The Unknown Beloved

A Novel

By: Amy Harmon

Narrated by: Rob Shapiro

Length: 14 hrs and 55 mins

Publisher's summary

From the bestselling author of Where the Lost Wander and What the Wind Knows comes the evocative story of two people whose paths collide against the backdrop of mystery, murder, and the Great Depression.

Chicago, 1923: Ten-year-old Dani Flanagan returns home to find police swarming the house, her parents dead. Michael Malone, the young patrolman assigned to the case, discovers there’s more to the situation—and to Dani Flanagan herself—than the authorities care to explore. Malone is told to shut his mouth, and Dani is sent away to live with her spinster aunts in Cleveland.

Fifteen years later, Michael Malone is summoned to Cleveland to investigate a series of murders that have everyone stumped, including his friend and famed Prohibition agent Eliot Ness, now Cleveland’s director of safety. There, in a city caught in the grip of a serial killer, Dani and Malone cross paths once again.

Malone is drawn to Dani and her affinity for the dead and compassion for the destitute. It doesn’t take long for him to realize that she could help him solve his case. As terror descends on the city and Malone and Dani confront the dark secrets that draw them together, it’s a race to find the killer or risk becoming his next victims.

©2022 by Amy Sutorius Harmon. (P)2022 Brilliance Publishing, Inc., all rights reserved.

Critic reviews

“…a satisfying undercurrent of hope and the promise of fulfillment.”—Historical Novel Society

“An excellent story—well-written, wonderfully crafted, brilliantly imagined.”—April White, author of The Immortal Descendants series

“Amy Harmon’s stories always feel like they’ve been written just for me, like she’s glimpsed a piece of my own heart and written about it in a way that exposes me to myself.”—Mia Sheridan, New York Times bestselling author

Excellent and a Clean Read

Genre: Mystery, Suspense, Historical fiction, True Crime, Adult Romance Rating: PG (crime scenes)

This was FANTASTIC! I loved every part of this book! I was enthralled from the get-go! It’s based on the Cleveland Torso Murders-back in the 1930’s. This book has everything I could want in a true crime fiction book. I loved how history was woven into the story and made me question if this was true or not. I had to look up a couple things just to get more details. There was a great deal of historical fiction that made the characters feel almost believable. I loved the little bit of “sixth sense” used to solve the crime. The romance was slow, reasonable, and kept clean and appropriate. This was the perfect book! A page turner and worthy to add to my bookshelf!

I listened to the audiobook, and the gentleman who read it was excellent!

A bit gruesome, but well done.

The male narrator did a surprisingly good job with the female voices. This was an interesting story. My biggest complaint is a frustration I often have with Audio books: they do not include the Author's Note. In this case, it was especially interesting to me to get clarification as to which parts of this story were accurate historically, as a great deal of it was. Fortunately, I was able to read the notes from a library copy. The storytelling was occasionally tedious, bogged down in details about location or wardrobe, but overall it was a very creative fictional retelling of a pretty horrific piece of Cleveland's history.

The Unknown Beloved

Dani Flannaghan had a unique talent in being able to "know" people through the handling of cloth. Michael Malone arrived to live in her house as a boarder while he was working to solve a series of gruesome murders in Cleveland. His contact was none other than the famous Eliot Ness. The reader learns that Malone worked undercover for Ness in the past while trying to arrest Al Capone. I enjoyed the way that the author meshed historical facts and people with fiction in order to provide a very readable book.

Dani's ability made her very compassionate toward the indigent dead and she devoted a lot of time to preparing their bodies for burial. Some of the stories that she discovered were truly heartbreaking and made me think about these people in a different way. She truly wanted each person to be more than an Unknown. The book did become more of a romance than I had expected, but the mystery part was pretty good too.

The narrator did a good job and added a lot to the book. I will definitely look for more books by this author since I appreciated the way that she melded fact and fiction.

A Brilliant Experience!

The very best of Amy Harmon is shared with lyrical phrases and creative sensuality!
A page turner and a captivating ride...her very best!
Loved Shapiro's voice as male character but feel they should have substituted a female voice for the woman.

Make this the novel you read now!

Best novel I’ve read in a long time

I so enjoyed this novel! I didn’t want it to end. Best books I’ve read and a very long time.

Slow at first but well worth it!!!

I almost gave up on this book, but wow the story got exciting and interesting at chapter 3. Reader don’t skip chapter 1 and 2 because it totally sets the story up. I had to hear every word. Thank you Amy Harmon and Rob Sparpiro, I can wait for your next book.

Where on Earth hlHave I Been!

Amy Harmon was a new xperience to me and i could not stop the story. A twisted suspenseful story which traveled a gauntlet of emotions along an historical avenure without a short, forced ending. Rob Shapiro was the perfect story teller. The narration was spot on.
Needless to say I enjoyed this book and will be looking for more.

Not my normal listening fare but it was great

When this novel began, I wasn't sure I wanted to listen to this type of story for almost 15 hours....back in the 30's, Elliot Ness, gangsters, murders, etc. In less than an hour, I was hooked. A very enjoyable and well-done novel of mystery and love. Surprisingly enjoyable.

Fabulous historical fiction novel!

This book caught my eye because Rob Shapiro is the narrator. I loved his work as Victor the Assassin (The Killer) and that whole series. I was even more delighted by the story! I'm now looking at Amy Harmon's other work.

Keeps your heart racing

Another terrific story by Amy Harmon. It has the right mix of mystery/suspense, romance, and history to keep me listening. Michael Malone has come to Cleveland to snuff out a serial killer. He rents a room from Dani and her aunts, unaware of their past connections. Dani has a unique gift, more than a sixth sense and uses it to learn more about people, including their secrets. They end up working together to find the killer, and falling for each other in the process. Although the details of the murders and mutilation are a bit grim, overall the story is quite compelling. Harmon seamlessly switches between POV of Dani and Michael. The narrator, Rob Shapiro is excellent, making the shifts from one character to the next easy to follow. His nuance in reading is expert. I'm looking forward to reading/listening to more stories by Amy Harmon.