"An Extravagant Death," by Charles Finch

The premise of this book caught my attention right away. A British detective, Charles Lenox, (the younger son of a family of high standing, who has chosen his field of work despite its perceived breach of social class) is strongly encouraged by someone of importance in parliament to make a trip to America. There he finds himself in Newport, Rhode Island among the Astors and Vanderbilts of the Gilded Age. A young lady, a beauty and current darling among the season’s society, has been found murdered. It is up to Lenox to discover who among her many male suitors and acquaintances might have wished her dead.

I thoroughly enjoyed this book! Having jumped into this series for the first time on this, the 14th and most recent book, I am hooked. The author made me sufficiently acquainted with the characters and background of the series to give a good platform for the rest of the book. I loved how the author didn’t feel the need to add steamy scenes to the narrative, but let his excellence in writing the story (often with a wonderful wittiness!) suffice to create a captivating book. I can hardly wait to go back and read every single one of the 13 books that came before it in the series.