I read Book 1 of this series,  Murder at Murder on Astor Place, about a month ago and although I didn’t exactly get “hooked” into the story it’s okay (a B+) .  So when it was time for Book 2 on the 4-Mystery Addicts discussion schedule I went ahead.

*******
Murder on St. Mark’s Place
Victoria Thompson
2000 / 288 pages
read by Callie Beaulliau  – 8h 11m
rating:
(Book 2 of Gaslight series)
*******

The year is 1895-96 and Teddy Roosevelt is still the New York City police commissioner with his own ideas about cleaning up the very corrupt force.

Sarah,  was originally from an upper class family but she married out of it,  was then widowed,  and is now a midwife by trade.  Much of her business is in the lower classes and in the course of her work she comes across murders in one way or another. In Book 1 Sarah became an amateur sleuth and met  Frank Malloy, a widowed police detective with his own story.

This time the main plot has to do with the murder of a new mother’s newly immigrated 16-year old sister.   This girl is a fun-loving spirit who enjoyed going to the dance parlors and Coney Island with her friends and picking up men who would pay their way into the amusements or buy them presents in exchange for favors.  It turns out 4 young women have been murdered in the past few months.

This started slow and it’s rather predictable,  but I enjoy it for some reason –  both the way the mystery is resolved and the overarching story of Sarah and Frank.  I’ll be reading #3.