A brutal murder.
A heinous secret.
A deadly conspiracy.
The brutal murder of the little old lady next door puts FitzHugh Donovan on the case. A retired New York City Police Chief, he knows a cover-up when he sees one and his Irish Cop conscience can’t let that happen.
Now, Fitz, his family and his quirky band of Bleecker Street Irregulars are ensnared in the bizarre secret the woman died to … secret the woman died to protect.
Is this a cold case turned hot again, or an unspeakable conspiracy that could alter the course of history?
Fitz doesn’t yet know how high the stakes are, that failure isn’t an option, and that the little old lady was so much more than she appeared. But he’s trying to keep everyone alive long enough to find out.
Characters you’ll care about, dark shocking secrets, and disturbing similarities to today’s political scene, will keep you turning pages to an ending you won’t see coming.
Praise for Cathy Cash Spellman’s books:
About Bless the Child
“Suspense that rivals that of Stephen King…”
West Coast Review of Books
About Lark’s Labyrinth
“The author constructs a blistering story that will keep readers turning pages of this spectacular thrill ride.”
Publisher’s Weekly
About So Many Partings
“Almost impossible to put down.”
Publisher’s Weekly
more
I received a copy of this story from NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.
I haven’t read a good mystery in a while and this story absolutely hit the spot! It was an intriguing premise and seemed entirely plausible, which made it all the more compelling a read. I love a good conspiracy theory and this had that in spades. It took a well-known moment in recent history, crafted a detailed ‘what if?’, and ran with it. I was able to anticipate some things but not everything and I appreciated that a lot.
The characters were all delightful, too! I loved the mix of ages, social classes, and abilities. It’s rare to find a mystery where the main character is a septuagenarian. I want to be friends with all the Babushkas and I’d love to visit Maeve’s tea shop. It was just such a lively world.
With a story like this one, I could see how wrapping everything up would be difficult. I think Cathy Cash Spellman did a fantastic job tying up loose ends but still making it believable. I thought it fit quite nicely with the whole tone of the book.
I would happily recommend this book to everyone who loves a realistic, thought-provoking mystery.
This is the first book that I have read by Cathy Cash Spellman but it will not be the last! Right from the very beginning I was involved in the story. For a story of fiction it really makes you wonder. Thanks for such a great story!
This was the first book that I’ve read by Cathy Cash Spellman and I was not disappointed. I connected with each character as they were introduced, falling in love with all their nuances along the way. I loved how she wove mystery, intrigue, history and romance so perfectly together, keeping me glued to each page until the very last one. I finished hoping that there are more adventures to come…
This is not the cozy mystery that it seems to be just by looking at the cover. Rather, it is a story of spying, politics and a possible Fourth Reich with the goal of world domination. When Fitz Donavan befriends his elderly neighbor, Mrs. W, all he expected to find was another bibliophile. Instead, she tells him that her life is in danger and asks him to return later so that she can reveal her secrets. Before she can do so, however, she is brutally tortured and murdered. Thus, Fitz, a retired NYC police chief, is pulled into discovering her secrets and why an old lady would be tortured and killed. Fitz calls on his daughters, granddaughters and their friends to help him discover Mrs. W’s past, the secrets that got her killed. The plot is unbelievable but very well-written so that I was quickly drawn into the story, feeling an urgency to discover the secrets that Mrs. W held so close. The book had the usual mystical and psychic elements of the author since Maeve, Fitz’s daughter, has a “second sight” and other abilities that lead to clues to solve the mystery. Fitz is helped by some really quirky and likable characters, many of whom have surreal abilities with science and computers, but all of which are necessary in order to solve the mystery of the elderly neighbor’s death. This book combines mystery with a conspiracy theory and is actually a very dark novel that leads us to a conclusion that is satisfactory but somewhat abrupt. I think that readers of novels with a lot of weblike elements that unravel slowly will enjoy this book. There were some slow parts in the book, but for the most part it was fast-paced and amusing, with a quality of “what the heck just happened?”
Disclaimer
Disclosure of Material Connection: I received a complimentary copy of this book from the publisher via Netgalley. I was not required to write a positive review. The opinions expressed are my own. I am disclosing this in accordance with the Federal Trade Commission’s 16 CFR, Part 255, “Guides Concerning the Use of Testimonials and Endorsements in Advertising.”
Thank you to the publisher and NetGalley for an advance copy of this book in return for an honest review.
I promise not to give away too many spoilers in this review.
This story has a whole lot of characters to keep straight. The main characters are retired New York City Police Commissioner, FitzHugh Donovan, his daughters Maeve and Rory, his granddaughter, Finn, and what becomes the Bleecker Street Irregulars (BSI). The BSI includes Maeve’s business partner, Maeve’s love interest and Finn’s friends including scientists, physicists and hackers. The Donovans all live in one brownstone on Jane Street, next door to Ghisella Wallenberg. Fitz now owns The Mysterious book store, and the 90-something year old Ghisella had been a customer, with Fitz bringing books to her home.
The story begins in 1990 with a woman entering the STASI secret police headquarters after the Berlin Wall falls. She is able to secure some files, slip out and disappear. Fast-forward to present day, and Ghisella calls Fitz to his home, telling him she knows that she is not safe and she passing along to him some documents that will explain everything. That evening, Ghisella winds up brutally tortured and dead. Fitz withholds the documents from the police, and he and the BSI begin their own dangerous investigation.
A Murder on Jane Street aims to be a hard-core conspiracy theory, historical fiction and political thriller. The central theme revolves around Hitler’s death being staged. Was he able to escape and live out his life somewhere? Did he impregnate any women before? If so, what happened to those children? Is a Fourth Reich imminent? A secondary theme revolves around the U.S. government’s Operation Paperclip and its ramifications. A third theme takes to task all the privacy we are giving up by being under constant surveillance. While I didn’t necessarily buy-in to all its ruminations, nonetheless it makes you think. But do I believe that a new set of quantum physics and mechanics has been uncovered that allows anti-gravity devices and time travel? That the Moon and Mars have already been secretly colonized? That immortality has been solved, but is only available to the few? You may have to suspend some beliefs to make it through the book.
It’s also strange that the cover seems to illustrate a cozy mystery. In order to lighten the mood, the author threw in some things that just seem out of place. For instance, we have Maeve’s love interest, and entirely way too much time is taken up with that and her insecurities at finding love 10 years after her divorce. Then there is Maeve’s mystical or psychic ability to sense things, which comes in spurts and is a convenient way for the author to solve things when stumped for the next move. Maeve’s business partner, Georgia, is a Texan parody, saying things like, “I got me a good life.”
My conclusion is that this was an overly ambitious book with a lot of themes touched on briefly, but never fully explored. It wavers between genres, and that really didn’t work for me. The characters are very close, and conversation between them felt inauthentic. People don’t really talk like that in real-life, and it made it very hard to make a connection to any of them. On the plus side, it is very well-researched, made me think and I am appreciative for the many tidbits that sent me to the internet for verification or more information. I loved the idea of women knitting secret messages into their clothing. The best was learning of Witold Pilecki, who was part of the Polish resistance, a hero and an Auschwitz survivor. I learned a lot about a fascinating man, who had this to say after he received a sentence of death:
“I’ve been trying to live my life so that in the hour of my death I would rather feel joy, than fear.”
Footnote: For further reading on Operation Paperclip, you may want to check out Eric Lichtblau’s book, “The Nazis Next Door, How America Became a Safe Haven for Hitler’s Men.”
This was a great book. It was slow reading, I think because of the content. That and this wasn’t my normal type of book. The Donovan’s were a great family with very interesting friends who love digging into a murder mystery no matter the danger. And there was plenty of danger, some frightening information about the state of the world and the power systems at work. Now, I don’t know if it was all based on research or a mixture of research and fiction. Regardless, it was eye opening because there were some elements that I recognized as very real. This book digs into a Nazi conspiracy with far-reaching consequences. It you want to be frightened and enjoy a gripping decade long mystery, then read this book.
This was a really good book. I loved the mystery, relationships among the characters, glimpse into the past, and the edge-of-your-seat excitement throughout the pages.
The author does a great job of grabbing your attention from the first page and holding your interest until the last page. There are a lot of characters, but you don’t seem to lose focus on who is who and their relationship to the other characters.
There is a wonderful WWII mystery involved and it brings attention to the horrific atrocities of the Nazi regime.
I am so glad I was given the opportunity to receive an ARC from NetGalley in exchange for my honest review.
http://booksandladybugs.blog
I think A Murder on Jane Street is going to be one of those books that isn’t for everyone. Those who enjoy stories about conspiracies, hidden agendas, and the like will probably find something here to enjoy. For me, the story was somewhere a little south of okay. It did have potential, but so much of that potential wasn’t realized. The book jumps around from character to character a little too often, and the short chapters don’t really give time to get a feel for them. It felt scattered and between subplots, several characters, some of whom are a bit flat and underdeveloped, and trips to the past via our victim’s diary, it was just all a bit much and failed to completely hold my interest. As I said, I feel like this one isn’t a story for everyone, and it clearly missed the mark with me.
A riveting and masterful literary work. This story will hold you in its grip from start to finish. As the Donovan family and their friends embark on this investigation into the death of their neighbor you will be brought along on a tense ride of great detective work. The characters are brilliant, witty and smart. Along with the danger and mystery there is a beautiful love story that will warm your heart. The author does a magnificent job of engaging the reader at every turn and makes you want to keep turning the pages. I look forward to the next adventure in the series.
Fitzhugh Donovan, former police chief, received an odd request from the “Old Lady” next door. It seems she had received a threatening letter and she wanted him to know why she was about to be murdered. After giving him a tattered old journal, she asked him to come back later that evening. But unfortunately, before he was able to return, she was found tortured and then murdered. This event sets Fitz on a long trail to determine who exactly Mrs. Wallenberg really was and what information she had that would have caused someone to so brutally murder an aged ninety-something year old lady. This investigation soon involves friends and family and the information they uncover is not only explosive, but also puts all of them in danger of being murdered. This was an enjoyable murder mystery, for mystery lovers, historians and conspiracy theory buffs alike, as information regarding World War II, the Third Reich and Hitler are explored and theories posited. The group of investigators mainly involve Fitz and his two daughters and granddaughter, but there are other characters that appear equally memorable and quirky, as their team, nicknamed BSI (Bleecker Street Irregulars), unravel the clues and delve deeper into Mrs. Wallenberg’s life. The story is also a bit of a cautionary tale, and two of the cited quotes stand out for today’s society: “A lie told once remains a lie but a lie told a thousand times becomes the truth” and “The only thing necessary for the triumph of evil is for good men to do nothing.” Disclosure: I am voluntarily reviewing this book received through NetGalley and all opinions are strictly my own.
Cathy Cash Spellman’s A Murder on Jane Street is a work of fiction with historical undertones from Hitler and The Third Reich. When a retired NYPD precinct chief’s neighbor is murdered the chief and his family and friends become involved in an unofficial investigation into her murder. This elderly woman had enlisted the chief’s help shortly before her death. She has left some documents and other papers for the chief outlining a plot that not only is international in scope but has tremendous consequences. Very interesting plot and written in such a way that it is hard to put the book down.
4 stars
Wow! What an exciting story.
Fitz Donovan, a retired police chief, his family and close – if a little odd – friends are out to discover who killed the elderly lady who lived next door. The ninety-something woman is the keeper of a potentially devastating secret, should it get out.
This book is a historical “what-if” thriller. It has action, excitement and illustrates the value of true friendship. I liked Fitz, his family and the weird team he has put together to help him solve this mystery. Fitz is stubborn, tenacious and has a sense of justice that goes beyond what most people have. I liked the references to Irish lore and poetry. It was not overdone. I also appreciated the flashes of extra-sensory perception and the part they played in the story. Again, not overdone. The book is well written, plotted and moves along quickly. Weirdly enough, this is my first Cathy Cash Spellman novel and I immediately went to Amazon to look for others of her works.
I want to thank NetGalley and The Wild Harp & Company, Inc. for forwarding to me a copy of this great book for me to read, enjoy and review.