Silence in the Library (Lily Adler Mystery #2)

by Katharine Schellman

Overview

Regency widow Lily Adler didn't expect to find a corpse when visiting a family friend. Now it's up to her to discover the killer in the charming second installment in the Lily Adler mysteries.

Regency widow Lily Adler has finally settled into her new London life when her semi-estranged father arrives unexpectedly, intending to stay with her while he recovers from an illness. Hounded by his disapproval, Lily is drawn into spending time with Lady Wyatt, the new wife of an old family friend. Lily barely knows Lady Wyatt. But she and her husband, Sir Charles, seem as happy as any newly married couple until the morning Lily arrives to find the house in an uproar and Sir Charles dead.

All signs indicate that he tripped and struck his head late at night. But when Bow Street constable Simon Page is called to the scene, he suspects foul play. And it isn't long before Lily stumbles on evidence that Sir Charles was, indeed, murdered.

Mr. Page was there when Lily caught her first murderer, and he trusts her insight into the world of London's upper class. With the help of Captain Jack Hartley, they piece together the reasons that Sir Charles's family might have wanted him dead. But anyone who might have profited from the old man's death seems to have an alibi... until Lily receives a mysterious summons to speak with one of the Wyatts' maids, only to find the young woman dead when she arrives.

Mr. Page believes the surviving family members are hiding the key to the death of both Sir Charles and the maid. To uncover the truth, Lily must convince the father who doesn't trust or respect her to help catch his friend's killer before anyone else in the Wyatt household dies.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9781643857046
Publisher:	CROOKED LANE BOOKS
Publication date:	07/13/2021
Series:	Lily Adler Mysteries , #2
Pages:	352
Sales rank:	996,488
Product dimensions:	5.70(w) x 8.30(h) x 1.30(d)

About the Author

Katharine Schellman is a former actor, one-time political consultant, and currently the author of the Lily Adler Mysteries. A graduate of the College of William & Mary, Katharine currently lives and writes in the mountains of Virginia in the company of her family and the many houseplants she keeps accidentally murdering.

Editorial Reviews

06/07/2021

At the start of Schellman’s strong second Regency mystery (after 2020’s Body in the Garden), George Pierce, father of widow Lily Adler, comes to London, where Lily lives, to see a doctor. Mr. Pierce, who can be highly critical of his daughter, doesn’t have time to call on Sir Charles Wyatt, an old family friend who has recently remarried and could be leaving any day for the country, so Lily agrees to visit Sir Charles instead and convey her father’s respects. Sir Charles is not at home, but Lady Wyatt, his much younger wife, is, along with his son Frank, who’s Lily’s age and treats Lady Wyatt with disdain. The next day, Sir Charles is found dead in his library, and perceptive Lily, who has inserted herself into a Bow Street investigation before, immediately suspects foul play. In the end, Lily enlists her disapproving father’s aid to catch the culprit. Lively characters and an intricate plot keep the pages turning. Readers will look forward to Lily’s further adventures. Agent: Whitney Ross, Irene Goodman Literary. (July)

Publishers Weekly

Praise for Silence in the Library
“The fast-paced, engrossing story has a climactic confrontation worthy of Rex Stout or Agatha Christie.”
—Library Journal, starred review

"Schellman’s gracefully written whodunit is equally a tale of 19th-century female empowerment and societal conventions...More than a clever murder puzzle, this is an immersion in a bygone era."
—Kirkus Reviews

“Lively character and an intricate plot keep the pages turning.”
—Publishers Weekly

“Fans of Bridgerton will enjoy watching Lily, Jack, and their friend Ofelia Carroway pursue the truth.”
—Booklist

“A welcome return . . . Schellman's meticulous research puts the reader right in the heart of Regency London.”
—BookPage

“Refreshing . . . Fast paced, the characters are believable, the premise is a good one.”
—New York Journal of Books

“Schellman does a brilliant job bringing historical accuracy and clever characters to life.”
—San Francisco Book Review, 5-star review

Praise for The Body in the Garden:
“A perfect London crime novel and a masterful debut; fast-paced, expertly researched, and intricately plotted. I actually gasped when I got to the end!” —Alex Grecian, New York Times bestselling author

“[An] elegant, excellently-paced, and thoroughly engrossing mystery.”
—Ashley Weaver, author of the Amory Ames Mysteries

 "Fans of Tasha Alexander's Lady Emily mysteries will want to set aside space on their bookshelves for the adventures of widowed amateur sleuth Lily Adler."
—Greer Macallister, bestselling author
 
"Sensitive handling of class and race issues common to London in the early 1800s give the story depth...[A] smashing debut."
—BookPage, starred review
 
"Schellman's well-researched fiction debut uses nuanced, elegant prose to depict a fully realized world."
—Kirkus Reviews

"The mixed-race identities of her partners in crime solving and the methods through which they navigate London society add richness to the tale beyond mere Regency-era tropes.”
—Booklist

“Will appeal to fans of Catherine Lloyd.”
—Publishers Weekly
 
“An incredibly charming debut mystery. I look forward to more of Lily’s adventures.”
—San Francisco Book Review, 5-star review

“If you need a truly enjoyable start to a new historical murder mystery series, this is your book.”
—BookRiot, Unusual Suspects Newsletter
 
"Katharine Schellman’s 1815-set debut has all the glittering trappings of the era, while examining the privilege and racism at its core."
—BookPage

From the Publisher

★ 07/01/2021

Lily Adler, a widow living in 1815 London, is appalled to see a commotion in front of her home. Her father, George Pierce, has arrived unexpectedly, planning to stay with Lily while he visits doctors. The two don't get along, so she escapes, offering to visit her father's old friend Sir Charles Wyatt, who has recently remarried. When they arrive, Lily and her late husband's best friend Captain Jack Hartley discover a great deal of tension in the Wyatt household, where Sir Charles's son Frank is rude to his new stepmother, and Frank's cousin Percy has just stolen money from his uncle. That's nothing compared to the uproar when Sir Charles is found dead the next day. The Wyatts claim that he fell, but shrewd Bow Street constable Simon Page knows he was murdered and enlists the help of Lily and Jack. He believes the Wyatts might confide in them, even as they ignore Bow Street. Despite his disapproval of her lifestyle, Lily enlists her father's help for a final showdown with a killer. VERDICT Although the second "Lily Adler" mystery (after The Body in the Garden) incorporates issues of racism, classism, women's independence, and neurodiversity, Schellman never forgets that it's a mystery. The fast-paced, engrossing story has a climactic confrontation worthy of Rex Stout or Agatha Christie.—Lesa Holstine, Evansville Vanderburgh P.L., IN

Library Journal

2021-04-14
A patriarch’s murder disrupts the families of both the victim and the sleuth.

London, 1815. The unexpected arrival of her bullying father, George Pierce, shakes the fragile equilibrium of young widow Lady Lily Adler. Pierce even manages to insult courtly Capt. Jack Hartley, who’s been Lily’s most faithful supporter and friend ever since the death of her husband, Freddy. A social call on Pierce's longtime friend Sir Charles Wyatt and his new young wife turns awkward when Thomas the footman is accused of stealing a large sum of money, greatly upsetting his sister, Ellen the maid. The observant Lily dazzles the group by accusing Sir Charles’ nephew Percy, who turns out to be guilty. When Lily and Jack visit the Wyatts the next day for a horseback outing, they’re shocked to learn that Sir Charles has been murdered. This puzzling crime gives the fledgling sleuth an excuse to stay away from her new home on Half Moon Street, where Pierce has settled in for an indefinite visit. Impassive investigator Simon Page of the Bow Street Runners undertakes the investigation; Lily turns on the charm in order to piggyback onto his probe and strikes out on her own with Jack as wingman. Suspicion naturally falls upon heirs like Sir Charles’ devoted son, Frank, Pierce’s godson. Schellman’s gracefully written whodunit is equally a tale of 19th-century female empowerment and societal conventions. Depth of character and persuasive historical detail keep the pace leisurely.

More than a clever murder puzzle, this is an immersion in a bygone era.

Kirkus Reviews

Smart, observant, and charming widow Lily Adler is back for a second installment of Katharine Schellman’s Regency mystery series, narrated in a lively voice by Henrietta Meire. Attempting to distance herself from her overbearing father, Lily befriends the new wife of his old friend Sir Charles Wyatt, only to have Sir Charles turn up dead under what Lily deems peculiar circumstances. When Bow Street Constable Simon Page fails to share her concerns, Lily and the dashing Navy Captain Hartley set out to investigate. There’s more than the usual Regency frippery here. Meire gives subtle vocal distinctions to a full cast of upper-crust and below-stairs characters. Her brisk clip keeps the action moving. S.G. © AudioFile 2021, Portland, Maine

DECEMBER 2021 - AudioFile