showing 1-20 of 7,669
The gruesome murder of a prominent nobleman throws an already unsettled London into chaos in this electrifying new historical mystery by the USA Today bestselling author of What Cannot Be Said.August 1816. England is in the grip of what will become known as the Year Without a Summer. Facing the twin crises of a harvest-destroying volcanic winter and the economic disruption caused by the end of the Napoleonic Wars, the British monarchy finds itself haunted by the looming threat of bloody riots not seen since the earliest days of the French Revolution. Amidst the turmoil, a dead man is found hanging upside down by one leg in an abandoned chapel, his hands tied behind his back. The pose eerily echoes the image depicted on a tarot card known as Le Pendu, the Hanged Man. The victim—Lord Preston Farnsworth, the younger brother of one of the Regent’s boon companions—was a passionate crusader against what he called the forces of darkness, namely criminality, immorality, and sloth. His brutal murder shocks the Palace and panics the already troubled populace.
Sebastian St. Cyr, Viscount Devlin, learns of the murder from a ragged orphan who leads him to the corpse and then disappears. At first, everyone in the dead man’s orbit paints Lord Preston as a selfless saint. But as Sebastian delves deeper into his life, he quickly realizes that the man had accumulated more than his fair share of enemies, including Major Hugh Chandler, a close friend who once saved Sebastian’s life. Sebastian also discovers that the pious Lord Preston may have been much more dangerous than those he sought to redeem.
As dark clouds press down on the city and the rains fall unceasingly, two more victims are found, one strangled and one shot, with ominous tarot cards placed on their bodies. The killer is sending a gruesome message and Sebastian is running out of time to decipher it before more lives are lost and a fraught post-war London explodes.
SettingsLondon, England (August 1816)
60 Chapters
Character List(view spoiler)[
Recurring Characters
Sebastian St. Cyr, Lord Devlin: Viscount Devlin. Tall, leanly built man, not yet 30-years old. He has dark hair and strange yellow eyes with the unnatural ability to see clearly at great distances or at night. Lord Hendon's only surviving son, they enjoy a very complicated and acrimonious relatiohship. St. Cyr's mother abandoned him at a young age which still affects him to this day. He was forced to forgo the love of his life, Kat Boleyn due to familial secrets. He's now married to Hero and father of their toddler son, Simon.
Hero Jarvis St. Cyr, Lady Devlin: Viscountess Devlin. Daughter of Charles, Lord Jarvis and St. Cyr's enemy, She's tall, 25-years old with gray eyes and was considered a spinster until she married Sebastian. Independent minded, smart and not afraid of her father. She and Sebastian have a toddler son, Simon, and she’s six-months pregnant.
Simon Alistair St. Cyr: Sebastian and Hero's 3-year old son.
Guinevere Annabelle Sophia St. Cyr: Sebastian’s and Hero’s 9-month old daughter.
Patrick St. Cyr: Pippa’s son who she left with Sebastian and Hero when she went to America with Ian. He’s Sebastian’s nephew but is being raised as his son.
Claire Bisette: Simon, Patrick and Guinevere’s nursemaid. She lost her 3-year old daughter before coming to work for the St. Cyrs.
Tom: Sebastian's 15-year old groom or tiger who is devoted to him because he rescued him from the streets after he saved Sebastian's life. Secures information for Sebastian due to living on the streets and his ability to go undetected.
Betsy: Nursery maid.
Paul Gibson: Former army surgeon, an Irishman who shared the battlefields with Sebastian where he lost a leg. Unmarried, he works out of a small surgery at the base of Tower Hill and shares his knowledge of anatomy at St. Thomas and St. Bartholomew's teaching hospitals. He frequently assists St. Cyr, his friend, with his murder investigations and provides an invaluable source of knowledge. He's in his mid-thirties, slim, dark haired and of medium height and has an opium addiction. Alexi is his lover and lives with him.
Alexandri (Alexi) Sauvage: French doctor currently living with Paul.
Charles, Lord Jarvis: Brilliant, ruthless man and cousin to the King. Completely dedicated to the preservation of the House of Hanover, he was considered the power behind Prinny (Prince Regent) weak Regency due to King George slipping into madness. In prior mysteries, St. Cyr had broken into Jarvis' house, held him at gunpoint and thrown a knife at him. They were not on the best of terms and neither trusted the other. He's Hero's father and is now married to Victoria, his deceased wife Annabelle’s cousin.
Annabelle, Lady Jarvis: Lord Jarvis' deceased wife, Hero's mother.
Emma Knight: Young widow who was Annabelle's companion.
Alistair St. Cyr, Earl of Hendon: Sebastian's father to the world but in reality he was not. Sebastian recently learned he's not his biological father but the Earl has always known. He is, however, the father of Kat Bolyen, Sebastian's former lover, and allowed Sebastian to believe they were brother and sister. Currently the Chancellor of the Exchequer, in his late sixties with deep blue eyes.
Sophie St. Cyr: aka Dama Capello. Sebastian’s mother who was believed to have drowned when he was a child. However, he recently learned that was untrue.
Henrietta, Dowager Duchess of Claiborne: Lord Hendon's sister, Sebastian and Amanda's aunt. She has a son, Claiborne who is married to Emily.
Lady Amanda Wilcox: Oldest of the St. Cyr siblings, Sebastian's sister. Her husband drowned as he was attempting to murder Sebastian. He had already murdered several people. Mother of Bayard and Stephanie.
Lord Bayard Wilcox: Amanda’s son.
Stephanie Wilcox Ledger, Lady Ashworth: Amanda's daughter. She was married to Anthony and mother of twin sons.
Anthony Marcus Ledger, Viscount Ashworth: Stephanie's abusive husband, now deceased. He was thirty-two years old when he was murdered, handsome, wellborn, and extraordinarily wealthy.
James Ledger: Stephanie’s son, Adrian’s twin.
Adrian Ledger: Stephanie’s infant son, James’ twin.
Sir Henry Lovejoy: Once the chief magistrate at Queen Square, now the newest of Bow Street’s three stipendiary magistrates, and friend of Sebastian.
Morey: Sebastian's majordomo.
Jules Calhoun: Sebastian's valet. Began his life in one of London's most notorious flash house, some of his unusual talents are of use to Sebastian from time to time.
Grace Calhoun: Jules’ mother, a famous underworld figure. She operates the Red Lion Inn.
Giles: Sebastian's groom.
Victoria Hart-Davis: Annabelle's distant cousin who continues to live in and run the Jarvis’ household. She’s Jarvis’ wife and Sebastian suspects she killed Annabelle.
Kat Boleyn: Actress who was Sebastian's first love. She's Hendon's illegitimate daughter.
Edward Burnside: Former hussar major and Jarvis' henchman.
Ashur Kemp: Jarvis’ aide.
George Augustus Frederick: aka Prinny. Prince of Wales and Regent of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland.
Princess Charlotte Augusta of Wales: Sole legitimate issue of the Prince of Wales and heiress presumptive to the throne. Her mother is Princess Caroline.
Princess Caroline: Princess of Wales and estranged wife of the Prince of Wales, Charlotte’s mother.
Grisham: Jarvis’s butler.
Jamie Knox: Former owner of the Black Devil tavern who was killed during an attempt on Sebastian’s life. He was a former sharpshooter for the army and looked like Sebastian and is suspected to have been his half brother. He was also a reputed smuggler.
Pippa: Barkeep and owner of the Black Devil tavern. She was Jamie's girlfriend and mother of their son, Patrick.
Non Recurring Characters
Jamie Gallagher: Orphan who discovered Farnsworth’s body.
Jenny Gallagher: Jamie’s sister.
Liam Gallagher: Jamie’s father.
Lord Preston Farnsworth: Murder victim. He’s the younger son of the third Duke of Eversfield.
Archibald Douglas Farnsworth, Duke of Eversfield: Preston’s brother.
Lady Hester Farnsworth: Preston’s spinster sister who lives with him.
Lady Theresa (Tess) Farnsworth: Preston’s wife who ran off with Hugh Chandler.
Major Hugh Chandler: Calvary officer who ran off with Preston’s wife. He’s Sebastian’s friend who helped save his life during the war.
Jasper James Hayworth: Earl of Whitcomb and Tess’s brother.
Nathaniel Conant: Chief Magistrate of Bow Street Public Office.
Windell Barr: Chief Magistrate of Great Marlborough Street Public Office.
Madame Blanchette: Cartomancer.
Father Ambrose de Sancerre: French priest who tutors students.
Mallory, Lord Quinton-Thomas: One of Farnsworth’s enemies.
Viscount Sidmouth: Home Secretary.
Maréchal Alexandre McClellan: Former Napoleonic general who Sebastian bears a close resemblance to.
Lancelot Plimsoll: Natural scientist.
Billy Callaghan: Soldier Hero is interviewing.
Eli Dawson: Sailor Hero is interviewing.
Alexander Watson: Former sergeant Hero interviewed.
Crispin Carmichael: Rector of St. George’s, Hanover Square.
Henry (Harry) McGregor: aka Half-Hanged Harry.
Sally McGregor: Harry’s sister.
Horace Bottomley: Keeper at Tothill Fields Bridewell.
Letitia Lamont: Abbess (brothel madam).
Damion Pitcairn: Violinist.
Leonard Dudley: Farnsworth’s valet.
Noël Cartier: Bourbon assassin.
Rasim Ataman: Turkish astrology.
Bridget Daniels: Young prostitute who was almost murdered.
: (hide spoiler)]
I cannot fathom it.
Midwife Sarah Malloy and her private detective husband Frank discover that the cure is worse than the disease when they investigate the death of a promising young woman in this atmospheric, riveting mystery from the USA TODAY bestselling author of Murder on Bedford Street. Sarah Malloy has just helped with the delivery of a bouncing baby girl at her women’s clinic, when she receives a visit from an engaging and determined young woman writing an article for New Century Magazine. Louisa Rodgers explains that she is researching the dangers of patent remedies. Sarah is only too happy to tell Louisa exactly what she thinks of the so-called medicines whose ingredients include heavy doses of alcohol and other addictive drugs, and hurt much more than they help.
A few days later, Sarah receives a visit from a bereft Bernard Rodgers, who explains that his daughter, Louisa, has been found strangled in the lobby of the building where New Century has its offices. The police have decided it was a random attack and have made no attempt to investigate, hinting that Louisa got what she deserved for sticking her nose where it didn’t belong. Sarah wants justice for the bright young woman but as she and Frank delve deeper into Louisa’s life, they find that nothing is quite as it seemed and Louisa is not who she claimed to be. The Malloys must first solve the mystery of Louisa’s life before they can figure out who wanted to see her dead…
SettingNew York City
15 Chapters
Character List(view spoiler)[
Recurring Characters
Sarah Decker Brandt Malloy: Formerly Sarah Decker. Widow and midwife who was married to Tom Brandt, a doctor. She’s assisted Frank Malloy in solving murders and is now married to him and is Catherine’s foster mother. She has blond hair and blue-gray eyes.
Frances (Frank) Malloy: Former detective sergeant with the New York Police Department who was appointed Catherine’s guardian by her wealthy father who died. He’s now a millionaire, is married to Sarah and has opened his own investigation agency, Confidential Inquiries. He’s a widow and father of 4-year old Brian. He has dark hair and eyes.
Catherine Malloy: aka Aggie. Young girl Sarah has taken in from the Prodigal Son Mission now renamed Daughters of Hope. She’s 6-years old who recently began speaking. Her name was given to her at the Mission but she revealed her name to be Catherine (secretly to Brian). She was recently discovered by her father, a wealthy man who was dying and appointed Frank her guardian. Her mother was murdered and Frank and Sarah are currently her guardians.
Alma Malloy: Frank’s mother. She volunteers at Brian’s school and has learned to sign.
Brian Malloy: Frank’s 5-year old son who is deaf. He has red hair and blue eyes.
Kathleen Malloy: Frank’s first wife, deceased.
Elizabeth Decker: Sarah’s mother.
Felix Decker: Sarah’s father.
Maggie Decker: Sarah’s sister, deceased.
Tom Brandt: Sarah’s deceased husband, a former doctor.
Maeve Smith: Young girl formerly from the Mission who now stays with Sarah and Frank. She’s the nanny to Brian and Catherine’. She’s also Frank’s secretary.
Gino Donatelli: Former NYPD police officer. He recently returned from serving in the Army and rejoined the police department, only to leave and join Frank’s agency.
Edna Ellsworth: Frank and Sarah’s neighbor.
Hattie: Malloy family maid.
Velvet: Malloy family cook.
Nelson Ellsworth: Mrs. Elsworth’s son.
Theda Ellsworth: Nelson’s wife. Her mother is Ilsa Pritchard Lawson.
Doc Haynes: Coroner.
Titus Wesley: Coroner and undertaker.
Unger: Coroner.
Mrs. Keller: Matron who manages Daughters of Hope (formerly the Prodigal Son Mission).
Miss Kirkwood: One of the resident midwives at Sarah’s clinic.
Miss Hanson: One of the resident midwives at Sarah’s clinic.
Joseph Petrosino: Detective sergeant with the NYPD. He’s Italian American and has an office in Italian Harlem.
Ogden: Police officer in East Harlem.
Bill Devery: Chief of police for the NYPD.
Henry Nicholson: Defense attorney.
Teodora (Teo) Donatelli: Gino’s sister-in-law, married to Rinaldo.
Rinaldo Donatelli: Gino’s oldest brother, married to Teodora. He’s a carpenter.
Enzo Donatelli: Gino’s next oldest brother.
Angelo Donatelli: Patriarch of the Donatelli family.
Black Jack Robinson: Major crime boss in the Bowery area. He worked with Frank and Sarah to solve and vindicate a murder in the past. He’s married to Jocelyn.
Jocelyn Vane Robinson: Society girl who is pregnant and her family made her go to Sarah’s clinic instead of somewhere more appropriate to her station. She wants to keep her child so Sarah arranges for her to have another option: Black Jack Robinson. It works out and the two marry.
Marie O’Day: Jocelyn and Jack’s housekeeper. She was the former Longacre maid (Murder in the Bowery). She’s married to Horace.
Tom O’Day: Marie’s husband who now works for Jocelyn and Jack. He was formally Horace Longacre’s driver (Murder in the Bowery).
Lou Lawson: aka Otto Bergman. Major gangster who helped Malloy on an earlier case. He’s Theda’s stepfather.
Non Recurring Characters
:
:
:
:
:
:
:
:
:
:
(hide spoiler)]Spoiler Info(view spoiler)[
Julia really is insane, murderously so. She killed her father, her son’s nursemaid, her niece Ruth and her schoolmate in Switzerland. Working with Jack Robinson and Lou Lawson, Maeve and Gino helped rescue little Victor from her when she was hiding out in a gambling den. She’s back in the asylum for good.
Nelson and Theda Ellsworth had twins, a baby boy and girl, delivered by Sarah. (hide spoiler)]
A seemingly idyllic summer picnic ends in a macabre murder that echoes a pair of slayings fourteen years earlier in this riveting new historical mystery from the USA Today bestselling author of Who Cries for the Lost.
July 1815: The Prince Regent’s grandiose plans to celebrate Napoléon’s recent defeat at Waterloo are thrown into turmoil when Lady McInnis and her daughter Emma are found brutally murdered in Richmond Park, their bodies posed in a chilling imitation of the stone effigies once found atop medieval tombs. Bow Street magistrate Sir Henry Lovejoy immediately turns to his friend Sebastian St. Cyr, Viscount Devlin, for help with the investigation. For as Devlin discovers, Lovejoy’s own wife and daughter were also murdered in Richmond Park, their bodies posed in the same bizarre postures. A traumatized ex-soldier was hanged for their killings. So is London now confronting a malicious copyist? Or did Lovejoy help send an innocent man to the gallows?
Aided by his wife, Hero, who knew Lady McInnis from her work with poor orphans, Devlin finds himself exploring a host of unsavory characters from a vicious chimney sweep to a smiling but decidedly lethal baby farmer. Also coming under increasing scrutiny is Sir Ivo McInnis himself, along with a wounded Waterloo veteran—who may or may not have been Laura McInnis’s lover—and a charismatic young violinist who moonlights as a fencing master and may have formed a dangerous relationship with Emma. But when Sebastian’s investigation turns toward man about town Basil Rhodes, he quickly draws the fury of the Palace, for Rhodes is well known as the Regent’s favorite illegitimate son.
Then Lady McInnis’s young niece and nephew are targeted by the killer, and two more women are discovered murdered and arranged in similar postures. With his own life increasingly in danger, Sebastian finds himself drawn inexorably toward a conclusion far darker and more horrific than anything he could have imagined.
SettingsLondon, England (July 1815)
57 Chapters
Character List(view spoiler)[
Recurring Characters
Sebastian St. Cyr, Lord Devlin: Viscount Devlin. Tall, leanly built man, not yet 30-years old. He has dark hair and strange yellow eyes with the unnatural ability to see clearly at great distances or at night. Lord Hendon's only surviving son, they enjoy a very complicated and acrimonious relatiohship. St. Cyr's mother abandoned him at a young age which still affects him to this day. He was forced to forgo the love of his life, Kat Boleyn due to familial secrets. He's now married to Hero and father of their toddler son, Simon.
Hero Jarvis St. Cyr, Lady Devlin: Viscountess Devlin. Daughter of Charles, Lord Jarvis and St. Cyr's enemy, She's tall, 25-years old with gray eyes and was considered a spinster until she married Sebastian. Independent minded, smart and not afraid of her father. She and Sebastian have a toddler son, Simon, and she’s six-months pregnant.
Simon Alistair St. Cyr: Sebastian and Hero's 20-month old son.
Patrick St. Cyr: Pippa’s son who she left with Sebastian and Hero when she went to America with Ian. He’s Sebastian’s nephew but is being raised as his son.
Claire Bisette: Simon's nursemaid. She recently lost her 3-year old daughter.
Tom: Sebastian's 15-year old groom or tiger who is devoted to him because he rescued him from the streets after he saved Sebastian's life. Secures information for Sebastian due to living on the streets and his ability to go undetected.
Paul Gibson: Former army surgeon, an Irishman who shared the battlefields with Sebastian where he lost a leg. Unmarried, he works out of a small surgery at the base of Tower Hill and shares his knowledge of anatomy at St. Thomas and St. Bartholomew's teaching hospitals. He frequently assists St. Cyr, his friend, with his murder investigations and provides an invaluable source of knowledge. He's in his mid-thirties, slim, dark haired and of medium height and has an opium addiction. Alexi is his lover and lives with him.
Alexandri (Alexi) Sauvage: French doctor currently living with Paul.
Charles, Lord Jarvis: Brilliant, ruthless man and cousin to the King. Completely dedicated to the preservation of the House of Hanover, he was considered the power behind Prinny (Prince Regent) weak Regency due to King George slipping into madness. In prior mysteries, St. Cyr had broken into Jarvis' house, held him at gunpoint and thrown a knife at him. They were not on the best of terms and neither trusted the other. He's Hero's father and is now married to Victoria, his deceased wife Annabelle’s cousin.
Annabelle, Lady Jarvis: Lord Jarvis' deceased wife, Hero's mother.
Emma Knight: Young widow who was Annabelle's companion.
Alistair St. Cyr, Earl of Hendon: Sebastian's father to the world but in reality he was not. Sebastian recently learned he's not his biological father but the Earl has always known. He is, however, the father of Kat Bolyen, Sebastian's former lover, and allowed Sebastian to believe they were brother and sister. Currently the Chancellor of the Exchequer, in his late sixties with deep blue eyes.
Sophie St. Cyr: aka Dama Capello. Sebastian’s mother who was believed to have drowned when he was a child. However, he recently learned that was untrue.
Henrietta, Dowager Duchess of Claiborne: Lord Hendon's sister, Sebastian and Amanda's aunt. She has a son, Claiborne who is married to Emily.
Lady Amanda Wilcox: Oldest of the St. Cyr siblings, Sebastian's sister. Her husband drowned as he was attempting to murder Sebastian. He had already murdered several people. Mother of Bayard and Stephanie.
Lord Bayard Wilcox: Amanda’s son.
Stephanie Wilcox Ledger, Lady Ashworth: Amanda's daughter. She was married to Anthony and mother of twin sons.
Anthony Marcus Ledger, Viscount Ashworth: Stephanie's abusive husband, now deceased. He was thirty-two years old when he was murdered, handsome, wellborn, and extraordinarily wealthy.
James Ledger: Stephanie’s son, Adrian’s twin.
Adrian Ledger: Stephanie’s infant son, James’ twin.
Sir Henry Lovejoy: Once the chief magistrate at Queen Square, now the newest of Bow Street’s three stipendiary magistrates, and friend of Sebastian.
Morey: Sebastian's majordomo.
Jules Calhoun: Sebastian's valet. Began his life in one of London's most notorious flash house, some of his unusual talents are of use to Sebastian from time to time.
Grace Calhoun: Jules’ mother, a famous underworld figure. She operates the Red Lion Inn.
Giles: Sebastian's groom.
Victoria Hart-Davis: Annabelle's distant cousin who continues to live in and run the Jarvis’ household. She’s Jarvis’ wife and Sebastian suspects she killed Annabelle.
Kat Boleyn: Actress who was Sebastian's first love. She's Hendon's illegitimate daughter.
Edward Burnside: Former hussar major and Jarvis' henchman.
Ashur Kemp: Jarvis’ aide.
George Augustus Frederick: aka Prinny. Prince of Wales and Regent of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland.
Princess Charlotte Augusta of Wales: Sole legitimate issue of the Prince of Wales and heiress presumptive to the throne. Her mother is Princess Caroline.
Princess Caroline: Princess of Wales and estranged wife of the Prince of Wales, Charlotte’s mother.
Grisham: Jarvis’s butler.
Jamie Knox: Former owner of the Black Devil tavern who was killed during an attempt on Sebastian’s life. He was a former sharpshooter for the army and looked like Sebastian and is suspected to have been his half brother. He was also a reputed smuggler.
Pippa: Barkeep and owner of the Black Devil tavern. She was Jamie's girlfriend and mother of their son, Patrick.
Non Recurring Characters
:
:
:
:
:
:
: (hide spoiler)]
I wondered if I was alone in this.
And that’s carried through on the TV series, too.
I agree, Jim.
Great points, Jim.
Midwife Sarah Malloy and her private investigator husband, Frank, must stop a killer lurking among a young family in the newest installment of the USA Today bestselling Gaslight Mysteries.Hugh Breedlove is far from the most agreeable client private investigator Frank Malloy has ever had, but his case is impossible to refuse: his young niece, Julia, has been wrongfully committed to an insane asylum by her cruel and unfaithful husband, Chet Longly. Though Breedlove and his wife seem more interested in protecting the family reputation than their niece’s safety, Frank and Sarah agree to help for the sake of Julia and the young son she left behind.
Frank and Sarah’s investigation reveals a dark secret—a maid at the Longly home died suspiciously under Chet’s watch, and now it seems Julia’s son might also be in danger. The Malloys fear they are dealing with a man more dangerous than they had anticipated, one who will do anything to defame his wife. But all is not as it seems in the Longly family, and perhaps another monster is hiding in plain sight....
SettingNew York City
Ward’s Island, New York
16 Chapters
Character List(view spoiler)[
Recurring Characters
Sarah Decker Brandt Malloy: Formerly Sarah Decker. Widow and midwife who was married to Tom Brandt, a doctor. She’s assisted Frank Malloy in solving murders and is now married to him and is Catherine’s foster mother. She has blond hair and blue-gray eyes.
Frances (Frank) Malloy: Former detective sergeant with the New York Police Department who was appointed Catherine’s guardian by her wealthy father who died. He’s now a millionaire, is married to Sarah and has opened his own investigation agency, Confidential Inquiries. He’s a widow and father of 4-year old Brian. He has dark hair and eyes.
Catherine Malloy: aka Aggie. Young girl Sarah has taken in from the Prodigal Son Mission now renamed Daughters of Hope. She’s 6-years old who recently began speaking. Her name was given to her at the Mission but she revealed her name to be Catherine (secretly to Brian). She was recently discovered by her father, a wealthy man who was dying and appointed Frank her guardian. Her mother was murdered and Frank and Sarah are currently her guardians.
Alma Malloy: Frank’s mother. She volunteers at Brian’s school and has learned to sign.
Brian Malloy: Frank’s 5-year old son who is deaf. He has red hair and blue eyes.
Kathleen Malloy: Frank’s first wife, deceased.
Elizabeth Decker: Sarah’s mother.
Felix Decker: Sarah’s father.
Maggie Decker: Sarah’s sister, deceased.
Tom Brandt: Sarah’s deceased husband, a former doctor.
Maeve Smith: Young girl formerly from the Mission who now stays with Sarah and Frank. She’s the nanny to Brian and Catherine’. She’s also Frank’s secretary.
Gino Donatelli: Former NYPD police officer. He recently returned from serving in the Army and rejoined the police department, only to leave and join Frank’s agency.
Edna Ellsworth: Frank and Sarah’s neighbor.
Hattie: Malloy family maid.
Velvet: Malloy family cook.
Nelson Ellsworth: Mrs. Elsworth’s son.
Theda Ellsworth: Nelson’s wife. Her mother is Ilsa Pritchard Lawson.
Doc Haynes: Coroner.
Titus Wesley: Coroner and undertaker.
Unger: Coroner.
Mrs. Keller: Matron who manages Daughters of Hope (formerly the Prodigal Son Mission).
Miss Kirkwood: One of the resident midwives at Sarah’s clinic.
Miss Hanson: One of the resident midwives at Sarah’s clinic.
Joseph Petrosino: Detective sergeant with the NYPD. He’s Italian American and has an office in Italian Harlem.
Ogden: Police officer in East Harlem.
Bill Devery: Chief of police for the NYPD.
Henry Nicholson: Defense attorney.
Teodora (Teo) Donatelli: Gino’s sister-in-law, married to Rinaldo.
Rinaldo Donatelli: Gino’s oldest brother, married to Teodora. He’s a carpenter.
Enzo Donatelli: Gino’s next oldest brother.
Angelo Donatelli: Patriarch of the Donatelli family.
Black Jack Robinson: Major crime boss in the Bowery area. He worked with Frank and Sarah to solve and vindicate a murder in the past. He’s married to Jocelyn.
Jocelyn Vane Robinson: Society girl who is pregnant and her family made her go to Sarah’s clinic instead of somewhere more appropriate to her station. She wants to keep her child so Sarah arranges for her to have another option: Black Jack Robinson. It works out and the two marry.
Marie O’Day: Jocelyn and Jack’s housekeeper. She was the former Longacre maid (Murder in the Bowery). She’s married to Horace.
Tom O’Day: Marie’s husband who now works for Jocelyn and Jack. He was formally Horace Longacre’s driver (Murder in the Bowery).
Lou Lawson: aka Otto Bergman. Major gangster who helped Malloy on an earlier case. He’s Theda’s stepfather.
Non Recurring Characters
Hugh Breedlove: Frank’s new client, an investment bank partner.
Amelia Breedlove: Hugh’s wife and Ruth’s mother.
Ruth Breedlove: Amelia and Hugh’s daughter.
Ellie Breedlove: Hugh’s sister-in-law. She’s Julia’s mother.
Julia Longly: Ellie’s daughter, married to Chet. He’s placed her in Manhattan State Hospital, an insane asylum.
Chet Longly: Julia’s husband.
Victor Longly: Julia and Chet’s 4-year old son.
Mrs. Nailor: Chet’s mistress.
Dr. Ziegler: Julia’s doctor at the hospital.
Karl Klein: Hugh’s attorney.
Mrs. Pauly: Chet’s housekeeper.
Mrs. O’Hara: Chet’s cook.
Iris: One of Chet’s maids.
Kate: One of Chet’s maids.
Miss Winterbourne: Victor’s former nursemaid.
Vogler: Chet’s former coachman.
Tamar: Mrs. Nailor’s maid.
(hide spoiler)]Spoiler Info(view spoiler)[
Julia really is insane, murderously so. She killed her father, her son’s nursemaid, her niece Ruth and her schoolmate in Switzerland. Working with Jack Robinson and Lou Lawson, Maeve and Gino helped rescue little Victor from her when she was hiding out in a gambling den. She’s back in the asylum for good.
Nelson and Theda Ellsworth had twins, a baby boy and girl, delivered by Sarah. (hide spoiler)]
I think she’s a different category of diabolical. Perhaps worse than Jarvis because she’s packaged so nicely.
Great! I’ll work on the questions.
Mothers know best . . . But who will listen?Boston homicide detective Jane Rizzoli and medical examiner Maura Isles are plagued by what seems like a completely senseless murder. Sofia Suarez, a widow and nurse who was universally liked by all her neighbors, lies bludgeoned to death in her own home. But anything can happen behind closed doors, and Sofia seemed to have plenty of secrets in her last days, making covert phone calls to old contacts and traceless burner phones. When Jane finally makes a connection between Sofia and the victim of a hit-and-run months earlier, the case only grows more blurry. What exactly was Sofia involved in? One thing is clear: The killer will do anything it takes to keep their secret safe.
Meanwhile, Angela Rizzoli hasn’t had a decent night’s sleep in all the years since her daughter became a homicide detective. Maybe the apple didn’t fall too far from the tree. Nothing in her neighborhood gets by Angela - not the gossip about a runaway teenager down the block and definitely not the strange neighbors who have just moved in across the street. Angela’s sure there’s no such thing as coincidence in her sleepy suburb. If only Jane would listen; instead she writes off Angela’s concerns as the result of an overactive imagination. But Angela’s convinced there’s a real wolf in her vicinity, and her cries might now fall on deaf ears.
With so much happening on the Sofia case, Jane and Maura already struggle to see the forest for the trees, but will they lose sight of something sinister happening much closer to home?
SettingsBoston, Massachusetts
Revere, Massachusetts
Bangor, Maine
Waterville, Maine
41 Chapters
Character List(view spoiler)[
Jane Rizzoli: Homicide detective with the Boston Police Department (BPD). She’s the only female and is partnered with Barry Frost. She’s 34-years old, married to Gabriel Dean and mother of their daughter, Regina.
Maura Isles: Medical examiner. Nicknamed Queen of the Dead by the Homicide Unit. She has shoulder length black hair with blunt bangs. She’s in a secret relationship with Daniel Brophy.
Gabriel Dean: FBI agent and Jane’s husband, father of their daughter, Regina.
Regina Dean: Jane and Gabriel’s 4-year old daughter.
Angela Rizzoli: Jane’s mother. She’s left her husband, Frank, and in a relationship with Vince.
Frank Rizzoli, Sr.: Jane’s father who left Angela for another woman.
Frankie Rizzoli: Jane’s brother.
Father Daniel Brophy: Priest from Our Lady of Divine Light. He and Maura were having a secret affair, which they unsuccessfully tried to end.
Barry Frost: Homicide detective with the BPD and Jane’s partner. He’s reconciled with his wife Alice.
Alice Frost: Barry’s wife, a lawyer.
Vince Korsak: Retired homicide detective. He’s ina relationship with Angela.
Johnny Tam: Homicide detective with the BPD.
Darren Crowe: Boston Police Department homicide detective.
Tripp: Boston Police Department homicide detective.
Marquette: Lieutenant over the homicide unit.
Abe Bristol: Boston medical examiner.
Yoshima: Maura’s morgue assistant.
Louise: Maura’s secretary.
Lawrence Zucker: Forensic psychologist.
Amalthea Lank: Maura’s biological mother. She’s serving life in prison for multiple homicides and is dying of metastatic pancreatic cancer.
Non Recurring Characters
Agnes Kaminsky: Angela’s next door neighbor.
Larry Leopold: Angela’s neighbor across the street. He’s married to Lorelei. He’s a high school English teacher.
Lorelei Leopold: Angela’s neighbor across the street. She’s married to Larry.
Jonas: Angela’s neighbor across the street who lives next to the Leopolds. He’s a former Navy SEAL.
Matt Green: New neighbor of Angela’s, next door to the Leopolds. He’s married to Carrie.
Carrie Green: New neighbor of Angela’s, next door to the Leopolds. She’s married to Matt.
Tricia Talley: 16-year old daughter of
Jackie Talley: Tricia’s mother and a friend of Angela’s. She’s married to Rick and is a high school teacher. They live a block from Angela.
Rick Talley: Tricia’s father and Jackie’s husband.
Sofia Suarez: Critical care nurse and widow who worked at Pilgrim Hospital. She was found murdered in her home by her neighbor. Her husband Tony recently died.
Mrs. Leong: Sofia’s neighbor.
Lena Leong: Mrs. Leona’s granddaughter.
Jamal Bird: Teen who helps older neighbors with tech issues.
Beverly Bird: Jamal’s mother.
Mike Antrim: ICU director at Pilgrim Hospital where Sofia worked.
Julianne Antrim: Mike’s wife and mother of daughter Amy.
Amy Antrim: Joanna’s daughter who Mike adopted. She is recovering from a hit-and-run pedestrian accident. She’s attending college.
Eloise Creighton: Colby College associate professor who was murdered nineteen years ago in Maine. Her ex-husband was the primary suspect. She had a 3-year old daughter Lily who disappeared and was never found.
James Creighton: Eloise’s ex-husband and father of their daughter Lily. He was the primary suspect in Eloise’s murder. He was a high school music teacher at the time.
Lily Creighton: Eloise and James’ daughter who was 3-years old when her mother was murdered and she vanished.
Katie Bouchard: Nurse who worked with Sofia almost twenty years ago in Maine.
Joe Thibodeaux: Maine State Police Department detective.
Aaron Harthoorn: Amy’s professor.
Bruce Flagler: Amy’s biological father, Julianne’s abusive ex-boyfriend. He was a carpenter.
:
(hide spoiler)]Spoiler Info(view spoiler)[
Jackie Talley and Larry Leopold had an affair 19 years ago and he’s Tricia’s biological father. Tricia ran away after she figured it out from a biology blood typing project. Tricia eventually told Rick who confronted Larry with a gun, shooting him in the shoulder. Angela diffused the situation.
Julianne’s boyfriend Bruce killed Eloise Creighton and took baby Lily. He gave the baby to Julianne to replace her baby Amy who died earlier that day. It’s suspected that Bruce accidentally killed Amy. She gave Lily Amy’s identity.
Matt Green was really a US Marshal named Greeley. Carrie was really named Nina and the woman he was protecting in the safe house in Angela’s neighborhood. (hide spoiler)]
That’s sounds right.
Do you think deep down she not only suspects but knows?
Hey, maybe Jarvis will do her in. She’d be foolish to think she could outfox him.
What a gift! I just gave up in high school.
No doubt! It’ll make sense at some point.
I loved this story, chock full of history and political intrigue in a court I found confounding in the past. I walked away feeling much better about my grasp of this era.
I feel very sad for Sebastian. After all these years, to have her literally die in his arms was cruel. His relationship with Hendon should be okay but I’m hoping he’ll shed some light on other things now. Amanda is such a lost cause.
I hadn’t considered the implications of Victoria having a boy! Chilling.
Ooh, really liking your thoughts about Hero holding that talisman. There’s a lot to go with there. I do hope Victoria gets her due. Unfortunately, Jarvis seems to love her, which might be his undoing because she’s treacherous.
No, Sebastian won’t stop looking but I think now it will be more targeted. I see a trip to Scotland and Wales in his future.
Like you, I didn’t suspect her of being the murderer but found her a bit strange. One tipping point was when Hero took note that she called France as her country of heart and referred to England as “they.’
Shame on Fanny for underestimating another woman given what she’d done. Hero saw it coming and dispatched her quickly. I thought it perfect that she was felled by a woman, especially as she left her dirty work in killing Sophie to a man.
