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Alice and the Assassin
Alice Roosevelt Mystery – Book I
R J Koreto

Crooked Lane Books
11 April 2017/ ASIN: B01MU8WVJ7
Mystery/Historical

Reviewed by Rachel A Hyde 

 

Secret Service agent, ex Rough Rider and cowboy Joseph St Clair is given the job of bodyguard to the headstrong and unconventional Alice Roosevelt. Daughter of the new president, she is used to having her own way, and what she most wants is to uncover more about the assassination of the last president, McKinley. Together the pair of them navigate the murky waters of New York high and low society in order to discover more, and soon things start to get deadly…

This is the first in a new series featuring Alice and her bodyguard, and it does a good job of setting the scene of New York in 1902. From a Mafia boss’s headquarters to China Town, seedy bars and tenements to the luxury of the Roosevelt’s home and the University Club, the author brings it all to life through the words of St Clair. He makes for an engaging protagonist, as does the seventeen-year-old Alice, independent and driven but naïve. They complement each other nicely, and this is a well told start to the series. Later books could use a more involved plot, as this is fairly simple, linear and not hard to guess. The pages turn fast, but this is more to do with the vibrant personalities of the sleuths and some of the other well described characters that move the tale along swiftly. I would read another in order to spend more time with them and immerse myself in such a interesting place and time.

Reviews of other titles in this series

Alice and the Assassin #1
The Body in the Ballroom #2

Reviewed 2017
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