Gosh I didn't realize it has been a month since I posted here. Not a very good blogger lately. Had a lot going on in May and June and time flew by. (oh, not meant to be a pun)
I wanted to show you what I got in my Strand Bookstore subscription box this week.
Our June Mystery Book Club read books that won Awards or were nominated for awards this year.
My book that I read was I Heard a Fly Buzz When I Died (Emily Dickinson Mystery #2) by Amanda Flower. Yes, that Emily Dickinson.
This book was nominated for an Agatha Best Historical Novel award. The first Emily Dickinson mystery, Because I Could Not Stop For Death, won an Agatha for Best Historical Novel in 2023.
About:
"When a literary icon stays with the Dickinson family, Emily and her housemaid Willa find themselves embroiled in a shocking murder in this new mystery from USA Today bestselling and Agatha Award–winning author Amanda Flower.
August 1856. The Dickinson family is comfortably settled in their homestead on Main Street. Emily’s brother, Austin Dickinson, and his new wife are delighted when famous thinker and writer Ralph Waldo Emerson comes to Amherst to speak at a local literary society and decides he and his young secretary, Luther Howard, will stay with the newlyweds. Emily has been a longtime admirer of Emerson’s writing and is thrilled at the chance to meet her idol. She is determined to impress him with her quick wit, and if she can gather the courage, a poem. Willa Noble, the second maid in the Dickinson home and Emily's friend, encourages her to speak to the famous but stern man. But his secretary, Luther, intrigues Willa more because of his clear fondness for the Dickinson sisters.
Willa does not know if Luther truly cares for one of the Dickinson girls or if he just sees marrying one of them as a way to raise himself up in society. After a few days in his company, Willa starts to believe it’s the latter. Miss Lavinia, Emily’s sister, appears to be enchanted by Luther; a fact that bothers Emily greatly. However, Emily’s fears are squashed when Luther turns up dead in the Dickinson’s garden. It seems that he was poisoned. Emerson, aghast at the death of his secretary, demands answers. Emily and Willa set out to find them in order to save the Dickinson family reputation and stop a cold-blooded fiend from killing again."
August 1856. The Dickinson family is comfortably settled in their homestead on Main Street. Emily’s brother, Austin Dickinson, and his new wife are delighted when famous thinker and writer Ralph Waldo Emerson comes to Amherst to speak at a local literary society and decides he and his young secretary, Luther Howard, will stay with the newlyweds. Emily has been a longtime admirer of Emerson’s writing and is thrilled at the chance to meet her idol. She is determined to impress him with her quick wit, and if she can gather the courage, a poem. Willa Noble, the second maid in the Dickinson home and Emily's friend, encourages her to speak to the famous but stern man. But his secretary, Luther, intrigues Willa more because of his clear fondness for the Dickinson sisters.
Willa does not know if Luther truly cares for one of the Dickinson girls or if he just sees marrying one of them as a way to raise himself up in society. After a few days in his company, Willa starts to believe it’s the latter. Miss Lavinia, Emily’s sister, appears to be enchanted by Luther; a fact that bothers Emily greatly. However, Emily’s fears are squashed when Luther turns up dead in the Dickinson’s garden. It seems that he was poisoned. Emerson, aghast at the death of his secretary, demands answers. Emily and Willa set out to find them in order to save the Dickinson family reputation and stop a cold-blooded fiend from killing again."
In the books, Emily considers Willa, the maid, more of a friend than a maid. They are about the same age, Willa is smart and independent. Emily looks to Willa to talk things out, be her escort when going out of the house and assist in solving this latest mystery.
Besides being a good mystery, I like the Emily Dickinson books for their historical aspect. I have always like biographies, especially about people that lived in the 1800's, early 1900's. Even as a child.
When comparing the information about the Dickinson family, to Wikipedia, it is accurate. Emily, her sister Lavinia, her brother Austin and his wife, Emily's parents. Amanda Flower has captured their personalities also as written down in Emily's biographical information. I also like that the two books capture and discuss issues of the time.
In this book, one of the topics is immigrants and how they are treated, the prejudice against them. (hmmm sound familiar) In the late 1800's, people were immigrating from Italy and Ireland to name a few. This books shows how people thought they could only do manual labor, drank too much, and couldn't be trusted. Several of the characters are Abolitionists, as was Mr. Dickinson in real life. The Dickinson's are sympathetic to the immigrants and freed slaves of the time, in the book.
The women's issues are another topic. In the book, Emerson tells Emily her poetry is very good, but she should write under a man's name or it will never get published.
Emily Dickinson's personality and her real life "quirks" are also captured. Willa describes observing Emily staring and going into herself more and more. She does not socialize or seem interested in finding a husband. The title of the book, A Fly Buzzed by When I Died, is the informal title of a poem Emily wrote on her deathbed.
Amanda Flower has also written the first in a mystery series with Katherine Wright, sister of the Wright brothers, as the main character. It is called, To Slip the Bonds of Earth.
Amanda and her husband have a farm and have rescued several cats. Two of the most recent rescues are named Willa and Katherine.
http://www.amandaflower.com/
I plan to write a post with some of the award winners and nominees from our MBC, next.
Hope you enjoy The Bones of the Story and I thought this Amanda Flower story sounded good when you told us about it. Glad you got to enjoy the chocolate!!
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