ISBN: 9781492632665

Published By: Sourcebooks Landmark

Publication date: 1st May 3016

Binding: Paperback

Price: $14.99 (I can’t find a price in £)

Provided to me by Netgalley.com

Blurb

With the Lusitania under water and the United States on the verge of war, Capability “Kitty” Weeks’s dream of becoming a journalist has finally come true—if only she were covering the tragedy instead of writing about society gossip for the Ladies’ Page of the New York Sentinel. But Kitty is closer to the real story than she thought. After a society ne’er-do-well turns up dead at a party on her beat, Kitty stumbles onto schemes that threaten to derail the United States’s attempt to remain neutral. Suddenly, the privileged life Kitty knows, full of easy certainties, is about to change forever.

My Review

I really enjoyed this book. I like historical fiction but often find good historical fiction is hard to come by. This is good historical fiction and utterly refreshing. Set during the early years of the first world war and not a country house drama (for which I am truly grateful), this novel is fast-paced and intriguing. The revelation of the murderer at the end was a surprise and Capability Weeks is a well developed character. Her determination and curiosity keep the reader hooked as they and she learn of each new circumstance. I love her character development from a rather naive young woman to confidence and self-knowledge. I enjoyed the mystery and the changing relationships between the characters as the story develops.

The writing style is very easy to read and flows quickly as the story progresses, the description of life for a well-off woman in the 1910’s in Manhatten is clear, little details like women changing from electric cars – quite, clean and slow – to almost everyone driving internal combustion engines, for example, make it come to life. The author uses the little details to bring the story to life.

5/5 definitely recommended for fans of historical novels and mysteries.