City in Shadow by Evan Marshall, a Mysterious Review.

Review: Anna Winthrop and her neighbor Nettie Clouchet are off on a dangerous quest in search of a woman who left a "Help Me" message on the street outside their apartment building in City of Shadow, the fourth mystery in this series by Evan Marshall.

Nettie, a "ghost blogger" and would-be author, is helping Anna move an antique desk from her apartment to the street where it can be picked up by its buyer, Grigori Sidorov. When he arrives with another man, Yuri, they notice what seems to be a frightened woman sitting in the cab. Nettie, who speaks a bit of Ukrainian, hears Grigori tell Yuri as they load the desk onto the truck, "If she gets away, I'll kill you!" When they leave, a slip of paper is found by the curb, with the words "Help Me" written on it. Nettie, always on the lookout for a story idea, hails a cab and follows the truck to its destination, a luxury building with a formidable looking doorman who refuses to allow her entry. Determined to get inside, she finds a maid who works there, and pays her $200 to get Anna in undercover, also posing as a maid. What they discover haunts them. Anna enjoys solving mysteries, especially those involving the "hidden Manhattan" few ever see, but this one may also cost her her life.

City of Shadow is a multi-layered mystery, populated with creatively developed characters with a storyline that is often as dark as its title implies. The innovative fast-paced plot, though, keeps the pages turning, Anna and Nettie a delight to follow. Anna's boyfriend, a NYPD detective, who (no surprise here) tries to convince her that it's folly to pursue potential criminals on her own, adds some legitimacy to their search for the frightened woman. Separately, Anna's cousin Patti from Cincinnati, in town for an extended visit, offers some welcome entertaining diversions.

Special thanks to guest reviewer Betty of The Betz Review for contributing her review of City in Shadow.

Acknowledgment: Evan Marshall provided a copy of City in Shadow for this review.

Dark Alley
Severn House (Hardcover), March 2010
ISBN-13: 9780727868350; ISBN-10: 0727868357

City in Shadow

An Anna Winthrop "Hidden Manhattan" Mystery by Evan Marshall