Do you love Mary Shelley’s Frankenstein? Are you intrigued by Sherlock Holmes and the 19th century? If you answered yes then you will love Death and the sisters. It’s the story of Mary Shelley, her stepsister and how they happen upon a murder of their former classmate. Follow along as they figure out who murdered him. I would highly recommend it and give it 5 stars.

Death and the Sisters was a decent historical fiction mystery novel inspired by the lives of some of England's greatest Romantic poets and authors.

Mary Godwin and her stepsister Jane Clairmont both yearn for a more exciting and adventurous life than their parents have given them. Mary, daughter of the famed Mary Wollstonecraft, is not satisfied by being a shopgirl in her stepmother and father's bookshop. She wishes to make her way in the world as her mother did, with the pen. Jane, while less aspirational towards the literary arts, nonetheless is also dissatisfied with her lot.

However, when a young poet is mysteriously murdered in the bookshop after hours, the two girls will be thrown into the heart of the twisted and turning investigation into the culprate. What could the motive for the murder have been? Was the man mistaken for the dashing rogue Percy Shelley, a disciple of their Father who had dined at their home the very evening of the murder? Or was Mr. Campbell the intended target? Who in their circle is the guilty party? Can they discover the truth before the wrong person is hanged for the crime?

Overall, I found this novel a decent read but not much more than that. It was relatively well written and the plot moved at a decent pace but I feel like a lot of the choices made in the characterization of the characters didn't feel authentic to me. The personalities of the main characters of Mary and Jane felt too catty and shallow. I had a hard time believing they were these educated young women, daughters of some of the greatest literary minds of the time and exposed to other great literaries through the society they kept. I understand they were young and that these choices may have been made in order to highlight that fact but it still felt off to me.

There were also aspects of the overarching plot that felt like they came out of nowhere and didn't make sense to me. I don't want to say too much on that subject and give the plot away, but there were aspects of the motive for the murder that just seemed to start halfway through the novel without warning. If those aspects had been handled with a little more care with more of a careful lead-up to the revelation at the end I think it would have been a better story.

I don't regret my time reading this novel, but I don't know that it would be something I would pick up again or recommend to a friend.

Death and the Sisters by Heather Redmond is a great historical fiction and murder mystery that is the first in a new series: A Mary Shelley Mystery.

This is such a great start to a historical fiction series. I love how the author did her research and pulled in true events, locations, and people and incorporated them into a delicious murder/mystery concept .

Mary Shelley and the full cast of characters are divine. I loved the pacing, the dialogue, the occasional cheekiness, and the mystery itself.

Definitely interested to see where this goes.

5/5 stars

Thank you NG and Kensington Books for this wonderful arc and in return I am submitting my unbiased and voluntary review and opinion.

I am posting this review to my GR and Bookbub accounts immediately and will post it to my Amazon, Instagram, and B&N accounts upon publication on 9/26/23.

Weaving real historical figures like Mary Shelley and Percy Shelley into a historical London, Heather Redmond brings history to life in a baffling mystery, brimful of suspects.

Two sisters discover the body of a brutally murdered poet and take it upon themselves to discover who killed him.

Defying cultural norms in their quest for truth, they visit taverns, stranger’s homes, graveyards, and the apartments of single men.

Filled with twists and turns as confusing ass dark London streets, Death and Two Sisters will keep you guessing until the death-defying climax.

I was drawn to this book by the blurb I had no idea what I was gonna read but I'm honestly happy I did read this book. Gonna have to reread this book later on in the year. 5 star book. I couldn't put it down at all because it kept me pulled into it, Yes I do recommend this book and i already told a few people that they need to read this book when they get a chance to. I'm a bit speechless by it to because I really didn't know what this was gonna be about. but it looks like the author has a new reader. Cover I think fit into what the book is about and I do like it but that isn't what drew me to this book it was the blurb. I always read the blurb first before looking at the cover. 5 star book. not sure if this book is part of a series but it abostly needs a series big time. I need more from this book big time.

I really enjoyed this concept and it did everything that I wanted from the description. Heather Redmond had a great writing style and I enjoyed the use of Mary Shelley. I had enjyoed the previous series from Dickens of A Crime Mysteries series and glad that the author continued to write this type of book. It had a great concept for a mystery novel and loved the historical elements to this book. It left me excited to read more in this series and from Heather Redmond.

"There is no need to be polite about that woman,” Shelley said. “She is a most dreadful creature and has much to do with the failure of my marriage.” He inclined his head. “Thank you for the news, ladies. I will track them down tomorrow, since they have failed to find me.”