Customer Reviews

Streets of Fire

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In 1895 the third biggest city in America, Brooklyn is about to join New York and become one metropolis. Harper Weekly reporter Marshall Webb weakened the Tammany hall organization with his exposé articles, but he feels stale and wants to quit. His boss convinces Marshall to work one freelance while taking time to write novels. He needs Marshall to cover the pending strike between the Brooklyn Railroad and its workers who demand safer working conditions and more money.

A strike is called with most people sympathizing with the employees until someone kills a cop. Most people assume a striker murdered the police officer, but the victim's superior Buck Morehouse thinks otherwise. The mayor, who owns stock in the railroad, calls in the militia to kill anyone acting suspicious and does not care about collateral damage like the murder of a cop.

Marcus' girlfriend Rebecca Davies, who runs a women's shelter, is helping ex prostitute Vivian O'Connor set up a shelter targeting women wanting to get out of her former line of work. She calls it Sayre House after a girl she considered a friend was beaten to death. Several weeks later, O'Connor is killed; Rebecca, Marshall and Buck believe the homicides are linked, but they need to discover how.

Troy Soos provides a great atmospheric historical novel that gives readers a picture of the corruption in the police department and by local politicians during the Gay Nineties. The common person takes for granted that the powerful will abuse their positions as that is the accepted cost of being "protected" (sounds like politicians have not changed in over a century). The three prime protagonists of STREETS OF FIRE are fully developed and believable as they walk on the wild side of the streets of Manhattan and Brooklyn.

Harriet Klausner

Streets of Fire is the fourth in a historical mystery series featuring journalist Marshall Webb and Rebecca Davies, daughter of an affluent and prominent family.

Marshall is a writer for Harper's Weekly, and Rebecca runs a shelter for young women who have been abused or are homeless. Marshall also writes successful dime novels under the name, David A. Byrd.

It is 1895 in New York City and the city is preparing for a streetcar strike. The labor force is determined the trolleys will not run and the Mayor is just as determined that they will. The police are put on assignment to keep the tracks clear, and among the police is Buck Morehouse. This detective is at odds with the others in his precinct because he follows his own convoluted code of honor, refusing to become totally corrupted for it is that time when "financial hardship, labor unrest, political corruptions and police malfeasance" is the norm and survival is indeed of the strongest, the swiftest and the canniest.

When Vivian O'Conner, a well-to-do, retired prostitute asks for Rebecca's assistance in establishing a home for women who want to leave the streets and change their lives, Rebecca becomes aware of the callous disregard when prostitutes are murdered. However, before the shelter can be opened, Vivian is also murdered. Knowing the police will not investigate her murder, and suspecting it was not a random attack, Rebecca begins her own search for the killer and asks Marshall to enlist Buck's aid

Marshall Webb is known as a writer who is not afraid to report on serious issues, issues that do not always find favor to those in power. He has accepted an assignment to cover the strike that becomes violent and out of control, killing a policeman. As Marshall, Rebecca and Buck are seemingly following different paths of investigations, they soon converge in a surprise ending.

Author Soos is very skillful in recreating this time period and pulling you right into the mood of that era. His characters are strong and believable but the best is Detective Buck Morehouse, who steals the scenes.

Armchair Interviews says: Splendid characters make this a very good read.

I loved this book, one of the most enjoyable reads I have experienced in a long time. The writing flowed though a few different phases with unexpected turns throughout. It was not overly graphic or romantic, it was simply a story. It made me think of mysteries like Sherlock Holmes and Agatha Cristie. It really brought me back to my adolescence when I discovered these kinds of novels and my love of books. The back cover described the book like a Caleb Carr novel, but it was far less technical and not as pretentious as I felt the Aleinist and Angel of Darkness were. The characters of the story were simple, everyday people that you would meet in every day life. Their backgrounds were not developed beyond what was required for the novel, which I found to be a welcome change. An additional bonus to the story was the background plot of the railroad strike in Brooklyn at the time. I had never heard about it before, so it was a main part of the excitement for me. I became interested in what it described and briefly researched some of it. Hopefully, others will too. I'm adding Troy Soos novels to my wish list as if this book was any indication of his talents, I doubt I'll be disappointed by anything he writes. The only thing that I thought could have been improved was the ending. I thought it was too abrupt, but maybe it was because I wished the novel never ended.