Book Review: "An Extravagant Death" by Charles Finch
“An Extravagant Death” by Charles Finch
Synopsis: London, 1878. With faith in Scotland Yard shattered after a damning corruption investigation, Charles Lenox's detective agency is rapidly expanding. The gentleman sleuth has all the work he can handle, two children, and an intriguing new murder case.
But when Prime Minister Benjamin Disraeli offers him the opportunity to undertake a diplomatic mission for the Queen, Lenox welcomes the chance to satisfy an unfulfilled yearning: to travel to America. Arriving in New York, he begins to receive introductions into both its old Knickerbocker society and its new robber baron splendor. Then, a shock: the death of the season's most beautiful debutante, who appears to have thrown herself from a cliff. Or was it murder? Lenox’s reputation has preceded him to the States, and he is summoned to a magnificent Newport mansion to investigate the mysterious death. What ensues is a fiendish game of cat and mouse.
Witty, complex, and tender, An Extravagant Death is Charles Finch's triumphant return to the main storyline of his beloved Charles Lenox series—a devilish mystery, a social drama, and an unforgettable first trip for an Englishman coming to America.
Rating: 4
Review: It feels weird to describe a book that’s ostensibly about a violent crime as “cozy,” but for me, that’s what the Charles Lenox series is — as warm and comforting as a stout cup of tea. You see, I’ve read about Charles Finch’s erstwhile Victorian detective series since “The September Society” (Bookshop | Kindle) was published in 2009, and I love any opportunity to return to this world he’s created.
I was a British history major with a focus on the “modern” — i.e., I’ve taken a lot of classes on 19th century England and genuinely enjoyed them — so I love reading about some familiar political and social situations, combined with a touch of violent crime. Don’t worry, Lenox is a “gentleman detective” so it never gets too gory or scary; these stories are just the right level of suspenseful, but I’ve never for a minute either guessed the villain or been worried that Lenox wouldn’t figure it out.
You may be wondering what I mean about “gentleman detective,” and I think this is the first time I’ve brought up this series on She’s Full of Lit — so I’m going to take a minute to tell you about one of my favorite characters of fiction. Lenox is a second son in Victorian England, and so, he’s not inheriting his family’s seat in Parliament (yes, he’s of the landed gentry) and he’s challenged to find his own spot in the world. Over the course of the series, he grows in his detective skills, working alongside the nascent Metropolitan Police and Scotland Yard, eventually moving from a talented amateur to the first — and most famous — professional detective in England (there’s no Sherlock in this London), following a brief stint in the House of Commons. We, the reader, get to go along this journey with him over Finch’s books, and we get to know everyone in his life: his wife, Lady Jane; his partners, Polly and Dallington; and my favorites, Toto and Graham.
That said — we spend little time with those familiar characters in this book — instead of an adventure in and around London, as is his normal wont, Lenox is off to America. Long story short, but he’s being sent to the United States as an emissary of the Crown, and after just a few days, ends up called to Newport to solve the murder of the season’s most notorious beauty.
Honestly, I’m thrilled with this departure; it was fun and frothy to see how the other half lived in the United States in Newport. Charles Finch is a talented observer of societal mores, and it was interesting to see him turn his eye on one of the more decadent eras in American history. However, even though the setting was different, the heart of the story remained the same. Lenox was the same detective as always — meticulous, quiet, thoughtful — and he had new foils in the United States.
Of course, I refuse to spoil the central mystery, but I will say, yet again, didn’t guess who actually did it until it was literally in front of me on the page. I enjoyed the journey, and I’m only concerned that this book ends with Lenox contemplating retirement; I am not ready for this literary relationship to end — and wouldn’t every good mystery series end up on the thirteenth? Fingers crossed.
TL;DR: A clever and well-written entry in the Charles Lenox series, and an incisive look at Victorian culture combined with an ambitious whodunit.
If You Liked This, Try These:
Anything by Anthony Horowitz, but especially “The Magpie Murders” (Bookshop | Kindle)
“The House on Vesper Sands” by Paraic O’Connell (Bookshop | Kindle)
“An Old Betrayal” by Charles Finch - my favorite of the series (Bookshop | Kindle)
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