Last month the book club discussed a title set during the infancy of the Scotland Yard with Charles Finch's A Beautiful Blue Death. This mystery is the first of a series to feature a well-to-do, freelance detective of the 1860s named Charles Lenox. The book was published in 2007 and here's a pix of Finch from his website.The book jacket dubs this book as "equal parts Sherlock Holmes, Gosford Park, and P. G. Wodenhouse" and it appears to have its aims well placed.
In the story, Charles takes an assignment from his close friend, Lady Jane, to investigate the death of servant Prudence Smith--a former employee of Lady Jane--when it appears she has committed suicide. His investigation, though, leads him another direction to suspect that Smith was murdered by a unique poison. As Charles continues, he enlists the help of resourceful allies while bypassing Scotland Yard (mostly) and endearing himself to Lady Jane.
Now, as I recall, the group as a whole liked the book. Responses to the book included:
- the story was the type of mystery one attendee really enjoyed reading
- Charles and Lady Jane's relationship although close, it could be the same as if between a gay man and straight woman (one take)
- Charles led a very relaxed, pampered life as a Victorian gentleman and would be very ill-suited to work as a detective on a full-time basis
- Charles enlists his valet Graham to assist with the investigation and the two men share a relationship which occasionally crosses class lines--very unlikely it was suggested
- a filmed version of this novel could be a good period piece but would drag along otherwise
- how Charles managed to be independently wealthy without an apparent livelihood was curious
- the story almost takes a long tangent of political discourse during the period when the novel veers back to the central story (the author does have a background in politics)
One attendee also had a copy of the next book in the series The September Society that night.
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