Murder on Mulberry Bend: A Gaslight Mystery

Murder on Mulberry Bend by Victoria Thompson is the fifth book in the Gaslight Mystery series starring New York midwife Sarah Brandt and Detective Sergeant Frank Malloy. Unlike many long term series that lose their steam after the first book, the Gaslight series just seems to get better with each entry. After Sarah becomes involved in a mission for young girls, one of them is found murdered. Sarah is determined to bring the killer to justice, and Frank is just as determined to keep Sarah safe. Thompson does an amazing job of leaving clues and laying the groundwork for the reader to figure out who the murderer is without giving the whole show away. The real power in this series is the relationship between Sarah and Frank. Thompson has a way of capturing the emotion between the two of them that draws the reader right into the scene: Brian's visit to the doctor, Frank's insult to Sarah on the street, and Frank's sudden appearance at Sarah's after he thought she was dead are just a few of these scenes. Few writers have the power to convey the depth of emotion Thompson does with just a few simple words. The ending isn't wrapped up too tightly, giving hope for many more to come in this series.

19th Century New York City, with its desperate poverty, dazzling excesses, corrupt administrations, and flood of immigrants has long been fertile ground for crime fiction. Like Caleb Carr and Jack Finney, Victoria Thompson is one of the few writers to successfully utilize and represent this world without imposing our 21st Century values on it. Murder on Mulberry Bend, specifically, best captures this fascinating cityscape. The unlikely team of midwife Sarah Brandt and Detective Sergeant Frank Malloy is a pleasure to watch interact. The tensions between them--romantic and professional--really come to a crisis point here. The murder mystery element of the book is what we've come to expect from Ms. Thompson: twisting, suspenseful, and completely satisfying. But this story gives us an added bonus: we get a very compelling hint as to who may have murdered Sarah's beloved husband, Tom. Read it and enjoy!

The time is the turn-of-the-century. Sarah Brandt, a New York midwife, accompanies her friend Richard Dennis to The Prodigal Son Mission. He wants to find out more about the work his late wife Helen did there. Sarah donates clothing to the mission. Sergeant Frank Malloy is called to the scene of a dead woman in City Hall Park. He recognizes the hat as Sarah's and is convinced she is dead. He is quite relieved to find it was not her and agrees to investigate the death. Sarah is able to identify the woman as Emilia, a girl she met at the mission.Sarah is so impressed with the work of the mission that she decides to volunteer her time and agrees to help host a dinner at her parents' house to raise money for the mission. She is also looking into Emilia's death. Frank has forbidden her to do this, but it doesn't seem to stop her.Emilia's family is no help. Sarah begins to get an uneasy feeling at the mission. Could one of the girls killed Emilia out of jealousy? Could someone in Emilia's former life have caused her death? The Catholic church refuses to bury her due to her past. So many questions but as Sarah gets closer to the truth, she is put into danger just as Frank feared.There are very few mysteries set back in history that I enjoy reading. This series is one. The characters and settings are so real and the lack of conveniences only enhances the story. I really enjoy the relationship between Frank and Sarah, although I hope in the future that they get together. The tension does add to the story. Her neighbor Mrs. Ellsworth is a great character as well. She really adds character to the story. I am always amazed by the immense poverty. This book brings a lot of that forward as the mission is a dangerous area of town as is Emilia's parents' apartment. Frank constantly travels through dangerous parts of town looking for Danny to get information.I highly recommend this book and series.

This book made the flight from Chicago to Seattle a delight. The fifth in the Gaslight Mystery series, has midwife Sarah Brandt and police sargeant Frank Molloy teaming to solve another mystery. Molloy also begins unraveling the murder of Sarah's husband. This book takes you to turn-of-the-century New York City and the mysterious deaths of reformed prostitutes. Sarah is the next target of the maniacal murderer.

Another stunner from Victoria Thompson! Ever since I first picked up "Murder on Astor Place", I haven't been able to get quite my fair share of this series! If you love gothic mysteries with character depth and a heady atmosphere, I think you soon will share my fate as well...The fifth in the Gaslight Series, this one involves the unusual murder of a former prostitute who at the time of her death was residing in the Prodigal Son Mission (I do agree with Frank, the name is rather hypocritical), a combination of Protestant finishing school and settlement house on Mulberry Bend, located in the slums of Little Italy and nearby the police headquarters. An acquaintance of our heroine, midwife and sometime-detective Sarah Brandt, her murder doesn't sit well with our Sarah, and thus she feels compelled to bring the killer to justice, even if it means dragging her grumbling Detective Sergeant friend, Frank Malloy, along for the ride. And so, our two investigators trek through the tragic and unsavory districts of Old New York, only to discover their murderer to be closer than they had ever thought. Little side-note: if you've read Anne Perry's "The Cater Street Hangman", it may not come as quite a shocker...Even as intriguing as the mystery itself, okay, perhaps a tiny bit more, is the ever-developing personal trauma of our characters. Be delighted with the progress of Malloy's son, Brian, and watch the internal battles for Sarah between said Malloy and her new friend, Richard Dennis. And for all those wondering about Sarah's late husband's death, there too you'll find heartbreak! Also, I must warn you, the end is extremely maddening, and I'll be on the most painful assortment of pins and needles until the next in the series. Not saying that that takes away any bit from thoroughly enjoying this lovely little tryst!P.S. - The next in the series, "Murder on Marble Row", is dated for release next June, and will also be coming out in Hardcover. And to the extreme delight of this particular audience, the author has been promised to many more books to come in the series! So need not worry about that wretched event when the Gaslights might be cut short in their youth, and much congrats to Ms. Thompson!