Wonderful, beginning to end! I feared we had seen the last of Finch’s excellent Charles Lenox mysteries; the last was published in 2021, and up to that point, the installments had been annual. The Hidden City is a triumphant return, set shortly after 2021’s An Extravagant Death, which took Lenox to the U.S. and returned him near mortally wounded. The passage of time has increasingly been at the forefront of Lenox’s mind (he has now, as we are told often, passed 50). And while we meet many old friends again—Lady Lenox, two (!) daughters, McConnell, Edmund, Graham, and London itself (which Lenox adores)—like Lenox, they are all changed, some new phases of their lives not as comfortable a fit for them and Lenox as the old. Always among the more introspective fictional detectives, Lenox feels absences keenly, most notably those of his mother, sister-in-law, and a cousin, whose daughter’s arrival from India with her lifelong friend is the focus of much of this story. But not all of it, because, as usual, many plots are moving forward at once—from a puzzle involving Lenox (and Graham’s) former housekeeper, to Lady Jane’s publicly taking up the cause of suffrage, to the trajectories of Graham and Edmund’s unexpected political careers, to Lenox’s continued struggle to regain his strength and old outlook as he recovers from his injuries. I devoured this book nearly in one sitting and was reminded of Finch’s deep research subtly deployed, elegant prose, keen observations and commentary, and evocative descriptions that allow the reader to see what Lenox sees or feel what he feels (whether his deep weariness, the brutal cold of the season, or the weight of moral demands). And there is snow, much snow—perhaps all designed to evoke the end of Joyce’s The Dead, with the snow falling all over London like Ireland, and Lenox coming back to life, newly determined that if he pass into that other world any time soon, it will be in the full glory of his passions.

I’d not read any previous titles in this series however I didn’t have any difficulty reading this as a stand alone. The history points were interesting as were the characters. The story was well written and I think it fits nicely in the cozy, historical drama genre.

Waiting a long time for the next instalment of this well written series. I was not disappointed. Great puzzling plot and secondary plots. Highly recommend this series.

First of all thank you so much to NetGalley and St Martin's Press for this ARC! In exchange for my honest review:)

I LOVE historical fiction but I have never read a historical fiction mystery but this book was a 5 star read for me soooo good! The writing is also beautiful and I felt like I was there in England it was hard to come back to reality after finishing this book! I can’t wait to recommend this book to all my followers family and friends:)

I can't tell you how loud I screamed when I found out St Martin's Press had approved my request for this ARC. I own a physical copy of all the Lenox books and it's - bar none - my absolute favourite historical mystery series. I'm never as relieved as when I see that another book is in the works. It's just superb and the best of its kind.

The Hidden City was so incredibly wonderful - I read it in one sitting as I always do with these books - and it does what few series do, which is have the main character grow. Lenox is a happily married man with two daughters - I loved little Clara in this, who has all the makings of a detective - and a loving wife who's taken more than a passing interest in women's suffrage. Lenox is a gentleman, still recovering from the near-death experience he went through in An Extravagant Death (still to this day one of my absolute favourite books in the series) when he's faced with two new challenges - solve a cold case to help dear Mrs Huggins, his former firm but fair housekeeper (flashback to one of my favourite funny scenes in the whole series where she pretends she's got a kitten situation under control when she very much does not) and make his cousin's daughter, Angela, and her friend, Sari, welcome in England when they've spent their entire life in India.

All three threads are fascinating - Lady Jane's passion for the vote, what Lenox ends up finding in the course of his investigation (a whole hidden city indeed for someone who's not unaware of the dark side of life but still enjoys an incredibly cosseted existence full of home comforts) and his new role as guardian to these two lovely young women who up till now knew nothing of England except what they'd read in books. All three stories make Lenox grow and change and acquire a newfound knowledge of himself, his class, and his time. This moved me so much.

But beyond that, the best part of The Hidden City for me is the reason why this series is the absolute best in historical mystery right now - its sense of place. For the course of a book, you are completely and thoroughly dropped into Victorian England and I had to blink myself back to reality when reading this, it was SO engrossing. The streets, the food, the smells, all the absolutely fascinating trivia about all sorts of things and all parts of Victorian society (the minuatie of politics, but also livery companies, the evolution in methods of detecting).

It's also deeply comforting - I know I'm going to be rereading The Hidden City over and over again, it's got that cosy quality that Finch's writing always has - the lovely descriptions of food, you never enter a place without being told what's beautiful about it and stands out, his family and circle of friends you always want to check on (the entire gang makes an appearance here, somehow unexpectedly my favourite one this time around was Skaggs, one scene in particular made me smile, it involves a piano, you'll know it when you see it).

I can't tell you how much I enjoyed this. Being able to read this now when it was probably my most anticipated release of the year and only comes out in November is nothing short of miraculous. I adored this book so much. The ending hints at many more adventures to come, even adventures abroad - thank god. When you've got something this good, you never want to let go.

My endless thanks to NetGalley and St Martin's Press for this ARC!