★ 03/07/2022
Vivian Kelly, the courageous protagonist of this excellent series launch set in 1924 Manhattan from Schellman (the Lily Adler mysteries), shares a tenement apartment with her older sister, Florence. Florence is serious and practical, but Vivian, who loves to drink and dance, is a regular at the Nightingale, a speakeasy, and often comes home at dawn before having to toil as a seamstress during the day. Her friends at the Nightingale, all of whom are distinctive characters readers will care about, include bartender Danny Chin, waitress and singer Bea Henry, and Nightingale owner Honor “Hux” Huxley. When Vivian and Bea find a dead man in the alley behind the club, they wonder if he was a bootlegger, but Hux forbids them to talk about it. After the cops raid the speakeasy, Hux bails Vivian out of jail. In return, Vivian agrees, after the cops find the victim’s wallet with his ID in it, to spy on the dead man’s family to determine whether they can help find the killer. Schellman vividly evokes Jazz Age Manhattan as Vivian proves to be a most imaginative sleuth. Readers will eagerly await her return. Agent: Whitney Ross, Irene Goodman Literary. (June)
A BookPage "Most Anticipated Mystery & Suspense" book of 2022! "Excellent . . . Vivian proves to be a most imaginative sleuth. Readers will eagerly await her return."—Publishers Weekly (Starred) "Last Call at the Nightingale is a sexy, fun romp through the Jazz Age. With a well-plotted mystery and applause-worthy female characters, readers will soak up this spellbinding read."—Michelle Gable, New York Times bestselling author of A Paris Apartment and The Bookseller's Secret "This sharply paced, queer murder mystery, set in 1920s New York City, offers equal amounts of atmosphere, danger, and crime-solving. Independent-minded and sometimes foolishly fearless, Vivian is a multi-faceted protagonist who immerses readers into this stunning tale. Schellman is at the top of her craft and delivers a murder mystery with clever twists and turns and memorable personalities."—Denny S. Bryce, Bestselling Author of Wild Women and the Blues "Katharine Schellman deftly evokes one of my favorite eras, the Jazz Age of 1920’s Manhattan. Complete with speakeasies, mobsters, and an unflappable flapper as its heroine, this is a book that should be savored with a glass of bootleg gin in one hand and a 78 of Louis Armstrong and His Hot Five on the gramophone."—Allison Montclair, author of The Right Sort of Man "Secrets and suspects abound as Vivian Kelly finds herself ensnared in a murder mystery at The Nightingale, a New York speakeasy, in this exciting and evocative series debut. Brimming with Jazz Age atmosphere, suspense, and a cast of engaging characters, Last Call at the Nightingale wonderfully captures both the decadence and the struggles of the Roaring Twenties, and Vivian is smart and gutsy, a character you’ll root for. I’m already looking forward to her next adventure!"—Ashley Weaver, author of the Amory Ames and Electra McDonnell series "Original, bold, and sexy, Katharine Schellman's Jazz Age New York isn't like anything you've read before. Beautifully paced, packed with evocative detail, this delicious mystery takes you to the Nightingale, a club where people can be who they really are, but everyone has secrets. Every character is memorable, from the sharp, vivacious heroine Vivian Kelly to the mysterious and alluring Honor Huxley. Dirty doings among New York's elite, family drama, and more than one love story make for a fantastic start to a great new series."—Mariah Fredericks, author of the Jane Prescott series
01/01/2022
This latest from the author of the LJ -starred Silence in the Library features Vivian Kelly, who trudges and drudges through a seamstress's job in 1924 New York, escaping nightly to a club called the Nightingale where the Charleston spills forth and the liquor flows illegally. Discovering a dead body behind the club reminds her how disposable the lives of unflashy people like her can be. With a 40,000-copy first printing.
2022-03-16 A Jazz Age murder thrusts a good-time girl into the uncomfortable role of secret shamus.
Young New York factory worker Vivian Kelly forgets her troubles on a nightly basis, aggressively drinking and dancing at the Nightingale, the speak-easy where Bea, her best pal, works. Amazonian owner Honor “Hux” Huxley polices the Nightingale with an iron hand, and the flirting of her sidekick, Danny Chin, can always be depended on to give Vivian a lift. Things take a darker turn one night when Vivian and Bea stumble on a corpse in the alley behind the club. Hux advises her to forget what she saw, but Vivian’s conscience won’t allow that. Nor can she give up her addictive nightlife, which eventually leads to her arrest during a police raid. Her bail comes with strings attached, and almost before she realizes it, Vivian isn’t free to leave her nights at the Nightingale behind. The more she learns about the victim, the more compelled she feels to find his killer. The trail begins with the grieving widow, who’d been a blushing society bride only a year before. Schellman lavishes many chapters on her colorful Roaring ’20s setting before moving the murder probe to the front burner, an understandable gambit in a series kickoff. Colorful period detail, providing insights into the social and political tenor of the times, might allay the impatience of traditional whodunit fans. Once the action gets started, Vivian nails the clever killer and finds a lover and potential sleuthing sidekick.
A colorful period crime yarn with a heroine worth rooting for.
“The suspense will keep readers guessing until the end."
BookPage (starred review)
“Touches on issues of segregation, poverty, and class divides with a deft hand that leaves plenty of room for a very satisfying murder mystery with a great deal of heart.”
“The mystery plot crosses lines of class, gender, and ethnicity. This novel plays with our expectations and keeps our attention on every fast-moving page. Highly recommended."
09/01/2022
Author Schellman (the "Lily Adler Mysteries") is back with a new series about The Nightingale, a hip and carefree speakeasy in Jazz Age New York City. Vivian Kelly dances to escape her troubles—she's an Irish American orphan who lives and works with her straitlaced sister, both barely earning enough at the dress shop to survive. When Viv discovers a dead body outside the club's back door, others think she saw the murderer, and soon she's engulfed in a tangled mystery of local rumrunners, Chicago gangsters, secret pregnancies, and entitled aristocrats. Open-minded Vivian isn't sure whom to love or trust—Honor, the sexy club owner, who asks Vivian to find the murderer and offers free drinks? Or Leo, the handsome stranger who mysteriously appears after the murder to rescue Viv from dangerous situations? Narrator Sara Young doesn't have many titles in her repertoire, but her confident and skilled approach make her a narrator to watch. She uses a Midwestern American accent for most of the characters, and Nightingale owner Honor has a delightfully sultry tone. VERDICT Traditional mystery readers and lovers of 1920s historical fiction will enjoy this subtly inclusive listen.—Sarah Hill
Sara Young brings Schellman’s new mystery series, set in the Roaring Twenties, to life with a smooth narration and unique voices for its diverse characters. Irish orphans Vivian and her sister, Flo, work as seamstresses by day. Looking for excitement, Vivian spends her nights dancing at a speakeasy called the Nightingale. Vivian’s voice is self-assured and flirtatious. Timid Flo sounds exasperated as she attempts to rein in Vivian’s wildness. When Vivian and her friend, Bea, discover a dead body in the alley behind the speakeasy, life suddenly becomes more dangerous. Honor, the owner of the speakeasy, who hires Vivian to investigate, has the self-assured voice of a person who is used to being obeyed. N.E.M. © AudioFile 2022, Portland, Maine