Death and Hard Cider

Set in 1840, Hambly’s superb 19th mystery featuring free Black surgeon and musician Benjamin January (after 2021’s House of the Patriarch) unfolds in New Orleans during the presidential campaign between Whig William Henry Harrison and the Democratic incumbent, Martin Van Buren. January and his small orchestra play for both sides’ cider-fueled rallies, allowing him to witness political and romantic chicanery. Senator Henry Clay is in town to support Harrison, along with his 23-year-old son, James. Though James is already engaged to the daughter of the wealthiest man in Kentucky, he flirts with 16-year-old Marie-Joyeuse Maginot, a prominent Democratic planter’s daughter, who’s already adept at inflaming duels between young fools smitten with her. When Marie-Joyeuse is found shot to death, January and his white policeman friend, Abishag Shaw, investigate. Could the senator, as some believe, have killed the girl to prevent his son from marrying her? Hambly dramatically juxtaposes January’s bitter anger at the injustices inflicted upon enslaved people with the love he feels for his family and friends. This masterly portrayal of smoldering racial tensions deserves a wide readership. Agent: Frances Collin, Frances Collin Literary. (June)