Review of DEATH AT THE FALLS by Rosemary Simpson

DEATH AT THE FALLS (Gilded Age Mystery #7) by Rosemary Simpson will be published on November 29th 2022 by Kensington.

 

Rowan Adderly is about to come into a large inheritance on her eighteenth birthday. The inheritance includes numerous plats of land surrounding Niagara Falls. Rowan's father is presumed dead, and her greedy grandmother, Myra, is determined to prevent the young woman from inheriting. Prudence Mackenzie and her investigative partner, Geoffrey Hunter, travel to Niagara Falls area to take on Rowan's case should Myra try to pursue the matter in court. The deeper Prudence and Geoffrey dig into Rowan's background and her father's vast holdings, the more questions they have. Their investigation takes them from the mansions of Niagara Falls' high society all the way down to workshop of a man who is determined to survive going over the falls in a barrel, and proves that there is more at play than an elderly woman determined to deny her only granddaughter of her inheritance. The bodies pile up—starting with a young Tuscarora Indian who is found in a test barrel that was launched over the falls. Keeping Rowan alive is just as important as figuring out why her grandmother wants her dead before her eighteenth birthday.

 

There is a lot going on in DEATH AT THE FALLS, and, at times, it was hard to keep everything and everyone straight. The narrative bounces back and forth between several characters, and, if you're not reading the novel in one sitting, it can be hard to keep track of the plot and how/if everything was connected. Overall, it was an interesting story. I enjoyed the history lesson on Niagara Falls as it developed in a tourist area as well as an industrial area. The addition Crazy Louie Whiting and his mission to become the first person to survive going over the falls in a barrel was intriguing. My main disappointment as that Prudence's and Geoffrey's personal relationship seems to have gone stagnant. There are hints that the relationship will ramp back up, but there seemed to be a distinct lack of emotion between the two throughout the novel.

 

Thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for the ARC.