A Deadly Endeavor: A Novel

by Jenny Adams

Overview

A serial killer is on the loose in Jazz Age Philadelphia in Jenny Adams’ debut historical mystery, perfect for fans of Deanna Raybourn and Rhys Bowen.

Philadelphia, 1921. When Edie Shippen returns home after spending years in California recovering from Influenza, she’s shocked to discover that her childhood sweetheart is engaged to her twin sister. Heartbroken and adrift, Edie vows to begin living her life as a modern woman—and to hell with anyone who gets in her way. But as young women start to disappear from the city, her newfound independence begins to feel dangerous.

Gilbert Lawless returned home from the Great War a shell of his former self. He hides away in the office of Philadelphia’s Coroner, content to keep to himself until a gruesome series of corpses come into the morgue. And when his sister, Lizzie, goes missing, he risks his career to beg help from the one person Lizzie seemed to trust: her employer, Edie Shippen.

Fearing the worst, Edie and Gilbert desperately search for clues. It soon becomes clear that Lizzie’s disappearance is connected to the deaths rocking the City of Brotherly Love...and it’s only a matter of time until the killer strikes again.

With a lush Roaring Twenties setting and a wickedly smart sleuth to cheer for, A Deadly Endeavor is the perfect puzzling romp for fans of Miss Fisher's Murder Mysteries.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9781639106950
Publisher:	CROOKED LANE BOOKS
Publication date:	03/05/2024
Series:	A Deadly Twenties Mystery , #1
Pages:	352
Sales rank:	159,630
Product dimensions:	5.60(w) x 8.30(h) x 1.30(d)

About the Author

Jenny Adams has always had an overactive imagination. She turned her love of books and stories into a career as a librarian and author of novels for adults. She holds degrees in Medieval Studies and Library Science from The Ohio State University and Drexel University, and currently lives in Alexandria, Virginia with her family.

Editorial Reviews

01/22/2024

In Adams’s spirited if haphazard debut, a beautiful young socialite and a working-class coroner become embroiled in the search for a serial killer in 1921 Philadelphia. Edie Shippen has recently returned to Philadelphia from California, where she recovered from the Spanish flu, only to discover that her twin sister is engaged to her former lover, Theo. Wounded, Edie resolves to become a sexually liberated “modern girl.” Meanwhile, coroner Gilbert Lawless, a former WWI medic, uses morphine to cope with his combat trauma and the untimely death of his wife. When Gilbert’s sister, whom Edie has just hired as her new maid, goes missing, the two team up to find her, and quickly discover that someone may be targeting and brutally murdering “modern” young women all across the city. Edie and Gilbert’s investigation—which sees the pair falling somewhat predictably in love—takes them to a gin palace, a boxing match, and the office of a fraudulent medium, among other locations, each of which Adams infuses with fascinating historical color. She never quite strikes the proper balance between grit and froth, however, seesawing between descriptions of violent slaughter and passages about Edie’s wardrobe and her pug, Aphrodite. The result is an uneasy blend of dark thriller and silver-spoon cozy. Agent: Amy Giuffrida, Belcastro Agency. (Mar.)

Publishers Weekly

Praise for A Deadly Endeavor:
“Spirited . . . [A] blend of dark thriller and silver-spoon cozy.”
—Publishers Weekly

“Expect plenty of surprises in a period tale in which love conquers all societal differences.”
—Kirkus

“Readers who enjoy a good Upstairs, Downstairs- or Downton Abbey-styled drama should try this.”
—Booklist

“Sparkling prose, deft plotting, a vivid setting, and a captivating mystery are brilliant feathers in A Deadly Endeavor's stylish cap, but the charming, complex characters elevate it to a bona fide knockout. Adams has crafted real gems in the heartbroken yet irrepressible duo of Edie Shippen and Gilbert Lawless, whose chemistry crackles like fireworks. This book is an utter delight.”
—Claire Legrand, New York Times bestselling author of Furyborn

“With charming, fully fleshed characters that leap off the page, Adams creates an enticing world of high society and intrigue, interwoven with a deadly intent. A masterful whodunnit, flavored with period detail and a sprinkle of romance.”
—Jennifer Ryan, bestselling author of The Kitchen Front

“Jenny Adams's first historical mystery reads like anything but a debut. After Adams throws together war-damaged Gilbert Lawless, now working as a coroner's assistant in 1921 Philadelphia, with forlorn society girl Edie Shippen looking for meaning in her life, this story unfolds in well-drawn scenes that keep the reader awake and madly turning pages. The pair fight against a deluded villain for their families, for the disappearing young women in their overlapping circles, and for each other. A Deadly Endeavor, a compelling must-read, is the definition of the bee’s knees.”
—Edith Maxwell, Agatha Award-winning author of Charity's Burden

“Daring. Delightful. Dangerous. A Deadly Endeavor is atmospheric and gorgeous. Jenny Adams weaves beautiful human characters and an incredible mystery, culminating in an impeccable whodunit.”
—Nekesa Afia, author of the Harlem Renaissance series

“Adams has created a beautiful, messy, utterly believable world that is so very satisfying to sink into–a shell-shocked country where everyone is dancing as fast as they can in the hopes they can convince themselves they’re not falling to pieces. You’ll end up dancing right along with her pair of fractured heroes, as invested in their desperate attempt to rebuild themselves as you are in finding the killer. It’s a glittery, Jazz Age cocktail of gin and champagne and blood that feels startlingly modern in the best of ways.”
—Stephen Spotswood, author of the Pentecost & Parker series

“Jenny Adams wraps a compelling mystery and achingly real characters in the glamor, grit, and nuances of the 1920’s.”
—Kate Khavari, author of the Saffron Everleigh mysteries

“A Deadly Endeavour is a delicious cocktail of Jazz Age thrills, serial murder, and rich people behaving badly. Toss in the sexy alliance between a traumatized World War I doctor and a burgeoning flapper, and I ask—what's not to love?”
—Kimberly G. Giarratano, author of Death of a Dancing Queen and Devil in Profile

“A stellar debut mystery! With complex and engaging characters, a suspenseful mystery, and vivid descriptions of life in Jazz Age Philadelphia, A Deadly Endeavor is a dazzling delight. I hope to see a lot more of Edie and Gil!”
—Ashley Weaver, author of the Electra McDonnell series

From the Publisher

2023-12-16
A serial killer terrorizes women in 1920s Philadelphia.

Socialite Edie Shippen, who’s been a shadow of her former self ever since influenza nearly killed her, returns from three years on the West Coast battling depression and migraines to find Frances, her twin sister, engaged to Edie’s lifelong love, Dr. Theo Pepper. At the same time, Dr. Gilbert Lawless, the brother of Edie’s maid, Lizzie, continues to have debilitating flashbacks to his experiences in the war and works at the morgue because he doesn’t trust himself with living patients. He’s one of the initial viewers of the body of a headless woman found on a creek bank, drugged and electrocuted. She’ll be the first in a series of gruesome murders. Living in her grandmother’s mansion, where she feels restricted by old-fashioned ideas and the strain of putting on a brave face, Edie joins some of her free-spirited cousin Rebecca’s activities in an attempt to become a modern woman. Before the war, Gilbert, who’s from a vastly different world than Edie, had married a society girl, who died in childbirth, leaving him with a daughter his wife’s family rejected. Edie and Gilbert meet after she’s mugged and Lizzie takes her to have him check out her injuries. The next corpse found on the creek bank has also been electrocuted and divested of all her organs; when she’s identified as Rebecca, Edie springs into action. Lizzie disappears too as the slaughter continues, and Gilbert and Edie develop a relationship that turns them into sleuths and lovers desperately seeking a ruthless killer.

Expect plenty of surprises in a period tale in which love conquers all societal differences.

Kirkus Reviews