Rating:

When the Past Comes Calling

Author: P.B. Ryan

Nell Sweeny is forced to confront her troubled past. A young governess in post-Civil War Boston, she is ostensibly respectable. Childless, devoted, apparently unmarried. But, of course, Nell is none of those things. She is secretly pregnant thanks to the house’s infamous black sheep – Will Hewitt – a man torn apart by his own demons of addiction. She’s also married, her husband a violent criminal, in jail. Now the dead murderer found nearby is proven to be her estranged brother. Things are coalescing for Nell – the difference between the outwardly respectable life that she has built and the storm of repercussions to come. In the meantime, she wonders what her brother was doing in town. He was a petty thief, yes, but could it possibly be true that he had fallen even further into disrepute, that he had murdered and died, God-forsaken?

This was my first encounter with the Nell Sweeny series. Sadly, Bucket of Ashes is the last in a small, six-part historical mystery series focused on Nell’s rise from rags to riches. Along the way, she, of course, solves murders.

This conclusion book in the series is more interested in settling Nell’s personal life and her thwarted romance. But the mystery is poignant in that it connects past and future, bringing Nell alive emotionally. While I hadn’t followed her story previously, the author did a good job of setting up what had gone before, from Nell’s bad childhood to her abusive marriage, to her first affair, and then finally to her ill-fated love with Will Hewitt. I was engaged in what happened to Nell, and in finding out more about her. How did she end up in this form of life? Can she save herself now, or is her future one of rejection and social ostracism? Where will she go, with no family left alive? Will this terrible jail-bird husband of hers ever grant a divorce, and how long can she keep her air of respectability with a growing belly?

Image by Stefan Keller from Pixabay

Because of how drawn into Nell’s character and backstory I felt, I think that I would have probably rated Bucket of Ashes higher had I begun at the beginning and not randomly started on the series by reading the last book first. I am curious to go back, still, to learn how Nell came to where she was and to see her investigate less personal, more hard-boiled cases.

The mystery itself is secondary, but still satisfying. It suffers a bit from the usual mystery trope – the bad guy blabs too easily and under an infinitesimal amount of pressure and cleverness (read feminine wiles) from Nell; he confesses all to his own damnation (and hanging). It’s not likely, at all, and reads a bit too easily, but nevertheless, readers are satisfied. We needed the closure, and we didn’t expect a grand criminal scheme to unfold as Nell carefully followed up leads. It’s light, as far as mystery and reveal go, but still good.

I found Bucket of Ashes surprisingly enjoyable. The historical air added a tinge of scandal, as did Nell’s childhood as a minor criminal, and I was curious to see how such a scandalous figure could make her way through society and thrive. I even enjoyed the aided moment of a love triangle and Nell’s flagging emotions and decisions as she contemplated her brother’s final days. More than a mystery, this was a complicated character study. Now to go back to the beginning and start there!

– Frances Carden

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Frances Carden
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