Henrietta Von Harmon works as a 26 girl at a corner bar on Chicago’s northwest side. It’s 1935, but things still aren’t looking up since the big crash and her father’s subsequent suicide, leaving Henrietta to care for her antagonistic mother and younger siblings. Henrietta is eventually persuaded to take a job as a taxi dancer at a local dance hall—and just when she’s beginning to enjoy herself, … herself, the floor matron turns up dead.
When aloof Inspector Clive Howard appears on the scene, Henrietta agrees to go undercover for him—and is plunged into Chicago’s grittier underworld. Meanwhile, she’s still busy playing mother hen to her younger siblings, as well as to pesky neighborhood boy Stanley, who believes himself in love with her and keeps popping up in the most unlikely places, determined to keep Henrietta safe—even from the Inspector, if need be. Despite his efforts, however, and his penchant for messing up the Inspector’s investigation, the lovely Henrietta and the impenetrable Inspector find themselves drawn to each other in most unsuitable ways.
more
This is a book set in a dark time in American history with poverty a reality for millions. To survive and provide for their families, young women put on their dancing shoes and smiles to entertain men with a dance and a few minutes away from the worries of the day. However, there is always someone who is making a great deal of money from this form of exploitation and where there is money there are gangsters.
Despite being thrust in to this world, Henrietta is still coming to terms with her beauty and her sensuality, putting on the required airs and graces demanded in this kind of job, where there is a fine line between decency and more immoral practices. Her justification is that she needs to bring in more money to feed her younger brothers and sisters, far more money that can be made by working in the factories or even the local bar where she currently works for a kindly old man.
She also wants to help her friend Polly in her quest to discover what happened to her sister who went missing the year before at the notorious club the Marlowe which is a place of secrets. Drawn into the investigation by the attractive police inspector Howard, Henrietta finds herself in the middle of a dangerous game with unknown players who will stop at nothing to protect their businesses and their own evil intentions.
This is a romance with mystery and thriller elements that will appeal to readers across those genres. The author has done a very good job of recreating the environment of Chicago of the 1930s and characters that are interesting and have potential to develop in the follow up books in the series.
A good start to the series and I look forward to reading the follow up books.
I found the characters (from family to friends and coworkers) very believable and appealing. Learning the different jobs available for a young 16-18 year old girl, the slang, cultural expectations, and the clothes of the ‘30s was absorbing. I also enjoyed the endearing and fun banner exchanged throughout the story between Henrietta and Clive. The final twists were unexpected and exciting. I had a knot in my stomach with worry a few times. Great read!
It is 1935 Chicago, after the big crash, and desperate times lead to desperate measures. Young, beautiful, and seductively innocent Henrietta Von Harmon fends for her fatherless siblings and withdrawn, bitter mother by taking her good intentions to support her family, only to be led to disreputable places with unforeseen double-dealings. With verve and resourcefulness, Henrietta soon becomes involved in shady doings on the wrong side of town, and when she meets the enigmatic Inspector Clive Howard, wheels are unwittingly set in motion for navigating a Chicago crime syndicate.
A Girl Like You, (Book 1 in the Henrietta and Inspector Howard Mystery Series by Michelle Cox) is one of those rare gems so chock-full of charm and personality; so captivating and delightful in its vivid narration that readers feel intimately tied to the characters and invested in the action-packed story. A Girl Like You has it all: mystery, intrigue, conflict, unpredictability, unique setting, believable motivations from fabulous characters, secrets, hidden agendas, and the lure of budding romance.
Author Michelle Cox begins her wildly popular mystery series in A Girl Like You with such page-turning, off-kilter charm, you won’t be able to resist reading the whole series. The memorable Henrietta and Inspector Howard are likable, fully realized characters from disparate backgrounds who balance each other with perfect pitch in the midst of an edge-of-your-seat joyride.
I absolutely loved this book. The characters are rich, the story true to life. Henrietta is a true heroine learning about life post depression era. She is the oldest child of 7, so the responsibility of money falls on her. In her quest to take care of her family she is introduced to a world of deceit and murder. But she also meets the charming yet guarded Inspector Howard. The two of them will forge a partnership like no other. Can he keep her safe in a dangerous world? Will she be up for the challenge? For the answer to these and many other questions, come into the fascinating world of Michelle Cox’s A Girl Like You. You won’t be disappointed.
You’ll fall in love with the characters! What a terrific debut book for a new series! Racketeering was king of the streets in 1930s Chicago. Henrietta might have enough moxie to fool even the Inspector, but they’re both surprised when she discovers more trouble than anyone had bargained for. A Girl Like You has it all–down to earth characters and a sweet love story, drama, and bucketloads of suspense!
Love the characters. The situations are probably pretty true to life back then. Must read the others in the series to know what happens with Henrietta and Insoector Howard.
What an entrancing book! A bit of history, a bit of romance, a bit of mystery, a lot of thriller. Henrietta is more like the women I knew as a child: nothing could stop her. She could do anything until she tried and found she couldn’t. What a woman! There’s very few like her anymore. A great series beginning.
A Girl Like You – a review by Rosemary Kenny
Henrietta von Harmon is a 14 year old girl living in 1930s Chicago. After her father’s suicide and to support her family, she becomes a dance-hall hostess – a rather insalubrious job – but at least it puts food on the table.
When her boss, Mama Leone, is murdered and a dancer disappears, Inspector Clive Howard asks Harriet to go undercover at a rival establishment, the Malone, a haunt of gangsters.
What happens when more girls go missing?
Who’s Neptune? What’s the White Feather Club?
Henrietta must risk her safety and her virtue, as she rather naively puts herself in Neptune’s path, while trying to find out where her friend and another girl have got to, since suddenly vanishing from the Marlowe, via the mysterious green door, in the subterranean tunnels underneath the former warehouse.
Can Inspector Clive rescue her with help from his men, before she undergoes a ‘fate worse than death’ at Neptune’s hands?
Get your copy of A Girl Like You by Michelle Cox to find out and get ready to continue Henrietta’s story in book 2!
Meeting Henrietta and Inspector Howard was the perfect way to spend an afternoon! Michelle Cox has created characters that I am so excited to read more about! “A Girl Like You” isn’t only written well, and richly researched, it is chock full of intriguing mystery and romance!!
I fell down a rabbit hole researching Michelle Cox & her stories once I finished! This is just way too interesting! Now, I need to finish the series!
I was given a copy of this book by the author in exchange for a fair and honest review.
4.5 Stars.
The story gives a real, gritty feel for life in Chicago in 1935.
Job opportunities are few, for men or women.
Sometimes you have to step out into a risky, unknown world to make money.
I found the basic story line interesting, but the immediate romance aspects were too much, too soon for my taste. Plus several, “She isn’t going in there, is she?!” events.
The twist at the end was well done!
I was originally drawn to this charming book because my mother’s name is Henrietta and she grew up in Chicago in the 1930 and 1940s; I wanted to identify with the locations and events of the times. It didn’t disappoint. The sense of time and place is as much a character in the story as the people; you smell the streets, the speakeasies, the unsavory people. You feel the dark, see and hear the desperation of the ’30s. Knowing that the book is the beginning of a series did tamp the suspense just a bit, but the young Henrietta’s bravery born largely of youthful naivety still produces plenty of cringe. An entertaining read–exactly what I wanted from it.
I ended up reading book #5 in the Henrietta and Inspector Howard Series first and enjoyed it, so headed back to the beginning to check out books #1 through #4. A Girl Like You has a mystery to work through, but this book also takes the time to introduce readers to the two main characters – Henrietta and Clive. Who are they? How did they live? What was their family life like? How did they meet? All the answers are found here.
The story’s pace picks up when Clive meets Henrietta and asks her to go undercover at the Marlowe, a low-brow burlesque hall with mob connections. Two girls who worked there have disappeared and the police know something illegal is going on, but can’t get a handle on it. Lurking in the club’s shadows is an illusive master criminal Clive would love to put behind bars. Henrietta dives into the role, putting herself in great danger as she starts to unwind the mystery and find the truth of what is happening at the club. Can Clive keep her safe as he promised, or will she become victim #3?
Cox does a great job of making this time and place, as well as the characters that inhabit it, come alive. And there are a few twists that surprised me, as well as the element of danger that lurked in the shadows right to the very end of the book.
A Girl Like You is the beginning of the Henrietta and Inspector Howard series by Michelle Cox. I thought this tale was really good and makes me want to find out what happens in the other books of the series. It was fun and entertaining getting to know Henrietta. I could not predict where she would go or even end up. It was an engaging mystery and suspense that made me to keep going to see what happens in the next scenes. I loved getting a glimpse of what 1930s era Chicago looked like. The author did a wonderful job with historical details that made me feel as though I was transported back in time and being part of the story.
I had the pleasure of listening to the audio book of A Girl Like You. Jayne Entwistle’s version was great. I think she really brought the best out of this story. Her performance was great. I hope she will be the narrator in the other books from the Henrietta and Inspector Howard series.
I am giving A Girl Like You four stars. I look forward to picking up the next book from the Henrietta and Inspector Howard series, A Ring of Truth. I have to find out what will happen next with Henrietta. I think readers who enjoy history, mystery and romance will want to pick this one up.
I received the audio version of A Girl Like You from the publisher. This review is one hundred percent my own honest opinion.
Michelle Cox is a new author for me. I was intrigued by the story’s description. I am a big fan of mysteries. Not really into historical but this sounded good and not much for romance novels. This story is lite on the mystery for me, and a little too much romance. I did really enjoy the narration of the story. Let me say that Jayne Entwistle the narrator for this audiobook does a wonderful job. Her voice was perfect for a 1930ish story-line. She kept me going to the end. I do want to say that I listened to this book on Authors Direct a different platform for audiobooks for me. I found it not very reader-friendly. More than once it jumped to the end when I was only halfway through. This made it frustrating to find my place again.
I received a free electronic copy of this novel from the author, Michelle Cox. Thank you, for sharing your hard work with me. I apologize for the delay in this review. My Kindle file branched off and I had trouble locating older books, but now my Kindle Tree is whole, again.
Michelle Cox writes an excellent historical novel. This one, 1930’s Chicago, puts you right there, right then, with all the perks and detractions of that age, that time. Henrietta is an excellent protagonist, doing the best she can with what she has to work with, aiding her Mom and siblings and Chicago weather as she works her way through life. Her relationship with Inspector Howard is interesting, as is her work for him, and the look into her home life and the depression in the big city of Chicago are eye-opening. I am very attached to Henrietta and Inspector Howard. This is the first of the series, but there are several more now, ready and waiting.
This book was so entertaining that I read the entire series! Couldn’t put them down. Can’t wait for the next one!
A great introduction to the marvelous Henrietta and her own brand of deduction.
It’s 1930s Chicago, and a young Henrietta is working hard to help her family, eight siblings and her mother after her father committed suicide. She tries hard to be respectable as her mother wishes but can make more money as a taxi-dancer. When one Inspector Clive Howard visits the Promenade and dances with Henrietta, everything changes in her life as she becomes embroiled in the detective’s investigation.
“A Girl Like You” is a trip back in time. It will pull you into the era with fabulous descriptions of the locations, family situations, language that suits the time, and cops chasing gangsters in every way they can. Henrietta wants more from her life than just raising babies and has an inquisitive mind. Her additional incentive is to impress the handsome Inspector.
A five-star book, in my opinion, is one that will keep me awake reading into the small hours. “A Girl Like You” was one of those books as I followed Henrietta through her first ‘investigation’, piecing clues together and going into dangerous situations that my mind wanted her to pursue, but my heart didn’t!
If you like historical fiction, detective stories and a little romance thrown in, “A Girl Like You” is the book for you, heartily recommend.
This book was great. It was like I was right there‼
I loved this book! I am a huge fan of cozy mysteries and historical fiction, and this one blended those genres seamlessly. I have never read a book in this series before, but now I am going to go back and start at the beginning.
I found all the characters to be very likeable and the story was mysterious without being too over-the-top. I loved the writing style and the charm that Michelle managed to infuse every aspect of the story with. I very much enjoyed the cliffhanger ending as well, as it shows me there is more to come!
What a fun book! Cox is a master at recreating 1930s Chicago with her intimate details and wonderful scenes of dance halls, bars, and the seedier side of the Windy City. Henrietta and Inspector Howard are believable and magnetic characters that had me wanting more! looking forward to reading the whole series of these books.