Murder on Pleasant Avenue
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4.5 • 93 Ratings
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- $7.99
Publisher Description
When midwife Sarah and detective Frank Malloy’s friend and new partner Gino Donatelli is accused of murder, he and Sarah must catch the real killer to keep him alive, in this enthralling, new novel in the USA Today bestselling Gaslight Mystery series. . . .
A young woman is missing in the upper Manhattan neighborhood called Italian Harlem, and everyone knows whoʼs responsible—the Black Hand, a notorious group known for terrorizing their own community with violence and kidnappings. Gino and Frank set out to learn more about the disreputable gang and soon find a lead: a saloon-owning gangster named Nunzio Esposito.
Gino hates that a fellow immigrant would stoop so low and decides to confront his wayward countryman. But he quickly discovers the man can’t be reasoned with—because he’s been murdered. The police have only one suspect: Gino Donatelli.
Frank and Sarah know Gino is no killer, but someone has pulled out all the stops to make it look like he is guilty. They also must now face the Black Hand, who are honor-bound to avenge the death of one of their own.
With evidence mounting against their friend and a group of bad guys out for blood, Sarah and Frank race to unravel a treacherous plot before Gino’s time runs out. . . .
PUBLISHERS WEEKLY
In Edgar finalist Thompson's cleverly plotted 23rd whodunit set in early 20th-century New York City (after 2019's Murder on Trinity Place), PI Frank Malloy and his partner, Gino Donatelli, are approached by Donatelli's sister-in-law, Teo, who's distraught over the kidnapping of Jane Harding. Miss Harding, who worked at the Daughters of Hope Mission, an East Harlem settlement house with which Malloy's wife was once involved, disappeared after being stopped by an unidentified man on the street. Teo fears that the Black Hand, a notorious criminal organization, has abducted Miss Harding for ransom. The gang recently kidnapped the wife of the employer of Teo's husband, only releasing her after a month in captivity when the extortionate payment was raised. The efforts to rescue Miss Harding lead to a murder under circumstances that implicate Donatelli, forcing his friends to solve the crime to absolve him. Thompson makes effective use of real-life figures, such as Joseph Petrosino, one of the NYPD's first Italian officers. Fans of husband-and-wife sleuthing partners such as Thomas and Charlotte Pitt will be pleased.
