A MURDER IN ASHWOOD

Brighton spins a tale of murder and revenge in Gilded Age Buffalo in this thriller.

A very scandalous divorce looms for Alicia and Edward Miller, but Edward is found bludgeoned to death on New Year’s Day 1902, before it can happen. Not long after, Alicia’s lover—and a key suspect in the killing—Arthur Pendle, is (along with his wife, Cassandra) killed when their car is demolished at a railroad crossing. Sarah Payne, who loved Edward (though it was never consummated) goes on to found the Avenging Angel Detective Agency, fulfilling a dream born of her devotion to Sherlock Holmes stories. A trove of love letters that Arthur had sent to Alicia (which he told her to destroy, but she could not bear to do so) contains details of Arthur’s secret life as a bagman and fixer for the corrupt district attorney, Terry Penrose, a man who would not hesitate to have his own mother killed in pursuit of his ambitions. As various parties seek the letters, the spunky Sarah involves herself in the situation at great risk to her own life. Along the way we meet a dangerous psychotic, who convinces himself that he is in love with Sarah, and the hulking Harry Price, who is sent to kill her. The author is a talented storyteller, and it is hard to resist the very detailed and authentic world he creates, all leavened with a strong sense of irony: As Brighton writes, President McKinley was shot in Buffalo and lingered for five days before expiring, “still in agony and still in Buffalo.” Alicia Miller is an indelible character, a woman who came from the wrong side of the tracks to claw her way into Ashwood society. Sex is her weapon and she knows how to use it—in need of free legal counsel, she seduces a lawyer, then threatens to tell his wife. In her way, she is as ruthless as Terry Penrose, yet the reader feels for her and even roots for her. She and Sarah are wonderful complements and effectively drive the plot.

Time and place are fully realized in this murder story, making for a fascinating period piece.