The Edge of Dreams

Written by Rhys Bowen
Review by Liz Allenby

New York City, 1905. Once again Molly Murphy finds herself in the thick of a mystery to solve. Returning to her restored New York apartment, she meets up again with old friends Sid and Gus, who have recently returned from Vienna after studying dreams with Sigmund Freud. Her husband Daniel, a detective with the New York City Police, is investigating a series of murders, linked only by notes delivered to him after each murder is complete. After Molly is injured in the Ninth Avenue Elevated train crash, he receives another note, and they both fear the murderer is out to get Molly as well.

Rhys Bowen illustrates the life and times of turn-of-the-century New York City from a woman’s point of view. Molly is an independent character who conducts the murder investigation with her husband in the male-dominated world of that time. The author leads the modern reader back to the early 20^th-century life of women who were expected to be obedient and subservient to men. Bowen weaves a tight plot with many suspects and Freudian dream references. She provides a delightful sleight-of-hand ending, tantalizing the reader until the very last page.