Death in the Age of Steam: A Mystery

Rating:
Summary: A Stunning Historical Set in Early-Victorian Ontario
Review: Fans of historical mysteries who can't get their hands on enough of these rare birds have a wonderful treat as Mel Bradshaw escorts the reader back to Toronto in 1856. His research is thorough and flawless in his depiction of ancient Hogtown, muddy streets and wooden sidewalks, and of course, the major theme of the completion of the Grand Trunk Railroad stretching across southern Ontario.

The story begins with the funeral of Parliamentarian William Sheridan, friend of the narrator, Isaac Harris. Not only does Harris grieve for the untimely death of his mentor, stricken with a mysterious gastrointestinal illness, but he still carries a torch for the man's married daughter, Theresa. At first her absence at the funeral is explained by extreme grief, but later it is revealed that she has disappeared, riding off on her horse.

Theresa's husband, a cold man and a business opportunist, sheds little light on her breakdown. Isaac continues to search for her, beginning with the trails she rode, asking at every crossroads and inn. Then in a stunning discovery at river's edge, he finds the dismembered arm of a woman wearing a bracelet of hers.

Bradshaw must have worked with maps, novels, and resource books of all descriptions to paint such an accurate picture of early Victorian Ontario, from the banking policies, food, clothes, and currency of the times to the grim penitentiary at old Kingston. His prose style matches the period perfectly. Here's an excerpt as fastidious Isaac prepares for work:

With barber's scissors he trimmed his side whiskers to just below his ear lobes. Beards and moustaches were becoming fashionable since the war, but not for bank cashiers. Harris's work clothes, mostly black, differed little from what he had worn to the funeral -- a morning coat replacing the full-skirted frock coat. And for the office he usually put on a coloured waistcoat, a dark blue watered silk this morning. He tied a matching cravat in a loose bow around the high collar of his white shirt.

Rating:
Summary: A captivating, romantic tale with hidden twists
Review: Set in Toronto in 1856, when rapid industrialization callously brushed aside human sentiments, Death In The Age Of Steam by Mel Bradshaw is carefully crafting and rather dashing novel of passion, mystery, murder, and tragedy. A prominent politician dies and his daughter vanishes, yet only one man - a former suiter of the daughter's who could never forget her despite her marriage to another man - persists in asking questions. The Victorian setting gives way to a tangled world, seemingly inhospitable and bereft of love or caring, yet for the one man whose heart drives him to search, answers may well be found at the cost of mortal peril. A captivating, romantic tale with hidden twists.