In a city of bootleggers and crime, one woman must rely on a long-dead lawman to hunt down justice… playground. To keep the shoddy roof over their heads, she has no choice but to take on boarders with criminal ties.
When her son’s friend disappears, Maggie suspects the worst. And local politicians and police don’t seem to have any interest in an investigation. With a child’s life on the line, Maggie takes the case and risks angering the enemy living right under her nose.
Maggie’s one advantage may be her oldest tenant: the ghost of a Victorian-era cop. With his help, can she find justice in a lawless city?
Innocence Lost is the first novel in the Bootleggers’ Chronicles, a series of historical fiction tales. If you like headstrong heroines, Prohibition-era criminal underworlds, and a touch of the paranormal, then you’ll love Sherilyn Decter’s gripping tale.
Buy Innocence Lost to dive into corruption and mystery today!
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I won the kindle e-book version in a Goodreads giveaway. I liked this historical mystery, but it is not a fast-paced story. Also bear in mind, it has a paranormal component to the story.
The story begins in 1924 Philadelphia, Pennsylvania during Prohibition. The main character is a widow with a young son. She is having trouble paying bills and decides to take in lodgers: a school teacher, a bookkeeper, and a rookie constable. One of her son’s friends goes missing and the story is off and running.
This is a time of bootleggers, speak-easies, crime, flappers, gangsters, political bribes, police and judges on the take, and so much more. It is also about friendship, family and immigrant communities. Additionally, it is a time when women had few options for supporting themselves.
The author does a great job of giving the reader a sense of the times. I was easily able to visualize the clothes, houses, and people. She also did a great job of blending in the paranormal aspect of the story. There is a great cast of supporting characters. What kept this from being a 4 star rating for me was that it seemed a little slow in places. Otherwise, it is well-written and entertaining. Will I try book 2 in the series? Definitely. If you enjoy historical mysteries, I recommend you give this one a try.
The first scene starts with a fake warehouse bust of one of the Head Boss’s Warehouses by the corrupt police on the force and is seen by three small boys from the nearby neighborhood, but the boys don’t know it’s all fake. As days go by, only two boys actually left the scene; the other little boy is missing. So begins Ms. Decker’s novel, Innocence Lost, portraying the early years of Prohibition in Philadelphia.
Her characters are well developed, and you come to know them well, not only through the things they say, but the things they do, and it’s easy to keep people separated because of this special talent of hers. And the women are equally well portrayed, as changes are also taking place in home lives as the workforce changes.
I definitely recommend this novel and this series! So much historical and political accuracy, as are all the series in these novels!
Innocence Lost is the first novel in the 5-book Bootleggers Chronicles, a 1920s crime series set in Philadelphia. Although it is clearly the starting of a series, with all the required introductions of characters and situations, it is also a great novel on its own right, centered around the death of a young boy and the investigation going on – and not going on – around it. But don’t expect to get all the answers at the end. We’re invited for a long ride.
Sherilyn Decter is clearly and enthusiastic historian. Her 1920s Philadelphia is vivid and living and I loved that she focused on everyday life rather than the big events of that time. This story is mostly about normal people trying to get though another day, though it is also about how those people choose to go through that day. It’s about choices and responsibilities. Yes, in short Maggie is one of us, a very true person in a very realistic and relatable world.
As a first novel in a series, this focuses on the main character, Maggie, very much. There is a big cast of characters, but most of them remain in the background while Maggie takes centre stage. There is a strong feeling, though, that a few of them – even the ones that only ‘appear’ here – will grow into more than strong supporting characters in the novels to come. I like this building up, this expectation. I generally like stories with many characters because they create a sense of community, not just of place but also of culture and I think this is where this story is going.
There is also an element of supernatural and I enjoyed that. It’s very mild, to the point I wouldn’t say this is a ghost story. It’s more definitely a historical novel. But I like this element of fantasy that goes beyond the ‘normality’ of the rest of the story.
I can’t wait to read the rest of this series.