Mysteries of the Early 20th Century
streetcarmysteries.com
    These parallel series follow the cases of Harry Reese, an insurance fraud investigator at the turn of the 20th century, and those of his wife, Emmie, an aspiring journalist with a keen interest in bodies floating in canals. While hewing to the tenets of the mystery story, the books simultaneously poke fun at the genre.

 
 


Harry Reese Mysteries


Crossings
Novel. In this second novel of the series, Harry is looking for a link between the apparent suicide of an insurance agent and the untimely deaths of two of his clients. It's the spring of 1901, a time when Brooklyn's own Willoughby Street was more than a match for Manhattan's Tammany Hall.

Humbug on the Hudson
Short story. This is an account of a case Harry investigates in Glens Falls, New York, during August of 1900 and the many surprises he encounters on his way to a solution.


Always a Cold Deck
Novel. In this first book of the series, Harry is sent to Buffalo to investigate a fire. But once bodies start appearing in canals, it's apparent there's more to the case than a simple insurance claim. It's July of 1900 and something is in the air. Is it the promise of a well-timed betrothal? Is it the smell of gunpowder? Or just the stench of a poorly drained canal?


Emmie Reese Mysteries


Hidden Booty
Short story. Finding themselves short of money at a fin de siècle French resort town, Harry and Emmie take on the job of solving the mystery of a missing shipment of gold. Emmie bargains to identify the culprits before their ship reaches New York. And that's not all she wagers on....

The Birth of M.E. Meegs
Short story. Emmie embarks on a career as a journalist under the pen name M.E. Meegs and soon after learns that her readership includes a man found dead in a Lancashire canal. While pursuing her career and doing some unusual freelance work at the racetrack, she solves the case through transatlantic correspondence.



Background Material

Glossary
Characters
Chronology
Going Places — A blog of historical research.  
 


About / Contact

streetcarmysteries.com

© Robert Bruce Stewart