Book Review: Murder on Lexington Avenue by Victoria Thompson (Gaslight Mysteries #12)

Stars: 5 out of 5

Pros: Characters; compelling mystery

Cons: None

The Bottom Line:

Murder in office

Links to deaf community

Another strong case

Working on Saturday is Murder

I guess is shows my lack of creativity, but I am always amazed when an author can keep coming up with compelling cases that touch different aspects of a character’s life.  Victoria Thompson has an even harder quest since she has to find reasons to keep bringing two characters together to solve murders.  But she does it wonderfully once again in Murder on Lexington Avenue.

New York City Detective Sergeant Frank Malloy is called to a crime scene on a Saturday.  A man has been killed in his office, and Frank almost immediately learns the man was involved with one of the schools for the deaf in New York City.  His interest is piqued since his own son, Brian, is deaf, but Frank chose to send his son to one of the rival schools in the city.

Frank starts his investigation, but while questioning one of the suspects, he finds he has to get midwife Sarah Brandt involved in the case.  Suddenly undercover with the victim’s family, Sarah is able to learn more about the family dynamic and get various members to confide in her.  Will that lead Sarah and Frank to solve the case?

The story starts right away.  There’s no set up before Frank is called to the scene of the crime.  The plot is intriguing with plenty of suspects and motives.  I was certain I had it figured out several times before Frank and Sarah brought the case to a satisfactory conclusion.

Frank and Sarah both have families that we’ve gotten to know, and we do get to see both of their families a little bit before the plot fully takes over the book.  I always enjoy getting updates on these supporting characters.  I believe that a longer mystery arc got a huge kick start here, although I’ll have to keep reading to find out for sure.  (Not that I’m complaining about that in the slightest.)

As always, Frank and Sarah work together to solve the crime.  It takes a while for Sarah to get involved in this case, but once she does, she is fully involved and as important as Frank in solving the case.  I loved watching them working together.  It may be unofficial since he works for the police and she’s a midwife, but they felt like a solid team here.

Because of Frank’s son, Frank brings a personal knowledge to this case that I really enjoyed.  It allowed us to see some development in him.  This book also shows a light on issues in the deaf community in the 1890’s.  While some have been resolved in the decades since, the author’s note at the end talks about those that still rage on today.  I loved how the author talked about those without slowing down the mystery.

The Gaslight Mysteries are always wonderful trips back in time, and Murder on Lexington Avenue is no exception.  You could jump in here or start at the beginning.  Either way, you’ll enjoy solving crimes with Frank and Sarah.

Here are the rest of the Gaslight Mysteries in order.