Murder on the Barbary Coast D (Maggie Maguire Mysteries)

Rating:
Summary: Marvelous Maggie Maguire historical mystery
Review:

In the late 1870's, Magdalena Maguire defies the dictates of society by opening her own detective agency, Discrete Inquiries. Her beau, the wealthy upper crust attorney Quincy Applegate hires Maggie to extract Trini Malone, the niece of his oldest friend, from a cult. Apparently, Brother Ascension, the head of the Children of Golgotha, is an alias for Darby Halstead, a former convict who did time for some of his scams. Darby specifically seeks wealthy heirs so he can become their heir when they suddenly inherit.

The Trini project is in phase two as her mother recently died, leaving her a sizable inheritance. Maggie sets in motion a con that will obtain instant membership with the cult. She arrives at their current location, Conquistador, a town ten miles south of San Francisco. She appears tired and out of money, and claims to be seeking her wealthy grandfather Otto Obermyer, whom she never met. Otto is actually her downstairs neighbor. With his help and the assistance of other friends and relatives, Maggie begins to reel in her big catch, unaware that the drugged food and water place her life in peril.

The third Malone historical mystery, MURDER ON THE BARBARY COAST, retains all the charm of its two predecessors (see A RECORD OF DEATH and MURDER AT BENT ELBOW). The story line is clever and smoothly flows to a fabulous climax. The repeat characters make the era ring true as their relationships provide a special spark to the tale. Fans of the sub-genre will attain much pleasure from the Americana sleuthing series, especially this particular story in which Kate Bryan entertains the reader with and enjoyable novel.

Harriet Klausner

Rating:
Summary: A ripping good yarn!
Review: This time, private eye Maggie Maguire has to infiltrate the evil Brother Ascension's religious cult to rescue a young girl. The story brings in all the series regulars, plus a few questionable characters from the Barbary Coast, to scam the bad guys in a way that is hilarious and scary at the same time. What a good book!