Tuesday, September 25, 2018

Ask Me No Questions

Countess Lady Philomena Dunbridge has finished her prescribed period of mourning for her not lamented husband and travels to New York to enjoy a visit with her wealthy socialite friend Beverly Reynolds. In Ask Me No Questions by Shelley Noble, Lady Philomena reaches the dock at the same time Beverly's husband is shot dead in his car. (Ask Me No Questions will be published on October 16 by Macmillian-Tor/Forge.)

Crying hysterically in the car next to him is his Florodora girlfriend Mimi LaPonte. There's chaos surrounding the shooting with people trying to blame Bev for Reggie's death. Along with her exotic maid Lily and formidable butler Preswick, they gather Beverly up and sweep her away from the scene, but not before Phil does a little investigating herself. She encounters a scruffy man who identifies himself as Detective Sergeant John Atkins of the New York Police Department and he orders her not to touch anything at the scene. 

Back at Bev's house, they ponder what could have happened to
Reggie. Bev is positive he wouldn't shoot himself because he has a horse running at Belmont next week in a very big race. Cooped up in the house because of Bev's mourning period, Phil decides she needs to find Reggie's killer. To her surprise the next morning, a clean shaven, smartly dressed handsome Detective Sergeant John Atkins turns up at the door to ask questions concerning Reggie's death.

When another body is discovered in the library, the police investigation focuses in closer on Bev. This worries Phil for more reasons than just murder. Phil had hoped to be introduced to New York society by Bev, but now with a double murder investigation, she is concerned for her own future. That stiffens her resolve to find the true murderer and it leads her into the world of race fixing.

An entertaining look at New York society in 1907 and the world of horse racing. Lady Dunbridge is not afraid of thumbing her nose at society's conventions and she is a strong-willed character in search of the truth, but also wanting to have fun. 

1 comment:

Denise Kainrath said...

Strong willed characters are my fave!
Denise
www.deniseadelek.com