Aubrey Hamilton Reviews: Murder on the Last Frontier by Cathy Pegau

Murder on the Last Frontier by Cathy Pegau (Kensington, 2015) is the first of three books about Charlotte Brody, a journalist and suffragist who leaves her comfortable life in New York to start over again in a new place after a failed romance. Set in 1919 when Alaska was not yet a state, the journey itself involved a cross-country train trip to Seattle and then a week-long boat ride up the west coast. Her destination was Cordova, a settlement of about 1000 people including the Native Americans, where her physician brother had gone the year before in response to an advertisement for doctors in the Alaskan Territory.

Cordova lacked the structural amenities Charlotte took for granted in New York. Dirt streets and few automobiles meant dust or mud everywhere. The sight of trousered women startled her at first. However, the mountains and the glaciers behind the town were glorious. Her planned articles for a magazine back in New York were almost going to write themselves, she could tell. Her thoughts took a different direction when the badly beaten body of one of the local prostitutes was found a couple of days after her arrival. Her journalistic instincts led her to turn amateur sleuth, despite the disapproval of her brother, the deputy marshal, and the leading ladies of the town.

This book should not be mistaken for a cozy. It has a detailed description of an autopsy. The assaults on women demonstrating on behalf of the vote come up more than once, as well as Charlotte’s personal experience with them. Abortion is discussed as a viable form of birth control.  Prostitution is one of the few ways women could earn money at the time and is acknowledged as such.

This appears to be Pegau’s first mystery; she has published romances previously. The mystery is the weakest part of the plot. Multiple suspects were identified but only a couple of them had a serious motive. A red herring subplot didn’t divert my attention for long. Still, there is a lot to like about this book. A scenic location well described, fresh characters with a realistic mix of strengths and shortcomings, a strong sense of contemporary social mores and customs, and an interesting time in the history of Alaska. For fans of historical mysteries and amateur sleuths.

 

·         Publisher: Kensington (November 24, 2015)

·         Language: English

·         Paperback: 288 pages

·         ISBN-10: 1496700546

·         ISBN-13: 978-1496700544

 

Aubrey Hamilton ©2021

Aubrey Hamilton is a former librarian who works on Federal It projects by day and reads mysteries at night.