Stars: 4 out of 5
Pros: Interesting characters, great setting, good mystery
Cons: Plot slows down a few times along the way to the
climax
The Bottom Line:
Travel back in town
Mystery in old San Fran
Promising debut
No Need for Comfort – This is an Enjoyable Debut
Since I always say I want to read more historical mysteries,
I have actually starting paying more attention to the ones that cross my
radar. That’s why I gave No Comfort for the Lost more than a
passing glance. Couple that with it
being set in 1867 San Francisco, and I decided I had to give it a try. I’m glad I did because it was a good debut.
Celia Davies has served as a nurse in the Crimean War before
settling in San Francisco with her husband, a man who has now gone
missing. She has opened a free medical
clinic serving any women in need in the city.
Thanks to her young cousin Barbara, who is half Chinese, she can even
serve in the Chinese portion of town, which is how Li Sha crosses her
path. This former prostitute has bought
her freedom and is trying to make a new life for herself.
Which is why Celia and Barbara are both upset when Li turns
up murdered. With the hate against the
Chinese growing, many people aren’t concerned about the murder. Fortunately, the case crosses the desk of
detective Nicholas Greaves, a Civil War vet.
He is determined to find Li’s killer no matter where it leads, and Celia
is determined to help. Was it a random
act of violence against a Chinese woman?
Or was there a more sinister motive behind the killing?
The book does a good job of introducing characters and
setting as we go along. There is no data
dump, but within the first few chapters, we get the information we need to
understand the characters, their background, and how they came to be in San
Francisco. These characters grow as the
book progresses, and I really came to like them before the book was over.
That means that the plot gets off to a good start. We are hardly introduced to the main
characters before we get to the murder.
Unfortunately, I did feel like the story dragged a bit at times, but it
was never for very long. Just a slight
edit would have picked up the pace overall.
Still, we reach a logical climax; I figured it out just pages before
Celia did.
The world of 1867 San Francisco is brought to life in these
pages, and it’s easy to get lost in another time and place. Sadly, it appears some of the issues they
were facing then are still issues we need to struggle with today. It looks like my wish to have an adult
conversation about the issues facing our country are too much to hope for.
The narration alternates between Celia and Nick’s points of
view. It’s a great way to open up the
story and provide some additional conflict in the path of solving the
murder. And the switches are always easy
to follow.
No Comfort for the Lost in the start of a promising new series. If, like me, you are looking for more
historical mysteries, check out this debut.
NOTE: I received a copy of this book in hopes I would review
it.
On my TBR pile!
ReplyDeleteI would love to read this as I am from the SF area and since it is #1 going to put on my list.
ReplyDeleteI don't know about this one for me, but am glad you liked it. I do know a lot of historical fans to pass this along to though.
ReplyDelete