Murder at Beechwood: A Gilded Newport Mystery

A baby left on the doorstep of Gull Manor propels Maxwell’s absorbing third Gilded Newport mystery (after 2014’s Murder at Marble House). In 1896 upper-class Newport, R.I., sleuthing has to be done very carefully, but Emma Cross’s position as a society page reporter and a less-than-wealthy relative of the Vanderbilts opens doors for her. Emma begins her search for the baby’s mother at a lawn party at Beechwood, society matron Caroline Astor’s home, but her inquiries shift when the unpleasant Virgil Monroe is killed in a sailing accident. The question of murder arises with suspicion falling on Derrick Andrews, a man once close to Emma. Jesse Whyte, a Newport police detective, enlists her aid in getting to the truth, which points back to the abandoned baby. Emma’s innate charm, troubled romance on several fronts, and the glossy ambience of the Gilded Age make this an appealing puzzle enhanced by a blend of fiction and history. [em]Agent: Evan Marshall, Evan Marshall Agency. (June) [/em]