Katharine Schellman

Vivian's life finally started to improve until the day she delivered dresses to Mrs. Buchanan, one of the richest women in New York. She didn't find her at home, but while waiting, she was drinking coffee with her husband. He was called to a meeting with a client and soon after, Vivian found him lying dead on the floor. Vivian immediately called for help. Being the last person to see Mr. Buchanan alive, Vivian was charged with his murder. The commissioner gave her a week to prove her innocence, otherwise she would face the death penalty.

Vivian was in the wrong place at the wrong time and her mission was to find the real murderer. She had her friends from The Nightingale who tried to help her find the truth. Only Honor, the owner of speakeasy, who always supported Vivian, refused to help.

Good mystery with an interesting set up. I found myself in a world of illegal nightclubs, parties, and gambling. Gossip and eavesdropping were normal activities in society back then. I was afraid for Vivian when she eavesdropped on the conversation behind the door, but even more intriguing was an arranged eavesdropping during the reading of the will.

I liked the Nightingale staff and how supportive they were of each other. The Nightingale, a speakeasy, was an illegal place where young people partied, drank, and danced all night long. This story made me feel like I was back in the days of Prohibition in New York, which I knew little about.… (altro)

BIBLIOGRAPHIC DETAILS:
Print: COPYRIGHT: 4/7/2020; PUBLISHER: Crooked Lane Books; ISBN 9781643853567; PAGES 336; Unabridged
Digital: Yes

*Audio: COPYRIGHT: 5/12/2020; ISBN: 9781690599210; PUBLISHER: Dreamscape Media; DURATION: 11:19:02; PARTS: 11; File Size: 322134 KB; Unabridged; PARTS: 11

Feature Film or tv: No.

SERIES: Lily Adler Mysteries, Book 1

CHARACTERS: (Not comprehensive)
Lily Adler – Young Widow just returned to London
Mrs. Carstairs -- Housekeeper
Lady Serena Walter -- Lily's girlhood friend
Lord Bernard Walter -- Serena's husband
Captain John (Jack) Hartley -- Lily's late husband's close friend.
Margaret Harlowe -- a girlhood friend
Andrew Harlowe -- Margaret's husband
Isobel Harper -- a girlhood acquaintance
Reggie Harper -- Isobel's brother
General Alfred Harper -- Isobel's uncle
Miss Ofelia Oswald -- Young lady form the West Indies staying with her aunt
Sir Edward Carroway -- Ofelia's love interest.
Mrs. Haverweight -- Ofelia's Aunt.

SUMMARY/ EVALUATION:
How I picked it: I spotted a book at a used book sale called “Body in the Library” that sounded like a fun read, but I always like to start a series at the beginning, so I looked up the author and found that this was the first of the series, so placed a hold on it from my LAPL subscription to Overdrive.
What’s it about? A young widow, Lily Adler, returns to London in 1815, and allowing her best friend to talk her in to attending her ball, soon finds herself as a witness of sorts (hearing more than seeing) to a murder in the garden. When the police dismiss the case for reasons not immediately clear, Lily becomes determined to solve it herself.
What did I think? Great descriptions and characterizations and well plotted; I enjoyed it.

AUTHOR:
Katharine Schellman; I’ve discovered that a lot of writers who have their own webpages do not have Wikipedia entries. Not being someone worthy of a Wiki page, I wouldn’t know, but I’m guessing you can request not to have one.
So, here’s a wee bit of what Katharine tells us about herself at https://www.katharineschellman.com/about/ where one can also find a lovely photo of her.
“I graduated with a BA from the College of William & Mary in Virginia, moved to Philadelphia and the DC area, and now live and write in the mountains of Virginia. In my debit year, I was named one of BookPage’s 16 Women to Watch in 2020, which I found out about on Instagram (that’s often how these things happen).”
And here is her official bio on the same page:
“Katharine Schellman is a former actor and one-time political consultant. These days, she writes the Lily Adler Mysteries (Crooked Lane Books) and the Nightingale Mysteries (Minotaur/St. Martin’s Press). Last Call at the Nightingale, her newest release, is a Publishers Weekly Summer Reads Pick for 2022 and a BookPage Most Anticipated Mystery & Suspense Book of 2022. Her debut novel, The Body in the Garden, was one of Suspense Magazine’s Best Books of 2020 and led to her being named one of BookPage’s 16 Women to Watch in 2020. Its sequel, Silence in the Library, was praised as “worthy of Agatha Christie or Rex Stout.” (Library Journal, starred review) Katharine lives and writes in the mountains of Virginia in the company of her husband, children, and the many houseplants she keeps accidentally murdering.”

NARRATOR:
Henrietta Meire:
Henrietta also has her own website, and I did not find a Wikipedia entry, so here is a bit from her page ( https://henriettameire.com/ )
“I’m a British born actress, currently living in Los Angeles. From German-Normandy heritage, born to a very British magical fairy of a ballerina-opera singer Mother and an even more British, gentle Buddha-like, over-grown leprechaun of a Father.
As a teenager I was a concert clarinetist, attempting to play Weber concertos with 50 piece orchestras behind me, whilst my knees knocked in pure terror. How I ever produced a soulful note from that beautiful piece of emotional sorcery, I will never know.
I then traversed into singing… Big band jazz in particular. I was 14 and singing Fever in front of 400 people, which made me high as a kite (naturally… no snorty stuff here: I wasn’t THAT kind of teenager). I still sing and, whilst I may not be the best singer on the block (I’ll leave that to Jenny…), I bloomin’ love it.”
I love Henrietta’s webpage, and I’m sure she is talented in everything she undertakes.
I’m a bit uncertain still how I feel about her as a narrator here, but I don’t think I can explain why. Maybe the delivery seems humorless? There are bantering jibes, like “irritating man!” tacked on to the end of occasional sentences when Lily speaks to Captain Hartley, that seem to hold more vehemence than humor—I prefer to think of this character as being more calm, and less intense. But let’s just wait and see if Henrietta grows on me when I read the next book in the series.

GENRE:
Fiction; Mystery; Historical Fiction; Detective; Women Sleuths

LOCATIONS:
London

TIME FRAME:
1815

SUBJECTS:
Blackmail; Widowhood; Society

DEDICATION:
“For everyone who had the courage to start over and for Brian, who was there every step of the way.”

SAMPLE QUOTATION:
From Chapter 1:
“London 1815
“The empty windows and still curtains were a lie, of course.
Eyes watched from every nearby house as the carriage rolled to a stop in front of number thirteen, Half Moon Street--residents, some of them, ladies and gentlemen who merited those titles to varying degrees, or the servants who were expected to report what they saw.
The watchers narrowed their eyes as the carriage door opened and a woman descended.
The carriage was a shabby piece of equipment--obviously hired, with postboys grubby from hard riding--so they knew she did not have enough money to keep her own stables. But the woman herself was the opposite of shabby--about six and twenty, her coat and hat in the current fashion. And she had rented the house on Half Moon Street. If not the most expensive part of Mayfair, it was also not somewhere a woman frantically counting her pennies could live.
The postboys, if anyone had asked them, would have added that she tipped very well.
But when the curious watchers whispered their impressions to each other or shared their judgements over supper, there would be one thing that stood out: she was dressed in lilac and gray, the colors of mourning no longer in its first stages.”

RATING:.
4

STARTED READING – FINISHED READING
8-16-2022 to 9-13-2022… (altro)

Silence in the Library by Katharine Schellman
BIBLIOGRAPHIC DETAILS:
Print: COPYRIGHT: 7/13/2021; PUBLISHER: Crooked Lane Books; ISBN 978- 1643857046; PAGES 352; Unabridged
Digital: Yes

*Audio: COPYRIGHT: 7/13/21; ISBN: 9781666501735; PUBLISHER: Dreamscape Media; DURATION: 12:09:51; PARTS: 12; File Size: 347070 KB; Unabridged

Feature Film or tv: No

SERIES: A Lily Adler Mystery, Book 2

CHARACTERS: (Not comprehensive)
Lily Adler – A widow & amateur sleuth
Mr. Peirce – Lily’s father
Jack Hartley – An off-duty military Captain, Freddy's boyhood friend
Freddy Adler - Lily's deceased husband
Sir Charles Wyatt – Old friend of Mr. Peirce
Frank Wyatt – Charles’ son, Mr. Peirce’s Godson
Arthur Wyatt – Charles’ son
Percy Wyatt – Charles’ Nephew
Lady Winifred Wyatt – Charles newlywed wife
Simon Page – Bow Street Constable

SUMMARY/ EVALUATION:
How I picked it: I saw this book on a bookshelf and it looked fun, but I wanted to start with the first book of the series, so had to postpone this one until now. I was right, it was a fun read.
What’s it about? A widow with excellent powers of observation determines to find the killer of her father’s good friend, when most everyone else is convinced his death was simply an accident.
What did I think? It kept me interested. This narrator is still not a favorite. There's a stridency in the tone. It's probably intentional because the Lily character is said to be cold. She does well enough.

AUTHOR:
Katharine Schellman
From KatharineSchellman.com
“My name is Katharine, and some of the people I know call me that. (People named Katharine tend to collect nicknames.)

Though I started my career in political consulting and stage performance, I’ve been writing stories for as long as I can remember. My debut historical mystery, The Body in the Garden, a whodunnit set in Regency England featuring amateur sleuth Lily Adler, was named a Suspense Magazine Best Book of 2020. Lily’s adventures continue in the Lily Adler Mysteries, the newest of which is coming in August 2022. You can meet her anytime in my free Lily Adler short mystery, Pistols at Dawn.

My second series, the Nightingale Mysteries, is a Jazz Age drama full of grit, glamour, and a whole lot of grey area. The first book, Last Call at the Nightingale, will hit bookshelves in 2022.”

NARRATOR:
Henrietta Meire
From HenriettaMeire.com:
“Film. TV. Theatre. Voice.
SAG-AFTRA. Actors’ Equity.
Los Angeles | London
I’m a British born actress, currently living in Los Angeles. From German-Normandy heritage, born to a very British magical fairy of a ballerina-opera singer Mother and an even more British, gentle Buddha-like, over-grown leprechaun of a Father.
As a teenager I was a concert clarinetist, attempting to play Weber concertos with 50 piece orchestras behind me, whilst my knees knocked in pure terror. How I ever produced a soulful note from that beautiful piece of emotional sorcery, I will never know.
I then traversed into singing… Big band jazz in particular. I was 14 and singing Fever in front of 400 people, which made me high as a kite (naturally… no snorty stuff here: I wasn’t THAT kind of teenager). I still sing and, whilst I may not be the best singer on the block (I’ll leave that to Jenny…), I bloomin’ love it.
Later into my teens I remembered how much I liked to play dress-up as a small child. (…and still do ) “What tiara can I wear today?” So, I started creating plays that involved dance, music, and acting – a musical, one might say, but I think I would stick with the description ‘something weird on a stage.’ I went to a very academic school and creativity “to such an extreme” was seriously not cool. “Henrietta, you can’t be an actress. Just like you can’t be a Princess. You’ve seen too many films.” My quick response… “I could marry Prince William to become a Princess, and that seems a lot more difficult than being an actress.”
I studied Brecht, then Method, then Stanislavski. I was lucky enough to train at the Webber Douglas Academy before it closed, as well as in Classical Theatre & Shakespeare at the Royal National Theatre, London. Then I found a place where it all came together and made perfect sense, in the true Meisner technique. My world turned around and my passion went from a simmer to a supernova.
Since then I have played roles from ISABELLA in “Measure for Measure” to a paranoid-schizophrenic meth head to SALLY BOWLES in “Cabaret.” I’ve thrived in and loved every minute of every role that has ever come my way. I am blessed to have a career I love and head-over-heels excited for all the marvelous roles I will play with in the future.
When people ask me what I do, I tell them I’m a storyteller. I create a space that allows others to live truthfully under imaginary circumstances. We all get lost inside each others worlds, which both belong to someone else. As an artist, I believe that is what we creatives do; we create a space for others to escape to.”

GENRE:
Historical Fiction; Mystery; Suspense

LOCATIONS:
Regency England; London

TIME FRAME:
1815

SUBJECTS:
Murder; families; friends; detectives

DEDICATION:
“For my parents, Jim and Andrea Schellman, who turned all of their kids into readers.
And for Brian, the only adult I could handle living with during a pandemic lockdown.”

SAMPLE QUOTATION: (From Chapter 1)

"For a moment Lily panicked. The house on Half Moon Street was let to her for the indefinite future, and it had finally begun to feel like home. She had nowhere else to go. If she was forced to leave …
Lily squared her shoulders. She would not be leaving. Forgetting about the captain and not caring which of her too-curious neighbors might be watching, she stalked toward her house.
The postboys, who hadn’t expected a well-dressed lady to elbow past them, fell back. At the top of the steps, Carstairs was nose to nose with a man in the dark suit and painfully starched collar of a valet. Their heated voices tumbled over each other so rapidly that Lily could barely make out what either of them was saying. Mrs. Carstairs, the cook and housekeeper, stood in the doorway just behind her husband, hands on her hips and a duster in one hand as she harangued both men at the top of her lungs. Just as Lily drew in a breath to speak, the strange man turned enough for her to see his profile.
Her resolve crumbled into weary fury, and though she managed to keep her voice from growing too loud, it still cut through the noise. “Branson.” The two servants stopped arguing abruptly and turned toward the foot of the stairs where she stood, one hand gripping the banister so she wouldn’t tremble. Carstairs, a vein visibly throbbing in one temple, opened his mouth to speak, but Lily held up a hand to forestall him.
“Branson, where is he?”
“Miss Pierce.” Robert Branson winced, then quickly corrected himself. “Beg pardon. Mrs. Adler. He is waiting in the drawing room. Your servants—” He cut a quick, irritated look at Carstairs, who instantly jumped in.
“Mrs. Adler, this man is claiming that—”
“No one told us about anything—” Mrs. Carstairs started speaking at the same time.
The small scene began to descend into chaos once more. The postboys took advantage of the confusion to resume their task, and Lily could see the luggage piling up in her front hall. She took a deep breath.
“If you please,” Lily said, pitching the words to carry, though she tried to keep any sharpness out of them as she gestured for everyone to move inside, away from any prying eyes.
They obeyed promptly, all three looking embarrassed, and Lily sighed. She resented being caught in the middle of the confusion and uproar, but the three servants weren’t to blame for it. The man responsible was, no doubt, currently making himself comfortable in the drawing room and growing irritated that no one had yet brought him any refreshments.
“Carstairs, see these men paid and sent on their way. I assume,” Lily said to Branson, fixing him with a narrow-eyed stare before indicating the piled luggage with a sweep of her hand. “I assume that he intends a visit?”
Branson frowned “I understood you were aware of his plans.”
“No doubt he believes everyone is aware of them and prepared to accommodate him at a moment’s notice. Which I must endeavor to do, I suppose. Mrs. Carstairs.” Lily turned to the motherly woman who kept her home comfortable and her life running in perfect order. “It seems we will have a visitor with us. For some time, judging by the amount of luggage he has brought. Will the two of you see his things installed in the best spare room and accommodations for his valet as well? And Branson?” Lily managed to smile, though the expression felt stiff. It wasn’t Branson’s fault his employer was so damned difficult. “You might start by introducing yourself to my servants and explaining the situation. I do not want to hear shouting in my house.” She gave each of them a pointed look. “From anyone.”
“Of course, Mrs. Adler,” Carstairs rumbled, looking embarrassed. “May I ask, madam, who our visitor …” He trailed off, eyeing her warily.
Lily tried to school her expression back to its normal calm, wondering what she must have looked like to make her stoic butler so uneasy. “Our visitor is Mr. George Pierce,” she said. “Branson will explain, I have no doubt. And Mrs. Carstairs, if you could first see tea and some light refreshments brought into the drawing room? No doubt Mr. Pierce is famished after his journey.”
As they nodded and began to move about their tasks, Lily became aware of someone standing just behind her. Glancing over her shoulder, she found that her companion had followed her inside and was watching, his arms crossed and his brows raised as he leaned against the doorway.
“Is everything all right?” he asked, the concern in his voice in direct contrast with his casual attitude. “Yes,” Lily said immediately, and a little defensively, before she shook her head. “No. I have a visitor.”
“I gathered. Is it really—”
“Yes.” Lily’s expression grew grim. “You ought to come say hello, Jack.”
Taking a deep breath, she gathered her composure, lifted her chin, and walked briskly to the drawing room door. Throwing it open, she met the eyes of the man waiting for her.
He sat in the tall chair across from the door as regally as if it were his own home, two hands resting on top of the walking stick planted between his feet and, oddly, a small pile of books on the floor beside him. His familiar eagle-eyed stare bored into her.
“Hello, Father,” Lily said, her voice dripping with false pleasantness that she knew didn’t fool him for a moment. “How good to see you. And how unexpected. May I ask what in God’s name you are doing in my house?””

RATING:.
4

STARTED READING – FINISHED READING
11-20-2022 to 11-25-2022… (altro)

Really enjoyed this book. Lily’s been invited to attend a house party with her in-laws just before Christmas. During the party the snow starts falling heavily and wind is howling. Roads are treacherous and everyone must stay overnight. There’s a loud bang and everyone assumes it’s a tree falling but the next morning one of the guests has been murdered. For two days, everyone is snowed in with a murderer and Lily and her brother-in-law, who’s a magistrate, question, and search everyone looking for cluses not only to the murder but to missing jewelry too.… (altro)