Just beyond the Gilded Age, in the mist-covered streets of New York, the deadly Spanish influenza ripples through the city. But with so many victims in her close circle, young socialite Allene questions if the flu is really to blame. All appear to have been poisoned—and every death was accompanied by a mysterious note.Desperate for answers and dreading her own engagement to a wealthy gentleman, … gentleman, Allene returns to her passion for scientific discovery and recruits her long-lost friends, Jasper and Birdie, for help. The investigation brings her closer to Jasper, an apprentice medical examiner at Bellevue Hospital who still holds her heart, and offers the delicate Birdie a last-ditch chance to find a safe haven before her fragile health fails.
As more of their friends and family die, alliances shift, lives become entangled, and the three begin to suspect everyone—even each other. As they race to find the culprit, Allene, Birdie, and Jasper must once again trust each other, before one of them becomes the next victim.
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My husband and I both read it. We liked it but thought the ending was mechanica and perhaps even far-fetchedl. The best part about the book was the setting and details on the flu epidemic and the early history of forensic medicine.
I enjoyed this one immensely–so much so that I immediately bought Opium and Absinthe by the same author and started it right away. Just the book I wanted right now. What can I say? I’m a sucker for complicated women finding happiness despite the limitations of their world, and Allene fits that bill, with her interest in chemistry and sleuthing, neither of which are appropriate for a socialite like her.
And I like my romance intermixed with other kinds of stories.
This one is mostly a mystery, with a Nancy Drew sort of feel–amateur sleuths willing to look where others aren’t. Alongside the mystery, which had a couple of nice turns (and though I predicted the turns accurately, I still enjoyed when they played out), it’s also a historical set piece giving me a bit of Golden Age New York, WWI draft worries, Spanish flu, and radium girls.
The story centers around three young people, friends since early childhood, recently reunited after years of estrangement surrounding some scandal and controversy involving their parents. We open with the death of a socialite that seems to be an accident, but the mystery quickly takes a more personal bent. The relationships between the three main characters are definitely complicated and contradictory, but I liked that–it felt more real that no one was only one thing, and that people living such different lives would be blind to some things in each other. None of them are completely likable nor completely unlikeable, and I liked that, too.
The story telling is a little messy and the plot doesn’t hold up to intense scrutiny, but it rolled right along and entertained me well, which is exactly what I wanted it to do
The writing style and voice in this book is AWESOME! I was delighted and impressed throughout with the figures of speech and unique descriptions. The characters were well-drawn, deep, and vivid, the plot nicely complex. It’s a friendship and love story woven into a fascinating “who-dunnit” mystery that’s grounded in the setting of America during World War I. Great historical detail. I suspected literally everyone of being the murderer, haha. I also loved the twists and turns and unpredictability. The sex and amount of blood and medical gore weren’t really my thing, although at least the sex didn’t have an abundance of detail. Most of it was a creepy or empty kind of sex, which made me feel sad and/or repulsed (which could’ve been the intent). And whew, there is a LOT of death in this book. You are forewarned!
Like Downton Abby story with a twist of Sherlock Holmes. Sacrifice everything for love and revenge will be all the sweeter.
I thoroughly enjoyed this book! The characters had depth and I could relate to each of them in kind and was pleased to see they stayed true to themselves, even if that truth was unsavory. The mystery that unraveled was well thought out and the author didn’t reveal much… rather all in due time. Very similar to The Sixth Sense… after the murderer was revealed, I could go back and see certain things. All in all, thoroughly delightful story that showed the depths people will go to survive. I was even more impressed when I realized this story was rooted in history! Very well done. I would absolutely read more from this talented writer!
Interesting mystery
January 5, 2019
Format: Kindle Edition
Lots going on to keep us guessing. Complex characters set in complex circumstances. I enjoyed reading about the sciences of the time.
I initially gave the book 4 stars because I was unsettled by the way the story unfolded. However, after re-thinking, I decided to give it 5. The reason for the change is that the story is well-crafted, and historically and scientifically accurate without ever being tedious. I was hooked from the beginning.
Rating MA This is not a book for young teens.
Sexual content mostly alluded to or described without sweaty detail.
Disturbing explanations of the Spanish flu symptoms and deaths, and radium poisoning presented.
Adult situations.
No memorable strong language
Set in the U.S. during the WWI years, the draft having just been changed to include 18-year-olds and also during the Spanish flu epidemic.
Main characters: Best friends Birdie, Allene, and Jasper all are about 18 years old. Allene is from a rich and privileged family. Birdie and her mother used to be part of Allene’s household, Birdie’s mother having been not a servant, but more like a companion to Allene’s mother. They were turned out 4 or 5 years before and have been living in near-poverty since. Jasper was raised upperclass, but because of a change in fortunes has also been living in near-poverty. The three are brought together again at Allene’s engagement party where the first murder takes place – no spoiler here, the corpse is found on the first page of the story.
Allene is fascinated by chemistry. Jasper is saving money to go to medical school. Birdie works doing detail work in a clock-making factory.
Plot: Friends and relatives of three main characters are dying. It takes little time for them to realize that the accidental deaths are, horrifyingly, not accidental at all. They endeavor to find enough proof to prove their suspicions to authorities.
I did not guess the answer to the mystery.
Know that some parts of the story can be disturbing. If that’s acceptable to you, I can recommend it.
One Amazon reviewer stopped reading at chapter 2, ranting that the story is pornographic. That is absolutely ridiculous!
If you are looking for a quick read that is entertaining and not very thought provoking, this is the book for you. Simply written, Kang is a good storyteller. The book is moderately suspenseful with some interesting twists and turns. I would not categorize this a historical fiction novel – it was really too superficial with respect to the time period and only grazed on a few subjects such as the Spanish flu pandemic of 1918 and the radium girl factories. the characters typically depicted according to their financial status – nothing new to learn here and a bit too trite for my liking. Overall, I would recommend this book for the beach, trip, or recovery where are looking for light reading.
Atmospheric— especially about the time period— lightweight fun. Plot twists worked nicely.
Loved this book to death. Picked it up at random and it was so well written and the world was seamless.
I picked this book to read because of the setting: New York City during the flu epidemic of 1918. There was less on that topic than I expected and more on seemingly irrational poisonings, which of course turned out to be quite rational (if murder can be “rational”) after all. The book held me to the end and the characters were somewhat varied. The experience of the “radium girls” could have been made more explicit for my interests, but then the book would have been more of a social reform “tract” that it was. All in all, a “good read” but not completely absorbing or as informative as I wanted it to be.
Do not let the beginning turn you off! Power on and you’re in for a great book!! This book started slow and I didn’t like one of the main characters in the beginning..but catty on and it’s worth the read!!!
I expected a little more from it after reading the reviews. Interesting setting and time but sort of simple