Wednesday, November 25, 2015

A Promising Debut set in 1919 Alaska





MURDER ON THE LAST FRONTIER
Charlotte Brody Mystery #1
Cathy Pegau
Kensington Books
November 24, 2015

I know you shouldn't judge a book by its' cover, but the cover of Murder on the Last Frontier really sold me. I could tell that it was set in a favorite time period, just after WWI, and the Alaska setting was something new for me. Charlotte Brody has traveled from her Yonkers, NY home to the small Alaska town of Cordova to visit her brother, one of the town's doctors. She is a journalist and her plan is to send a serial to her publisher about the women of Alaska. She is also hoping to get a new start. Charlotte has had to make difficult decisions and deal with heartbreak in the past year and hopes to turn things around in Alaska. As a committed suffragette and an outspoken opponent of the Volstead Act (Prohibition), she is bound to make waves.Charlotte finds a town that is striving to become more "civilized" but has a dark underside. She has also found a much-loved brother who appears to be greatly changed; a brother with as many secrets as she. When a local "working girl" is brutally murdered, Charlotte puts herself in the center of the investigation, despite warnings from the investigating deputy, James Eddington, and her brother, Michael. The murderer, too, takes an interest in her activities; an interest that might be fatal to Charlotte and those around her. 

Murder on the Last Frontier is a promising debut for a new series and I look forward to the next installment, due in July 2016. As much as I liked Charlotte, I also found her alarmingly naive about the danger to not only herself but others. The writing and pacing are very good, as well as the setting in frontier Alaska. Thanks to NetGalley and Kensington for an advance digital copy in return for an honest review. 

RATING- 3 Stars





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