Lies That Comfort and Betray

Gilded Age Mystery Series, Book 2

By: Rosemary Simpson

Narrated by: Sarah Zimmerman

Length: 12 hrs and 31 mins

Publisher's Summary

The murders in Whitechapel are shocking enough to make news worldwide, and in the autumn of 1888, Geoffrey and Prudence find the stories in the New York Herald quite unsettling. But London is not the only city to be terrorized by a mad butcher.

Nora Kenny makes the occasional journey on the Staten Island ferry to work in Prudence's Fifth Avenue house, just as her mother once served Prudence's mother. As little girls, they played freely together, before retreating into their respective social classes. Still, they remain fond of each other. But when Nora slips away to Saint Anselm's one chilly Saturday to confess her sins and never returns, Prudence is alarmed. And when Nora's body is discovered in a local park, Prudence is devastated.

Nora will not be the only young woman to fall victim, but the police are uncertain what they are dealing with. Has the Ripper sailed across the Atlantic to find a new hunting ground? Is some disturbed soul copying his crimes? A former Pinkerton agent, Geoffrey intends to step in where the New York Metropolitan Police seem to be failing, and Prudence is just as determined to protect the poor, vulnerable females being targeted. But a killer with a disordered mind and an incomprehensible motive may prove too elusive for even this experienced pair to outwit.

©2018 Rosemary Simpson (P)2018 Tantor

NYC Ripper murders

I was motivated to read this book after enjoying book 1 (enjoyment of a 3 star out of 5) despite the annoying behavior of the main character Prudence. This story was a disappointment. I have a problem with rich woman who want to play at being a detective with no background in the field. Prudence, a victim in the first novel, is now a fully fledged partner in a detective agency. She now spends time whining about being left out of the investigation, getting into trouble, and needing to be recused. While Geoffrey, her partner, is a former Pinkerton agent.

If you get past Prudence and her character flaws, an assortment of character thrown in for decoration, the story is compelling and interesting. Women are being killed and mutilated. The time frame of the story coincides with the London Ripper killings. Therefore, the information in this story is graphic violence and disturbing. I feel it was included to offset the lack of character development of the main characters and to exploit the Ripper angle.

Very Good Mystery

Intriguing mystery and excellent narration! Love the characters and how so many different levels of society from servants to wealthy aristocrats are woven together for such a satisfying story.

Am addicted now!

I was so pleased to see that there was a second (and now a third) book in this series and it exceeded expectation. They are in fact better than "mystery series" generally leads me to believe but I do like the characters and the set up. The really nifty thing in this volume is her use of animals - without being over the top they are so well integrated into this story and become great characters in the book. It showed great skill - I even played a chapter for my husband specifically for this. I'm a fan and will be reading all to come.

Book 1 was much better, but still decent

Would you recommend this book to a friend? Why or why not?

Probably not. I have read probably ten mystery books now that use a copy-cat Ripper as the basis of the story...seems lazy to me.

What was your reaction to the ending? (No spoilers please!)

I didn't guess the real murderer, but we weren't introduced to him until late in the story. The actual ending was just okay for me.

Any additional comments?

If more stories are written in this series, I will wait and see how it is reviewed before I download. Based on the first book, it's clear this author can write a good story with strong characters.

Prudence is an idiot!

Much of the story was enjoyable, but…

For a woman who’s supposed to be so intelligent, Prudence makes some incredibly stupid choices. That ending — if I’d been reading this as a physical book I would’ve thrown it against a wall. Ugh.

Solid writing

Solid writing is what sustains this work. For the most part it is not predictable and some predictability makes it better entertainment for the reader. The red herrings are distracting and confusing in all of the right ways. My favorite character was the dog, but that is often the case. The grittiness of the time is not romanticized away and neither is the fallibility of the people.

Well done, but I didn't like the blood and gore.

This book details the motives and planning by serial killers who then abuse the corpse. I enjoy mystery series where the reader is not immersed in blood and gore. As a result, I couldn't finish this book. I read the beginning and the end. I didn't appreciate participating in the killing process either from the experience of the murderer or of the victim. If you like gore, this book is for you.