The Orchid Hour

Bilyeau (The Fugitive Colors) paints a vivid portrait of 1923 New York City—particularly its insular Italian community, alluring speakeasies, and Prohibition-fueled organized crime—in this impeccably researched historical mystery. Zia De Luca, a 26-year-old widow, lives a dreary life with her in-laws and young son in Little Italy while working as a translator for a branch of the New York Public Library. Shortly after she’s asked by deputy mayor Miles G. Watkins to translate a play by Sicilian author Luigi Pirandello, Watkins is gunned down on the library steps. Due to her recent contact with the politician, Zia becomes NYPD Lt. Frank Hudgins’s primary person of interest in the murder. After a second killing much closer to her home, Zia begins to suspect that the crimes are connected to a mysterious Greenwich Village speakeasy called the Orchid Hour. Seeking answers, she starts hanging around the establishment, eventually falling in love with an employee and tasting her first morsels of happiness since her husband died. Alternating perspectives between Zia, Hudgins, and a mob stooge named Louis, Bilyeau brilliantly evokes the intoxicating grit and glamour of Jazz Age Manhattan and layers a smooth blend of suspense and romance on top. Historical mystery fans will find this irresistible. (Aug.)