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Jane Prescott #3
Death of an American Beauty
The third in the compelling series, set in Gilded Age New York, featuring Jane Prescott.
Jane Prescott is taking a break from her duties as lady’s maid for a week, and plans to begin it with attending the hottest and most scandalous show in town: the opening of an art exhibition, showcasing the cubists, that is shocking New York City.
1913 is also the fiftieth anniversary of Lincoln’s Emancipation Proclamation speech, and the city's great and good are determined to celebrate in style. Dolly Rutherford, heiress to the glamorous Rutherford’s department store empire, has gathered her coterie of society ladies to put on a play—with Jane’s employer Louise Tyler in the starring role as Lincoln himself. Jane is torn between helping the ladies with their costumes and enjoying her holiday. But fate decides she will do neither, when a woman is found murdered outside Jane’s childhood home—a refuge for women run by her uncle.
Deeply troubled as her uncle falls under suspicion and haunted by memories of a woman she once knew, Jane—with the help of old friends and new acquaintances, reporter Michael Behan and music hall pianist Leo Hirschfeld—is determined to discover who is who is making death into their own twisted art form.
Jane Prescott is taking a break from her duties as lady’s maid for a week, and plans to begin it with attending the hottest and most scandalous show in town: the opening of an art exhibition, showcasing the cubists, that is shocking New York City.
1913 is also the fiftieth anniversary of Lincoln’s Emancipation Proclamation speech, and the city's great and good are determined to celebrate in style. Dolly Rutherford, heiress to the glamorous Rutherford’s department store empire, has gathered her coterie of society ladies to put on a play—with Jane’s employer Louise Tyler in the starring role as Lincoln himself. Jane is torn between helping the ladies with their costumes and enjoying her holiday. But fate decides she will do neither, when a woman is found murdered outside Jane’s childhood home—a refuge for women run by her uncle.
Deeply troubled as her uncle falls under suspicion and haunted by memories of a woman she once knew, Jane—with the help of old friends and new acquaintances, reporter Michael Behan and music hall pianist Leo Hirschfeld—is determined to discover who is who is making death into their own twisted art form.
272 pages, Hardcover
First published April 14, 2020
85 people are currently reading
2678 people want to read
About the author
Mariah Fredericks
27 books688 followersMariah Fredericks was born, raised, and still lives in New York City. She graduated from Vassar College with a degree in history. She is the author of the Jane Prescott mystery series as well as The Lindbergh Nanny, which Nelson DeMille called, "a masterful blending of fact and fiction that is as compelling as it is entertaining." The Wharton Plot, was named one of the best mysteries of 2024 by Library Journal. "An Edith Wharton scholar could read Ms. Frederick’s novel with profit and amusement."—Wall Street Journal. Her next novel, The Girl in the Green Dress, featuring Zelda Fitzgerald and New Yorker writer Morris Markey, is out September 2, 2025
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 134 reviews
April 5, 2020
Authentic, atmospheric, and mysterious!
In this latest novel by Fredericks, Death of an American Beauty, we head back to Manhattan during the early twentieth century and into the life of lady’s maid, Jane Prescott whose highly-anticipated vacation is suddenly turned upside down when a resident of her uncle’s refuge for reformed prostitutes is found viciously murdered, and the American Beauty Pagent is in urgent need of a last-minute seamstress.
The prose is meticulous and rich. The characters are independent, intelligent, and resourceful. And the plot is a well-paced whodunit full of amateur sleuthing, red herrings, suspects, deduction, familial dynamics, duty, friendship, secrets, racial inequality, sexism, romance, violence, and murder.
Death of an American Beauty is the third book in the Jane Prescott series, and if you love historical mysteries, this novel won’t disappoint. It is a menacing, entertaining, vivid tale that is certainly well worth a read.
Thank you to St. Martin’s Press – Minotaur Books for providing me with a copy in exchange for an honest review.
In this latest novel by Fredericks, Death of an American Beauty, we head back to Manhattan during the early twentieth century and into the life of lady’s maid, Jane Prescott whose highly-anticipated vacation is suddenly turned upside down when a resident of her uncle’s refuge for reformed prostitutes is found viciously murdered, and the American Beauty Pagent is in urgent need of a last-minute seamstress.
The prose is meticulous and rich. The characters are independent, intelligent, and resourceful. And the plot is a well-paced whodunit full of amateur sleuthing, red herrings, suspects, deduction, familial dynamics, duty, friendship, secrets, racial inequality, sexism, romance, violence, and murder.
Death of an American Beauty is the third book in the Jane Prescott series, and if you love historical mysteries, this novel won’t disappoint. It is a menacing, entertaining, vivid tale that is certainly well worth a read.
Thank you to St. Martin’s Press – Minotaur Books for providing me with a copy in exchange for an honest review.
September 7, 2020
The author really hits her stride in this, her third book. I think one of the main reasons is that she gets Jane out of the closed circle of the wealthy upper class and out into the gritty city.
The plot centers around the murders of two young women who had ties to the refuge run by Jane's uncle. Jane's uncle becomes a suspect and Jane is doing her best to find the real killer. The wounds inflicted by the killer remind Jane of another woman who had sought help at the refuge when Jane was 11. The flashback introduces us to Otelia Brooks, a young Black woman, who is Jane's guide (and ours) into the Black communities of NYC in the early 20th century. Let me just say that Otelia is fabulous.
Jane, though supposedly on a week's holiday from her position as lady's maid to Louise Tyler, can't quite truly escape her job. Louise has fallen into the clutches of Dolly Rutherford, the social-climbing wife of the owner of Rutherford's, a ladies emporium. She needs Jane's help and Jane is too tender-hearted to turn her down.
The where, why and how of the connection between Rutherford's and the murders forms the heart of the plot. A bonus for us (and Jane) is the introduction of Leo Hirschfeld, a most charming young man. Is there romance in the air for Jane?
I will admit that the identity of the killer was unexpected, though by the time the big climax rolled around, that person was the only viable candidate remaining. I was very satisfied with the final outcome.
I was pleasantly surprised at how timely this story is and how well it resonates with the current discussions of privilege, social justice and racism. My, how times have not really changed at all!
The plot centers around the murders of two young women who had ties to the refuge run by Jane's uncle. Jane's uncle becomes a suspect and Jane is doing her best to find the real killer. The wounds inflicted by the killer remind Jane of another woman who had sought help at the refuge when Jane was 11. The flashback introduces us to Otelia Brooks, a young Black woman, who is Jane's guide (and ours) into the Black communities of NYC in the early 20th century. Let me just say that Otelia is fabulous.
Jane, though supposedly on a week's holiday from her position as lady's maid to Louise Tyler, can't quite truly escape her job. Louise has fallen into the clutches of Dolly Rutherford, the social-climbing wife of the owner of Rutherford's, a ladies emporium. She needs Jane's help and Jane is too tender-hearted to turn her down.
The where, why and how of the connection between Rutherford's and the murders forms the heart of the plot. A bonus for us (and Jane) is the introduction of Leo Hirschfeld, a most charming young man. Is there romance in the air for Jane?
I will admit that the identity of the killer was unexpected, though by the time the big climax rolled around, that person was the only viable candidate remaining. I was very satisfied with the final outcome.
I was pleasantly surprised at how timely this story is and how well it resonates with the current discussions of privilege, social justice and racism. My, how times have not really changed at all!
April 4, 2020
3.5 stars. This dragged a bit for me, but I'm going to blame that on my general difficulty concentrating on reading during all the current happenings. This series is really excellent, and gives the reader a chance to see into the daily lives of people who are often relegated to window dressing in many historical mystery series, where the focus is on the upper classes. I certainly enjoy those as well, but I love seeing a ladies' maid as the protagonist, as well as the other people in her orbit.
I didn't think the mystery was super compelling here, and the resolution depended on some rather dubious coincidences, but Jane Prescott and the historical details made up for anything that was lacking. Jane is on vacation for the events of the book, so we get to see even more of who she is apart from her employment, although she is wrangled into helping with costumes for a production her employer is part of. And the epilogue made me very excited for what is coming next!
I highly recommend this series to anyone interested in historical mysteries, but I'd start at the beginning rather than jumping in with this one.
*I received a free ARC of this book from NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.
I didn't think the mystery was super compelling here, and the resolution depended on some rather dubious coincidences, but Jane Prescott and the historical details made up for anything that was lacking. Jane is on vacation for the events of the book, so we get to see even more of who she is apart from her employment, although she is wrangled into helping with costumes for a production her employer is part of. And the epilogue made me very excited for what is coming next!
I highly recommend this series to anyone interested in historical mysteries, but I'd start at the beginning rather than jumping in with this one.
*I received a free ARC of this book from NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.
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March 5, 2020No rating. Wouldn't be fair of me.
I won this book through the Goodreads giveaway program - thanks so much! - but this isn't the book for me. The writing is superb, though, and the attention to detail, excellent. The historical accuracy is amazing, with references to music, street life and the upper-crust society of NYC, circa 1913 - all of it. I am always impressed when writers really know their time period, backwards and forwards. Why didn't I continue with the book?
I found nothing about the story or characters very interesting. I gave it over 200 pages and then said, nah, I am drifting while read. (And I'm watching a red squirrel chase the gray squirrel off my deck. ) This book is just not holding my attention. It's the story of a lady's maid who lives with her uncle in an old brothel which now helps out former prostitutes. The women receive help and training to improve and change their lives. However, someone is murdering them and so...
Just not my cup of java, though I'm sure many would find this very entertaining. I need more story, more plot, more complex characters, therefore...
No rating.
I won this book through the Goodreads giveaway program - thanks so much! - but this isn't the book for me. The writing is superb, though, and the attention to detail, excellent. The historical accuracy is amazing, with references to music, street life and the upper-crust society of NYC, circa 1913 - all of it. I am always impressed when writers really know their time period, backwards and forwards. Why didn't I continue with the book?
I found nothing about the story or characters very interesting. I gave it over 200 pages and then said, nah, I am drifting while read. (And I'm watching a red squirrel chase the gray squirrel off my deck. ) This book is just not holding my attention. It's the story of a lady's maid who lives with her uncle in an old brothel which now helps out former prostitutes. The women receive help and training to improve and change their lives. However, someone is murdering them and so...
Just not my cup of java, though I'm sure many would find this very entertaining. I need more story, more plot, more complex characters, therefore...
No rating.
April 16, 2020
📚 𝗛𝗲𝗹𝗹𝗼 𝗯𝗼𝗼𝗸 𝗳𝗿𝗶𝗲𝗻𝗱𝘀! I finished reading 𝗗𝗲𝗮𝘁𝗵 𝗼𝗳 𝗮𝗻 𝗔𝗺𝗲𝗿𝗶𝗰𝗮𝗻 𝗕𝗲𝗮𝘂𝘁𝘆 by Mariah Fredericks and here are my thoughts: This is the third book in the series. I have not read the first two and this put me at a disadvantage. The story was fast-paced and well written. I enjoyed the historical background on Lincoln’s Emancipation Proclamation and the suffrage and women’s rights. I struggle a bit with the plot and guess the ending too soon. That was a bit of a spoiler for the rest of my reading. If you like old fashion detective stories with a woman protagonist, this series is for you.
🙋🏼♀️ Thank you, 𝗠𝗶𝗻𝗼𝘁𝗮𝘂𝗿 𝗕𝗼𝗼𝗸𝘀 for sending me an ARC of this exciting novel. 𝗗𝗲𝗮𝘁𝗵 𝗼𝗳 𝗮𝗻 𝗔𝗺𝗲𝗿𝗶𝗰𝗮𝗻 𝗕𝗲𝗮𝘂𝘁𝘆 by Mariah Fredericks is now available at your favourite bookstore.
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April 27, 2020
I really enjoyed the first two installments in this series, but here I just wanted to yell at our heroine. How many times did she jump to conclusions based on little or no evidence? At least three. How many times was she dead wrong? Also at least three. I just felt like she was getting dumber rather than savvier.
September 19, 2020
I always enjoy outings in this historical mystery series, I learn about New York and American history, and the mysteries are interesting, too.
This time it’s 1913, and lady’s maid Jane Prescott is supposed to be on vacation. She does get in a trip to a scandalous modern art show, but is soon called back to work by Louise, the wealthy, newlywed society lady she works for.
Historical pageants and performances are all the rage in NYC society, and the pushy Dolly Rutherford has drafted the meek Louise into a pageant celebrating the 50th anniversary of the Emancipation Proclamation. Louise begs Jane’s help organizing costumes - the pageant is to be part of the “American beauty” contest held yearly at Rutherford’s department store. Jane is staying at her childhood home, which also happens to be her clergyman uncle’s home for wayward women - former prostitutes who get a bed and board and the chance to learn marketable skills (so they can be independent).
There’s kind of a lot going on in this one, and I didn’t really get into it as much as previous books, although it was still good, and I’ll definitely read the next book. There’s the pageant, the halfway house crowd, the self-righteous protesters trying to run the home out of the neighborhood, the young musician Jane meets, two murders of women associated with the home, and the tie-in of a long ago resident, who seemed like a fascinating character, but it seemed a stretch to include a 10-year-old assault to the current murders. And then Jane’s uncle the clergyman is arrested because he won’t say where he was at the time of the crimes - it’s all eventually resolved, but there are a lot of things happening!
For fans of historical mystery, I’d recommend this series - it’s like a grittier Gaslight series, by Victoria Thompson - or I should say, like the grittier tone of the earliest in that series, of which I am also a fan. It’s just gone on for many years, and become gradually cozier, which is perfectly fine with me! I’ve never been to New York, but I feel this series more reflects the rougher underbelly of that vibrant, bustling city, especially in the pre-WWI years.
This time it’s 1913, and lady’s maid Jane Prescott is supposed to be on vacation. She does get in a trip to a scandalous modern art show, but is soon called back to work by Louise, the wealthy, newlywed society lady she works for.
Historical pageants and performances are all the rage in NYC society, and the pushy Dolly Rutherford has drafted the meek Louise into a pageant celebrating the 50th anniversary of the Emancipation Proclamation. Louise begs Jane’s help organizing costumes - the pageant is to be part of the “American beauty” contest held yearly at Rutherford’s department store. Jane is staying at her childhood home, which also happens to be her clergyman uncle’s home for wayward women - former prostitutes who get a bed and board and the chance to learn marketable skills (so they can be independent).
There’s kind of a lot going on in this one, and I didn’t really get into it as much as previous books, although it was still good, and I’ll definitely read the next book. There’s the pageant, the halfway house crowd, the self-righteous protesters trying to run the home out of the neighborhood, the young musician Jane meets, two murders of women associated with the home, and the tie-in of a long ago resident, who seemed like a fascinating character, but it seemed a stretch to include a 10-year-old assault to the current murders. And then Jane’s uncle the clergyman is arrested because he won’t say where he was at the time of the crimes - it’s all eventually resolved, but there are a lot of things happening!
For fans of historical mystery, I’d recommend this series - it’s like a grittier Gaslight series, by Victoria Thompson - or I should say, like the grittier tone of the earliest in that series, of which I am also a fan. It’s just gone on for many years, and become gradually cozier, which is perfectly fine with me! I’ve never been to New York, but I feel this series more reflects the rougher underbelly of that vibrant, bustling city, especially in the pre-WWI years.
April 11, 2020
I remember when Rhys Bowen started writing her Molly Murphy series. I inhaled them the second they were published. I loved (and still do) the mix of the feisty Molly, her journey of discovery as a new immigrant, the clever mysteries, and the turn of the century settings. Rhys Bowen has the gift of narrative. I am so happy to tell you – because I want to make you a fellow fan – that Mariah Fredericks has that very same gift.
I have so far inhaled all three of her books featuring ladies’ maid Jane Prescott, who works for the wealthy Mrs. Louise Tyler around the 1910’s. She has a way with a story, and a way of getting you to care about and be invested in her characters. In this novel Jane is on “vacation”, so she goes home. Home for Jane is a refuge for fallen women, run by her uncle, a Presbyterian pastor. He takes women who come from the streets and gives them a place to live, something to eat, and a little hope for the future and a different way of earning a living.
As the women are setting up for the all-female ball they have every year and her uncle prepares to leave for the evening, talk turns to one of the girls, a stubborn one who had fled the boyfriend who attacked her but who still misses him. She is sneaking out and the women fear for her safety – with good reason. She is found dead the night of the ball.
Unfortunately, Jane’s uncle is suspected of the crime and pilloried in the press, sending Jane off on a mission to discover the real killer. The mission involves finding an old resident of the home that gives the reader a look inside the lives of these desperate women.
Jane also is called back into service. Her employer, the shy Mrs. Tyler (readers will have come to love her in the other novels), has been pressed into portraying Abraham Lincoln in a pageant at one of the biggest department stores in the city. They will also be crowning a new “Miss Rutherford” – Rutherford’s is the department store – and along with Louise, Mr. and Mrs. Rutherford are heavily involved in running the pageant from every angle.
While in other novels Fredericks has touched on social inequality, anarchy, immigration and the rights of women, in this novel, while she touches heartbreakingly on the way African Americans were/are treated, what she brings to full, breathing life is Rutherford’s Department Store. These kinds of stores no longer exist but they live on in my memory.
Anyone who grew up in Chicago will have a memory of Marshall Field’s – and when I was a young woman, I worked at the great Dayton’s in Minneapolis. These stores were practically cities – they had everything. Field’s had a bakery, a fabric department, a bookstore – and many of them hosted events, much like the pageant described in the book. When I worked at Dayton’s in the 80’s I was lucky enough to see in the store Lana Turner, Better Midler, Gloria Vanderbilt and Paloma Picasso, just to name a few.
Rutherford’s is just the same kind of store, with floors filled with beautiful things, and the salesladies to get you into those things. Jane works her fingers to the bone altering costumes for the pageant performers, and also gets swept away for a night of dancing by a bold piano player.
This book breathes life and excitement. The story – which piles up a few bodies – is wrenching, and hard to look away from. It’s surrounded by the world of 1913, and I truly felt transported. Very unfortunately I finished this read in a day and now must wait another year for a visit with Jane Prescott. I urge you to make her acquaintance if you haven’t already.
I have so far inhaled all three of her books featuring ladies’ maid Jane Prescott, who works for the wealthy Mrs. Louise Tyler around the 1910’s. She has a way with a story, and a way of getting you to care about and be invested in her characters. In this novel Jane is on “vacation”, so she goes home. Home for Jane is a refuge for fallen women, run by her uncle, a Presbyterian pastor. He takes women who come from the streets and gives them a place to live, something to eat, and a little hope for the future and a different way of earning a living.
As the women are setting up for the all-female ball they have every year and her uncle prepares to leave for the evening, talk turns to one of the girls, a stubborn one who had fled the boyfriend who attacked her but who still misses him. She is sneaking out and the women fear for her safety – with good reason. She is found dead the night of the ball.
Unfortunately, Jane’s uncle is suspected of the crime and pilloried in the press, sending Jane off on a mission to discover the real killer. The mission involves finding an old resident of the home that gives the reader a look inside the lives of these desperate women.
Jane also is called back into service. Her employer, the shy Mrs. Tyler (readers will have come to love her in the other novels), has been pressed into portraying Abraham Lincoln in a pageant at one of the biggest department stores in the city. They will also be crowning a new “Miss Rutherford” – Rutherford’s is the department store – and along with Louise, Mr. and Mrs. Rutherford are heavily involved in running the pageant from every angle.
While in other novels Fredericks has touched on social inequality, anarchy, immigration and the rights of women, in this novel, while she touches heartbreakingly on the way African Americans were/are treated, what she brings to full, breathing life is Rutherford’s Department Store. These kinds of stores no longer exist but they live on in my memory.
Anyone who grew up in Chicago will have a memory of Marshall Field’s – and when I was a young woman, I worked at the great Dayton’s in Minneapolis. These stores were practically cities – they had everything. Field’s had a bakery, a fabric department, a bookstore – and many of them hosted events, much like the pageant described in the book. When I worked at Dayton’s in the 80’s I was lucky enough to see in the store Lana Turner, Better Midler, Gloria Vanderbilt and Paloma Picasso, just to name a few.
Rutherford’s is just the same kind of store, with floors filled with beautiful things, and the salesladies to get you into those things. Jane works her fingers to the bone altering costumes for the pageant performers, and also gets swept away for a night of dancing by a bold piano player.
This book breathes life and excitement. The story – which piles up a few bodies – is wrenching, and hard to look away from. It’s surrounded by the world of 1913, and I truly felt transported. Very unfortunately I finished this read in a day and now must wait another year for a visit with Jane Prescott. I urge you to make her acquaintance if you haven’t already.
November 1, 2020
Death of an American Beauty (Book 3 in the Jane Prescott Mystery Series), written by Mariah Fredericks, narrated by Stephanie Willis.
I loved listening to all three books in the series but I think this is the best one yet. Maria Fredericks has outdone herself and the sublime narration by Stephanie Willis is the cherry on top, what a winning combination!
What I loved about this book is that we see Jane Prescott outside her role as lady’s maid and trying to enjoy what should be a week of leisure. Instead Jane is thrust right the middle of two gruesome murders, both connected to her uncle’s refuge for reformed prostitutes. And if that isn’t enough to keep her busy, the American Beauty Pageant is in urgent need of a last-minute seamstress.
As usual, Mariah Fredericks’ beautiful prose creates evocative settings and characterizations, her women are able, self-reliant, and smart. The plot is well-paced with a lovely mix of real and fictional historic people and events. Her research is meticulous and - as was the case with both other books in the series – some historical events mirror current issues so it feels very relevant.
I cannot praise Stephanie Willis enough for her flawless voice acting. She effortlessly takes on all the different voices, accents and emotions and lets us be there, right in the scene. Bravo!
Listening to the epilogue Fredericks drops some hints for a what I hope is the next Jane Prescott adventure set in 1914 Europe (and we all know what is about to happen there!). I can’t wait!
Available as an audiobook in Scribd. I highly recommend you listen to the whole series!
Themes: New York 1913, race and law enforcement (or Black Lives Matter as we know it today), The Armory Show, Rutherford’s Department Store, beauty pageant, horrible murders on the doorstep of the refuge, what does Jane’s uncle have to hide? Mrs. Pickett’s Purity Brigade, I loved Otelia Brooks, her tragic story and her secret hat club, I have a feeling we will see more of Leo Hirschfelt, what’s in the safe?
5 Stars
I loved listening to all three books in the series but I think this is the best one yet. Maria Fredericks has outdone herself and the sublime narration by Stephanie Willis is the cherry on top, what a winning combination!
What I loved about this book is that we see Jane Prescott outside her role as lady’s maid and trying to enjoy what should be a week of leisure. Instead Jane is thrust right the middle of two gruesome murders, both connected to her uncle’s refuge for reformed prostitutes. And if that isn’t enough to keep her busy, the American Beauty Pageant is in urgent need of a last-minute seamstress.
As usual, Mariah Fredericks’ beautiful prose creates evocative settings and characterizations, her women are able, self-reliant, and smart. The plot is well-paced with a lovely mix of real and fictional historic people and events. Her research is meticulous and - as was the case with both other books in the series – some historical events mirror current issues so it feels very relevant.
I cannot praise Stephanie Willis enough for her flawless voice acting. She effortlessly takes on all the different voices, accents and emotions and lets us be there, right in the scene. Bravo!
Listening to the epilogue Fredericks drops some hints for a what I hope is the next Jane Prescott adventure set in 1914 Europe (and we all know what is about to happen there!). I can’t wait!
Available as an audiobook in Scribd. I highly recommend you listen to the whole series!
Themes: New York 1913, race and law enforcement (or Black Lives Matter as we know it today), The Armory Show, Rutherford’s Department Store, beauty pageant, horrible murders on the doorstep of the refuge, what does Jane’s uncle have to hide? Mrs. Pickett’s Purity Brigade, I loved Otelia Brooks, her tragic story and her secret hat club, I have a feeling we will see more of Leo Hirschfelt, what’s in the safe?
5 Stars
March 5, 2021
Lady's Maid Jane Prescott starts off her vacation viewing the 1913 New York Armory Art Show, the one where cubism, such as Nude Descending a Staircase, was introduced to an American audience to both acclaim and outrage. She then heads to the Women's Refuge run by her minister uncle, a self-righteous aloof man who nonetheless has for a long time provided safe haven on Mahattan's Lower East Side for abused women and prostitutes who are trying to start their lives over. The annual ladies only cotillion for those residing at the refuge is that evening. The increasingly angry neighborhood protests against the Refuge at the stoop heckling those entering and leaving. Uptown, Rutherford's Depatment Store is readying for the annual pageant where one young woman from the working classes is crowned that year's American Beauty.
Such is the setting when one of the women living at the refuge is murdered during the cotillion, and Jane's uncle, who refuses to explain where he spent the evening, comes under suspicion. Jane cannot sit by and watch her stubborn uncle, who will not answer the police's questions, is arrested, and sets out to find out who the real murderer is. Along the way, we are treated to a glorious setting in 1913 New York, from the gangster clubs on the Lower East Side to a hair salon in Harlem, and immersed in the clash of social and money divisions and the social justice issues of the day. The clues to the murderer are sown from the very first pages, and though I had a vague sense of who the murderer was after a certain point, the final reveal still caught me by surprise in many ways.
The writing is engageing and characters likeable. The historical research is meticulous - no anacrhonisms here! I like the author's structure of starting with a prologue where Jane is an elderly woman reminded by something she reads in the newspaper brings back memories of the murder. And I like her epilogue where the later stories are told of those we have met. This is the third in the series featuring Jane. It is easily read as a standalone although I will make a point of reading the others.
Such is the setting when one of the women living at the refuge is murdered during the cotillion, and Jane's uncle, who refuses to explain where he spent the evening, comes under suspicion. Jane cannot sit by and watch her stubborn uncle, who will not answer the police's questions, is arrested, and sets out to find out who the real murderer is. Along the way, we are treated to a glorious setting in 1913 New York, from the gangster clubs on the Lower East Side to a hair salon in Harlem, and immersed in the clash of social and money divisions and the social justice issues of the day. The clues to the murderer are sown from the very first pages, and though I had a vague sense of who the murderer was after a certain point, the final reveal still caught me by surprise in many ways.
The writing is engageing and characters likeable. The historical research is meticulous - no anacrhonisms here! I like the author's structure of starting with a prologue where Jane is an elderly woman reminded by something she reads in the newspaper brings back memories of the murder. And I like her epilogue where the later stories are told of those we have met. This is the third in the series featuring Jane. It is easily read as a standalone although I will make a point of reading the others.
April 8, 2020
3.5 stars
An entertaining historical mystery set in New York in 1913. Lady's maid Jane Prescott is supposedly having a vacation away from Lady Louise, but she soon gets sucked into helping with a society women's pageant being sponsored by a local department store.
Jane was raised by her uncle, who is a minister who runs a refuge for reformed prostitutes. His neighbors are hateful, to the point of picketing and physical violence. When one of the women is found murdered, suspicion falls on him. Jane and her reporter friend Michael Behan are soon investigating.
I have read all three of this series and I don't think it has coalesced yet, although the books are enjoyable. The first was a lot of Upstairs, Downstairs type interactions, the second dealt with some serious societal issues, and this one is more a straight mystery. Jane's background plays a part in this but the feeling is that there are still some hidden factors. Jane is a strong female heroine, smart and brave.
Thanks to the publisher and to Net Galley for providing me with an ARC in exchange for my honest review.
An entertaining historical mystery set in New York in 1913. Lady's maid Jane Prescott is supposedly having a vacation away from Lady Louise, but she soon gets sucked into helping with a society women's pageant being sponsored by a local department store.
Jane was raised by her uncle, who is a minister who runs a refuge for reformed prostitutes. His neighbors are hateful, to the point of picketing and physical violence. When one of the women is found murdered, suspicion falls on him. Jane and her reporter friend Michael Behan are soon investigating.
I have read all three of this series and I don't think it has coalesced yet, although the books are enjoyable. The first was a lot of Upstairs, Downstairs type interactions, the second dealt with some serious societal issues, and this one is more a straight mystery. Jane's background plays a part in this but the feeling is that there are still some hidden factors. Jane is a strong female heroine, smart and brave.
Thanks to the publisher and to Net Galley for providing me with an ARC in exchange for my honest review.
May 4, 2020
Loved it! I never tire of the winning, kind-hearted heroine Jane & the characters drawn into her world. Although “just” a ladies maid, she is the center of the action & holds the household together. Every plot point, conversation, entertainment, commentary brings 1913 NYC to life—with all its glories & grisliness . . . I tried to make it last, but it was still over too soon . . .
March 4, 2021
Third in this really good historical fiction series set in Gilded Age New York that has quickly hooked me. Long live Jane Prescott!
April 14, 2020
This is the third in the Jane Prescott historical mystery series, after A Death of No Importance and Death of a New American. I was starting to worry a tad about murder just following this ladies' maid wherever she goes, as the Upper Classes would notice that pretty much right away. So in this book, there's a divergence, which distracts from that entirely.
Jane is taking a week's vacation. She's visiting with her uncle, who raised her, at the home for former prostitutes which he runs. When one of them is brutally murdered in the street, sadly, it seems like just another statistic and predictable, (eliminating any reason to worry that murders follow Jane around.) A new resident of the house snuck out one evening, as the house was getting ready for an annual party they throw for themselves, and when Jane goes looking for the young woman, she finds her body in a nearby alley. When she isn't suspecting at all, is for the police, with the help of some protesting religious NIMBYs who want his house shut down, to finger her uncle as the prime suspect. Naturally, Jane has to find out who really did it to clear his name.
Meanwhile, she's roped into helping out with a department store's annual beauty pageant, where she meets an exciting and fun piano player, and naturally her reporter friend Michael Behan makes an appearance. As usual, the period details are spot-on and fascinating, Jane is delightfully snappy and curious, and I for one was kept guessing as to who was the real perpetrator until moments before the Big Reveal. A fast, fun read.
Jane is taking a week's vacation. She's visiting with her uncle, who raised her, at the home for former prostitutes which he runs. When one of them is brutally murdered in the street, sadly, it seems like just another statistic and predictable, (eliminating any reason to worry that murders follow Jane around.) A new resident of the house snuck out one evening, as the house was getting ready for an annual party they throw for themselves, and when Jane goes looking for the young woman, she finds her body in a nearby alley. When she isn't suspecting at all, is for the police, with the help of some protesting religious NIMBYs who want his house shut down, to finger her uncle as the prime suspect. Naturally, Jane has to find out who really did it to clear his name.
Meanwhile, she's roped into helping out with a department store's annual beauty pageant, where she meets an exciting and fun piano player, and naturally her reporter friend Michael Behan makes an appearance. As usual, the period details are spot-on and fascinating, Jane is delightfully snappy and curious, and I for one was kept guessing as to who was the real perpetrator until moments before the Big Reveal. A fast, fun read.
March 31, 2021
I started reading the Jane Prescott series when the first book, A Death of No Importance, released in 2018. I was quickly drawn into the story of Jane Prescott's life as a lady's maid for the elite. I am happy to say that the books seem to get better and better with each new release, Death of a New American in 2019 and this book, Death of an American Beauty. Jane is a wonderful character. As a lady's maid, she has access to many delightful and many less than delightful characters. The 1910s was a time of a lot of change in New York. We are given a front row seat to the the beginnings of many upheavals to come. I do recommend reading the series in order, if possible, as Jane's story builds throughout the series, but you can certainly enjoy each book on its own as well. I am really looking forward to reading the next in the series!
Thanks so much to Minotaur Books for the gifted copy in exchange for an honest review!
Thanks so much to Minotaur Books for the gifted copy in exchange for an honest review!
January 21, 2020
The novel takes place during the Gilded Age in New York City. The protagonist, Jane, works as a maid for a mrs. Tyler and lives in her uncles house of refuge for women. When two of the women are savagely murdered Jane wants to find out who antagonist is.because her uncle is a suspect. Throughout the novel she selects different men only to find out they are not the villain. Mrs Rutherford of Rutherford Department store is putting on a American Beauty pageant and Jane must decide. whether or not to work as a seamstress or enjoy her holiday.. (which will become relevant later on.). The novel beautifully describes the characters and Jane’s obsession with each one. She seeks out Otelia a woman who was at the home after being cut on her face to find out what she remembered about the attack but Otelia only remembers that she had cut him on his wrist. At the end of the story Jane figures out who the antagonist is, but is caught by him and is fighting for her life when she is saved by Otelia who shoots the man. Otelia is then accused and no one believes Jane that Otelia had saved her life. The evidence is in the man’s safe but his wife won’t let the police open it. Finally Jane convinces a reporter that she had thought was the villain and had stirred up the accusations against her uncle to write a campaign to have the safe opened. Once the safe was opened and the antagonist was verified Otelia was let out of prison.
The novel explores how the black people were treated during this timeframe. I have not read the first two novels in this series but this novel stands on it’s own. Thanks to St. Martin Press and netgalley for allowing me to review this novel.
The novel explores how the black people were treated during this timeframe. I have not read the first two novels in this series but this novel stands on it’s own. Thanks to St. Martin Press and netgalley for allowing me to review this novel.
April 16, 2020
I'll admit it. I could not wait until the killer was revealed, because Jane Prescott kept running down all the wrong assumptions and I couldn't take it anymore, so I flipped to the back of the book to see who the murderer was and then returned to the story. I'm going to tell you right now that the hints were so subtle, you're not going to find out who the murderer is until Jane does.
I really liked how well Fredericks painted NYC in 1913. The city is on the cusp of new ideas and changes as women relish in a little more freedom, artists discover new ways of dissecting the human form, gangsters rule, and women are learning to become more independent business owners.
I really loved Otelia Brook's character. I loved how she found her way, despite the sorrows she suffered, and the obstacles she faced being a black woman. She created her own notoriety in secret. She didn't want anyone to know she was the woman who created these amazing hats for special people. I also loved that she owned her own salon and had women working for her, while she sat in a back room making hats all of the time.
Fredericks created lovable characters, and did an amazing job describing New York in 1913. I felt like I could see it and feel it before all of the skyscrapers took over the island.
As for the murder mystery part of the book, like I said, you won't figure it out until Jane does. There are no clues. NONE. Until she explains the clues were always there and then you realize how subtle they were.
I really liked how well Fredericks painted NYC in 1913. The city is on the cusp of new ideas and changes as women relish in a little more freedom, artists discover new ways of dissecting the human form, gangsters rule, and women are learning to become more independent business owners.
I really loved Otelia Brook's character. I loved how she found her way, despite the sorrows she suffered, and the obstacles she faced being a black woman. She created her own notoriety in secret. She didn't want anyone to know she was the woman who created these amazing hats for special people. I also loved that she owned her own salon and had women working for her, while she sat in a back room making hats all of the time.
Fredericks created lovable characters, and did an amazing job describing New York in 1913. I felt like I could see it and feel it before all of the skyscrapers took over the island.
As for the murder mystery part of the book, like I said, you won't figure it out until Jane does. There are no clues. NONE. Until she explains the clues were always there and then you realize how subtle they were.
April 19, 2020
I really enjoyed this book! I especially liked the description of 1913 New York, the glittering glamor of the wealthy and the seedier realistic working class. We also get glimpses into the music scene and journalism in the early 20th Century.
The mystery part of the book kept me guessing and I didn’t figure out the murderer until the very end.
This is the third in a series and I hadn’t read the first two books so it took me a few chapters to get the characters straight. I do wish I knew more about Jane so I want to go back and read the other books in the series!
This book was received as an ARC from St. Martin's Press - Minotaur Books in exchange for an honest review. Opinions and thoughts expressed in this review are completely my own.
The mystery part of the book kept me guessing and I didn’t figure out the murderer until the very end.
This is the third in a series and I hadn’t read the first two books so it took me a few chapters to get the characters straight. I do wish I knew more about Jane so I want to go back and read the other books in the series!
This book was received as an ARC from St. Martin's Press - Minotaur Books in exchange for an honest review. Opinions and thoughts expressed in this review are completely my own.
August 24, 2020
Lady's maid Jane Prescott is supposed to be on vacation, and plans to spend the week enjoying herself, and living at the refuge for ladies of the street run by her clergyman uncle, where she grew up. But her sweet mistress needs her help for the pageant society ladies are putting on at New York's newest department store. Meanwhile, a girl living at the refuge is murdered, and the do-gooders who'd like the refuge out of their neighborhood blame uncle. A second death, and Jane is on the trail, helped by a friendly newspaperman and a songwriter who plays the piano for the pageant. An enjoyable look at New York in 1913, which faces some of the same social problems that we do today.
January 25, 2022
4.5 Rounded up. Very well written. I have not read the other two books in the series and had no problems following this one.
Jane is a likeable heroine. Ex-prostitutes are being murdered, and she wants to find out why. There's a lot in here, including a hard look at racism in America, the difference between reported news and reality, the horrors of classism, and of religious extremism. And yet it truly is a murder mystery, with suspects, clues, red herrings, and all that is required to allow an amateur sleuth to stumble toward the final truth of the matter.
Better than the average rating, imo. A solid book.
Jane is a likeable heroine. Ex-prostitutes are being murdered, and she wants to find out why. There's a lot in here, including a hard look at racism in America, the difference between reported news and reality, the horrors of classism, and of religious extremism. And yet it truly is a murder mystery, with suspects, clues, red herrings, and all that is required to allow an amateur sleuth to stumble toward the final truth of the matter.
Better than the average rating, imo. A solid book.
August 15, 2020
A good read but if you are looking for a cozy historical read this isn't exactly for you. No doubt there is a lot of historical details and attitudes accurate to the time but the deaths and some subjects explored are anything but light reading. On the other hand, it isn't as heavy as Anne Perry books.
The mystery wasn't that hard to guess but it was well plotted.
Jane Prescott, as a lady's maid, is a very good character as the main lead. She has access to both the upstairs and the downstairs of society and her upbringing definitely exposed her to the gritty reality of life, not the glitter of the upper class.
The mystery wasn't that hard to guess but it was well plotted.
Jane Prescott, as a lady's maid, is a very good character as the main lead. She has access to both the upstairs and the downstairs of society and her upbringing definitely exposed her to the gritty reality of life, not the glitter of the upper class.
August 22, 2021
Lady's maid Jane Prescott becomes entangled in a tense situation when several women are brutally mutilated near her uncle's refuge and he strangely refuses to alibi himself. As she endeavors to prove his innocence as murders continue, Jane is introduced to a potentially new romantic interest to keep readers guessing who she ultimately ends up with.
Unfortunately, while the previous two books were focused on refreshingly engaging plots, intelligent dialogue and characterizations, here the author was more interested in providing a plethora of historic and socially referenced context that destroyed pacing, more akin to a pedantic vent. I sincerely hope that the fourth in the series returns to recapture its previously engaging charm.
Unfortunately, while the previous two books were focused on refreshingly engaging plots, intelligent dialogue and characterizations, here the author was more interested in providing a plethora of historic and socially referenced context that destroyed pacing, more akin to a pedantic vent. I sincerely hope that the fourth in the series returns to recapture its previously engaging charm.
May 4, 2020
Full review can be found here: https://www.criminalelement.com/revie...
June 14, 2021
You learn much more about Jane in this book.
August 15, 2021
I really enjoyed this book. Suspenseful. Good representation of the era. Well written characters. I want to read the other books in the series!
June 26, 2022
I have enjoyed all of the Jane Prescott books so far, and DEATH OF AN AMERICAN BEAUTY proves that they keep getting better and better. I listened to this on audible, and I did not want to stop listening. Jane is such a likable narrator and protagonist, and the mystery had me guessing up until the very end. I also found this book particularly relevant to today's issues. Fredericks shows us that their is a great deal to learn from history, if we just pay attention.
March 25, 2024
Interesting mix of characters and the fact that it was based on a true story made it more engrossing for me. It dragged a little in the middle but I kept going and overall I enjoyed it.
September 9, 2020
Another great read in the series!
February 14, 2022
Fun, entertaining, love Jane, Otelia, Louise, the Duchess, Leo, and of course Michael... curious about the epilogue, left me wondering what's next.
May 29, 2020
All of the books in the Jane Prescott series end up being heavier in terms of subject matter than I seem to expect before reading, but that doesn’t make them any less enjoyable and satisfying.
Charming heroine Jane is back for a third round of amateur detective work in Death of an American Beauty, this time focusing on a string of crimes related to her Uncle and his business.
The murders in this one are grisly, as are the backstories of some of the victims, but Fredericks again proves a deft hand at tackling such subject matter without excessively downing out the reader, as she has in her previous novels.
The lovable cast of supporting characters both lightens the mood and helps us continue to further invest in Jane and her world. Jane’s uncle plays a larger role in this book and the Benchleys a smaller one than in the previous novels, but the shift in focus seems to help keep the series fresh. And thankfully we see very little of the horrid Anna in this book, though she still manages to be thoroughly obnoxious even in the few paragraphs she’s allotted this time around.
While the solve is a bit banal and fairly predictable, it’s still one that satisfies and adds up with the information we’re given throughout the book prior to the big reveal.
And speaking of big reveals, there’s a reveal of a fun side plot point at the end of the book that hints at something enjoyable and different for the fourth installment in the series. I look forward to it.
*I received an ARC of this book in exchange for an honest review.-*
Charming heroine Jane is back for a third round of amateur detective work in Death of an American Beauty, this time focusing on a string of crimes related to her Uncle and his business.
The murders in this one are grisly, as are the backstories of some of the victims, but Fredericks again proves a deft hand at tackling such subject matter without excessively downing out the reader, as she has in her previous novels.
The lovable cast of supporting characters both lightens the mood and helps us continue to further invest in Jane and her world. Jane’s uncle plays a larger role in this book and the Benchleys a smaller one than in the previous novels, but the shift in focus seems to help keep the series fresh. And thankfully we see very little of the horrid Anna in this book, though she still manages to be thoroughly obnoxious even in the few paragraphs she’s allotted this time around.
While the solve is a bit banal and fairly predictable, it’s still one that satisfies and adds up with the information we’re given throughout the book prior to the big reveal.
And speaking of big reveals, there’s a reveal of a fun side plot point at the end of the book that hints at something enjoyable and different for the fourth installment in the series. I look forward to it.
*I received an ARC of this book in exchange for an honest review.-*
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