31 Bond Street

A Novel

De: Ellen Horan

Narrado por: Adam Grupper

“The skill with which Ellen Horan has braided true crime with thoughtful novelizing is pure pleasure.… Caleb Carr meets Scott Turow. What could possibly be better?”
— Beverly Swerling, author of City of God

“An impressive blend of imagination and history as it vividly brings to life one of New York’s City’s most notorious crimes. Ellen Horan has written a novel that, once begun, will be difficult for any reader to put down.” — Ron Rash, New York Times bestselling author of Serena

31 Bond Street, an unforgettable literary debut from Ellen Horan, is based on the true story of a brutal murder, a desperate mother and mistress, and the vicious constraints of 19th century society. Fans of Caleb Carr’s The Alienist, Edith Wharton’s The House of Myrth, and John Berendt’s Midnight in the Garden of Good and Evil will love the stunning prose and beautiful imagery of 31 Bond Street.

not quite what I had hoped

The premise of this book looked intriguing--it's based on the true story of a gruesome murder in 19th century Manhattan. I was hoping it would be like Edith Wharton meets Law and Order, I guess. However, despite my anticipation, I never really did get into this book. It was just a touch too slow, and I found myself drifting off and thinking about other things while waiting for the story to pick up. I just did not find the characters compelling or well fleshed out; it was like the author was always keeping us at a distance from them and we were looking at tiny figures from far away, trying to figure out what they were up to. The exception was the lawyer, who was the only lively-ish character in the bunch. The other problem I had was with the narrator; he's a bit too breathless and dramatic for my taste. I have now learned my lesson: always listen to the preview clip. As an alternative to this book, I'd recommend Kate Summerhill's The Suspicions of Mr. Whicher; I thought the writing and narration were much, much better.