THE SEPTEMBER SOCIETY (Ama Sleuth/Trad Mys-Charles Lenox-England-Victorian) - G+
Finch, Charles - 2nd in series
St. Martin's Minotaur, 2008, US Hardcover - ISBN: 9780312359782
First sentence: The first murders were committed nineteen years before the second, on a dry and unremarkable day along the Sutlej Frontier in Punjab.
Charles Lenox returns to his alma mater when the wealthy mother of an Oxford student appeals to Lenox to find her missing son, George Payson is missing. Lenox finds one of George's best friends is also missing. The common clue is a card on which is the name "The September Society."
The biggest issue I had this with book was due to the apparent lack of a good editor. There was a lot of repetition. For me, it was distracting.
On the plus side is a cast of wonderful, realistic characters; Lenox, his manservant and friend Goodman in particular. I like that Lenox is taking on Dallington, the third, somewhat wastrel, son of a nobleman, as an apprentice and wonder whether this portends a shift in the series.
I learned a lot reading this book. There is a wonderful blend of creating a sense of the story's time and place-- the book also made me hungry as Finch would describe the menu of most of the meals--with providing historical information as well. I didn't know John Wesley and his followers were named "Methodists," originally a pejorative term, at Lincoln College, Oxford because of their dull, methodical ways as viewed by others. The author also includes information on the beginning of ballistic analysis.
I enjoy Finch's style for interjecting brief parenthetical information or explanations on things the reader may have noted or wondered about; i.e., "On the train once more that evening (the trips were becoming tedious)..."
The climax was a bit abrupt, but the ending had a very good twist. Overall, I certainly enjoyed the book and shall certainly read more by Finch.