Welcome to my stop on the A Child Lost blog tour sponsored by Suzy Approved Book Tours! Thank you to Suzy for the invitation!
About the Book:
A spiritualist, an insane asylum, a lost little girl . . .
When Clive, anxious to distract a depressed Henrietta, begs Sergeant Frank Davis for a case, he is assigned to investigating a seemingly boring affair: a spiritualist woman operating in an abandoned schoolhouse on the edge of town who is suspected of robbing people of their valuables. What begins as an open and shut case becomes more complicated, however, when Henrietta―much to Clive’s dismay―begins to believe the spiritualist’s strange ramblings.
Meanwhile, Elsie begs Clive and Henrietta to help her and the object of her budding love, Gunther, locate the whereabouts of one Liesel Klinkhammer, the German woman Gunther has traveled to America to find and the mother of the little girl, Anna, whom he has brought along with him. The search leads them to Dunning Asylum, where they discover some terrible truths about Liesel. When the child, Anna, is herself mistakenly admitted to the asylum after an epileptic fit, Clive and Henrietta return to Dunning to retrieve her. This time, however, Henrietta begins to suspect that something darker may be happening. When Clive doesn’t believe her, she decides to take matters into her own hands . . . with horrifying results.
My Thoughts:
A Child Lost is part of an established series, Henrietta and Inspector Howard, but I was able to read this as a standalone.
Clive begs Sergeant Davis for a new case to work on and ends up with an easy one, or so he thinks. A spiritual woman is taking advantage and robbing her clients of their valuables. It seems as if she’s guilty, but Henrietta thinks otherwise and actually listens to the woman.
Instead, Clive and Henrietta come on board with investigating Elsie’s concern- they are searching for a lost little girl, which leads them to an asylum.
A Child Lost is a complex story, one that shines a light on the horrors of asylums and the prejudices and misunderstandings of mental health from this historic time period. I really enjoyed “meeting” Clive and Henrietta, as well as the dynamic between them, and I think had I read more of this series, my experience would have only been enriched.
Overall, A Child lost is an entertaining and suspenseful mystery, and I’m grateful I read it.
I received a gifted copy. All opinions are my own.
About the Author:
Michelle Cox is the author of the multiple award-winning Henrietta and Inspector Howard series as well as “Novel Notes of Local Lore,” a weekly blog dedicated to Chicago’s forgotten residents. She suspects she may have once lived in the 1930s and, having yet to discover a handy time machine lying around, has resorted to writing about the era as a way of getting herself back there. Coincidentally, her books have been praised by Kirkus, Library Journal, Publishers Weekly, Booklist and many others, so she might be on to something. Unbeknownst to most, Michelle hoards board games she doesn’t have time to play and is, not surprisingly, addicted to period dramas and big band music. Also marmalade.
Have you read A Child Lost, or is it on your TBR? Happy Reading! ~ Jennifer THR
Uh, oh. A historical mystery series…my kryptonite! Thank you, Jennifer…I think😏 Off to check out the first book in the series. Wonderful review💜
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Oh, yes! This is right up your alley, Jonetta! Thank you! ♥️
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Wonderful review, Jennifer. 🙂 Horrors of asylums in the past needs to be talked about more. Thanks for the recommendation.
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Thanks, Debjani! I completely agree. We still have a ways to go with mental health so those kinds of conversations are important.
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I do love historical fiction that delves into asylums, I will definitely consider this series, thanks for putting it on my radar😁
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Thanks, Tammy! It was such an interesting mystery!
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Love Historical Mysteries. Glad you were able to dive into this one despite it being part of a series.
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Thanks so much! It was a great mystery!
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I am quickly becoming one of those who enjoy historical mystery series. Jonetta started it and I’m now attached. Wonderful review!
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Thanks, Anne! This series holds a lot of promise!
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Great blog tour and review, Jennifer! I love the picture especially the antique cup and saucer. I added this historical mystery to my tbr. Happy Reading! ❤️📚🍒😘💕
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Thank you so much, Virginia! I hope you enjoy this one and that you had a great weekend! ♥️
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Wonderful review Jennifer. I am not big on historical mysteries, but the topic of asylums and how the patients were treated is one I have read about and would definitely read more, so I will be checking this one out for sure.
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Thanks, Carla! Those kinds of stories have intrigued me too. I hope you get a chance to check this one out.
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It is great that this book can be read as a standalone story; however, I think I’d need to start from the beginning since this story seems quite complex! However, the incorporation of asylums is quite interesting due to complex (and horrible) history of how asylums used to function!
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So true, LP! I would recommend starting at the beginning, if possible, too!
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I’m assuming this can be read as a standalone? Great review, Jennifer! ANd the pic…yummmmms! What a healthy treat!!
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Thanks so much, Jee! Yes, I think it can! I was able to follow without having read the other books, BUT it made me want to read the other books too! 😂 ❤️
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Sounds like a difficult read, but a good one. Wonderful review, Jennifer!
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Thanks, Marialyce! It was!
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Great review,Jennifer. Glad you were able to enjoy this one even if you jumped in mid-series.
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Thanks so much, Diana! It was a great read!
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Anything to do with an asylum freaks me out, lol. This sounds good!
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They add a creepiness, don’t they, Jacquie! Thank you!
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Thanks so much for this lovely review (and gorgeous pic!), Jennifer!!! Thrilled that you enjoyed the book and so grateful for your feature. Very best!!
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Aww, thank you, Michelle! It was absolutely my pleasure! Thank you for the great read!
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Wonderful review, just yesterday I discovered another of this authors books ‘a girl like you.’
Will be adding ‘a lost child’ to my must read list 😊
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Thanks so much! I hope you get a chance to read this one!
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