Marian Librarian

10/21/2026

Murder at Arleigh
Alyssa Maxwell
Available for loan @ LA County Library

Another in the Gilded Newport series, which is becoming filled with tedious, self-important, entitled, & Ultra Rich characters, that are beginning to put me off. Although intrigued by the 400, I am amazed at the descriptions of the Over-the-Top extravagance of this group of people, however, upon researching their houses, I'd like to be able to see them in person.

It seems as if Elizabeth Lehr's husband, Harry, wants her dead as he has said as much to her. Now things are happening to Elizabeth that could prove fatal and she asks Emma to help her find out, if indeed, it is Harry trying to kill her....

The ending really surprised me, the killer came out of nowhere... Normally there is a major clue near the beginning, but if there was, I missed it.

I did read the Author's Note at the end of the book and was pleased to find some interesting facts about Harry "King" Lehr & his wife Elizabeth "Bessie" Lehr.

From Amazon: "A dazzling wedding at the Bellevue Mansion, Arleigh, loses its shine when reporter, sleuth, and new mother Emma Cross Andrews is called to investigate the groom, an infamous Gilded Age prankster.

April 1903: Emma and Derrick Andrews have been invited to the wedding of her cousin Reggie Vanderbilt and heiress Cathleen Neilson at the Bellevue Mansion, Arleigh. Their hosts are a popular young couple who are leasing the home for the summer—Harry and Elizabeth “Bessie” Lehr. Known for his practical jokes, Harry is the toast of parties, earning a reputation as the court jester of the Gilded Age. However, as Emma soon learns, behind closed doors he is dead serious.

Following the wedding, Bessie comes to Emma for help, insisting that her husband is cruel to her in private, telling her outright he married her only for her money and finds her repulsive. Divorce is unthinkable. Now she believes he is plotting to murder her and make it look like an accident: a broken balcony railing she might have leaned on, a loose stair runner that could have sent her tumbling down a staircase, faulty brakes in the car she uses . . .

Some would say being trapped in a loveless marriage is a fate worse than death. Not Bessie—she wants to live! Unsure if these situations are mere coincidences or add up to premeditated sabotage, Emma agrees to investigate and determine if Newport’s merry prankster is engaged in a cold-blooded game of life or death . . ."

10/11/2026

I just read a dedication in a Alyssa Maxwell book to the memory of one of my favorite Historical Mystery authors: Victoria Thompson: Here's a link to her page:
https://victoriathompson.com

My favorite books by her were The Counterfeit Lady series.

"Victoria passed away peacefully at home in the suburbs of Chicago, IL in August 2024 after a years-long battle with cancer. Her husband of fifty-five years, Jim Thompson, passed away in January 2025. The Thompsons are survived by two adult daughters who are both writers and three grandchildren. Their daughter, Ellen Thompson, is carrying on her mother’s legacy by continuing to write books in Victoria’s series."

The newest book in the Counterfeit Lady series was written with her daughter Ellen & was published this year and is available for loan @ LA County Library

10/11/2026

Murder at Rough Point
Alyssa Maxwell
Available to borrow @ LA County Library

To be honest Emma's conflicted feelings when she discovers her parents in residence at Rough Point are understandable, but that she's so pleasant towards them is a mystery in and of itself.

The characters, all artists or performers of some type are mostly likeable. The point about her father's forged painting seemed to be left unfinished... While the minutest clue to the murderer came early on in the book as an innocuous comment made to Emma.

From Amazon: "In glittering Newport, Rhode Island, status is everything. But despite being a poorer relation to the venerable Vanderbilts, Emma Cross has shaped her own identity—as a reporter and a sleuth.

As the nineteenth century draws to a close, Fancies and Fashion reporter Emma Cross is sent by the Newport Observer to cover an elite house party at Rough Point, a “cottage” owned by her distant cousin Frederick Vanderbilt that has been rented as an artist retreat. To her surprise, the illustrious guests include her estranged Bohemian parents—recently returned from Europe—as well as a variety of notable artists, including author Edith Wharton.

But when one of the artists is discovered dead at the bottom of a cliff, Rough Point becomes anything but a house of mirth. After a second murder, no one is above suspicion—including Emma’s parents. As Newport police detective Jesse Whyte searches for a killer, Emma tries to draw her own conclusions—with the help of Mrs. Wharton. But with so many sketchy suspects, she’ll need to canvas the crime scenes carefully, before the cunning culprit takes her out of the picture next . . .

10/11/2026

Practical Magic series

10/11/2026

10/09/2026

Murder at Vinland
Alyssa Maxwell
Availabble for loan @ LA County Library

Emma is invited to Vinlad in order to cover a fundraiser for the proposed RI Audubon Society. When a woman dies of an obscure poison that has burned her digestive system & others have suffered burns on their hands & lips from the same poison. Emma steps in to investigate via her familial connections to the Vanderbilts.

I found this book rather boring and I didn't much care for the characters...

From Amazon: "Reporter and sleuth Emma Cross Andrews must stop a bold poisoner who is targeting the society wives of the Four Hundred in Gilded Age Newport, Rhode Island . . .

August 1901: A fundraiser for a new Rhode Island Audubon Society brings Emma to Vinland, the Viking-themed seaside home of her relative, Florence Vanderbilt Twombly, where the guest of honor is Edith Roosevelt, wife of Vice President Theodore Roosevelt. Listening to the speakers and observing the ladies in attendance, Emma is struck by the contrast of the Viking warrior–inspired elements in the house and the admirable but admittedly genteel cause of bird protection. Vinland bears the name of the Vikings’ first landfall in North America, but in this room today there is most assuredly no one to fear."

10/09/2026

“Until we can figure out a way to ban r**e on campus we should not in any capacity be trying to figure out how to ban a book about it,” one librarian said. Read more: https://www.huffpost.com/entry/banned-books-of-2026-school-year_n_6ac430a1e4b0bc90e400e590?ref=bffbhuffpost&ncid_tag=fcbklnkushpmg00000063&utm_medium=Social&utm_source=Facebook&utm_campaign=us_main&d_id=12460874&fbclid=IwY2xjawU1ZPxleHRuA2FlbQIxMABwZG9mBWJyaWQRMVJrZUIzODV6c2JLZGF1UURzcnRjBmFwcF9pZBAyMjIwMzkxNzg4MjAwODkyAAEeiOfsf3hAzQWT-IYU4vRaRk3NpDNpH3W6bkednaFhx7h3jr1cjzJziFvpUjE_aem_jp6YsKa_nbutPqDhcpJiuA

10/07/2026

This is not about politics, it is about a woman attempting to rescue literacy, education, & humanity.

10/06/2026

Murder at Marble House
Alyssa Maxwell
Available to borrow @ LA County Library

Ah, where do I begin? Such sensationalism & balderdash... The only authenticity was, Alva Vanderbilt's nasty personage, Consuelo's unhappiness/unwillingness to marry the Duke of Marlborough (Spencer-Churchill), & her desire to marry Winthrop Rutherford.

No, I did not like the book, hopefully the others in the series will be less far-fetched.

From Amazon: "With the dawn of the twentieth century on the horizon, the fortunes of the venerable Vanderbilt family still shine brightly in the glittering high society of Newport, Rhode Island. But when a potential scandal strikes, the Vanderbilts turn to cousin and society page reporter Emma Cross to solve a murder and a disappearance. . .

Responding to a frantic call on her newfangled telephone from her eighteen-year-old cousin, Consuelo Vanderbilt, Emma Cross arrives at the Marble House mansion and learns the cause of her distress--Consuelo's mother, Alva, is forcing her into marriage with the Duke of Marlborough. Her mother has even called in a fortune teller to assure Consuelo of a happy future.

But the future is short-lived for the fortune teller, who is found dead by her crystal ball, strangled with a silk scarf. Standing above her is one of the Vanderbilts' maids, who is promptly taken into police custody. After the frenzy has died down, Consuelo is nowhere to be found. At Alva's request, Emma must employ her sleuthing skills to determine if the vanishing Vanderbilt has eloped with the beau of her choice--or if her disappearance may be directly connected to the murder. . ."

10/04/2026

Murder at The Breakers
Alyssa Maxwell
Available to borrow @ LA County Library

Emma Cross, second cousin of Cornelius Vanderbilt, is attending a ball at The Breakers when a friend & employee of Cornelius falls over the balcony dead at her feet (from Cornelius' bedroom).

Knowing her brother, Brady, had planned on going up to Cornelius' bedroom to "fix" something he'd done, she finds Brady sprawled on the floor unconscious... as does Cornelius.

It is up to Emma to find who the actual murderer is.

I'm now going to begin the 2nd in the series: Murder at Marble House.

The book really held my interest and I rather liked the characters.

From Amazon: "As the nineteenth century comes to a close, the illustrious Vanderbilt family dominates Newport, Rhode Island, high society. But when murder darkens a glittering affair at the Vanderbilt summer home, reporter Emma Cross learns that sometimes the actions of the cream of society can curdle one's blood. . .

Newport, Rhode Island, August 1895: She may be a less well-heeled relation, but as second cousin to millionaire patriarch Cornelius Vanderbilt, twenty-one-year-old Emma Cross is on the guest list for a grand ball at the Breakers, the Vanderbilts' summer home. She also has a job to do--report on the event for the society page of the Newport Observer.

But Emma observes much more than glitz and gaiety when she witnesses a murder. The victim is Cornelius Vanderbilt's financial secretary, who plunges off a balcony faster than falling stock prices. Emma's black sheep brother Brady is found in Cornelius's bedroom passed out next to a bottle of bourbon and stolen plans for a new railroad line. Brady has barely come to before the police have arrested him for the murder. But Emma is sure someone is trying to railroad her brother and resolves to find the real killer at any cost. . ."