A Curtain Falls
Stefanie Pintoff’s second mystery takes place in the spring of 1906 in New York City’s theatre district. A chorus girl, dressed as the leading lady of the current play and posed center stage, is found dead at the Garrick Theatre with no apparent cause of death or signs of struggle. When it’s determined to be murder and not suicide, the stage manager reveals that she is not the first and Police Chief Declan Mulvaney asks his former partner, Detective Simon Ziele to come back from Dobson and help with the case. A cryptic note has been left with the body and a letter is sent to the New York Times. Preventing the letters from going to press causes Simon to compromise in ways he would like to avoid. He teams up with the same characters as the first novel, In The Shadow of Gotham, a winner of the Edgar Award for best first novel. Criminologist Alistair Sinclair and his beautiful daughter-in-law, Isabelle, join forces with Simon and Captain Declan Mulvaney. We’re also introduced to a new character – Simon’s father, who has returned to New York after a long absence. He wants to make amends with his son, but Simon is not open to forming a bond that was broken when his father left town a decade ago to avoid paying his gambling debts.
Actor Timothy Poe is a memorable person in this novel. He is charged with the crime, but Simon has a gut feeling that Timothy is innocent. Chief Mulvaney drops Simon from the case, but Simon and Alistair continue the investigation on their own. A third murder leads them to Shelter Island and the unsolved murder of a local girl years ago. Could they be connected?
This second novel from Gotham City is well-researched and delves into the pitfalls of crime-fighting at the turn of the century. It is a fast-paced and enjoyable read.
