Acting like a proper lady is the least of 17-year-old Josephine Montfort's concerns in These Shallow Graves, a riveting historical mystery-thriller from Jennifer Donnelly (A Northern Light; Revolution).
In 1890s New York City, a lady must know the rules for society, especially the things she's not to do. But Jo Montfort is "suffocating among the potted palms and porcelain" of Gramercy Square. Her lack of freedom makes her dream of becoming a reporter like Nellie Bly seem impossible. Coming to terms with her inevitable arranged marriage seems to be the biggest challenge Jo will ever face... until her father's untimely death. According to the police reports, Charles Montfort, "rich, well-connected, a pillar of society," accidentally shot himself while cleaning his revolver. Jo knows her father, though. He would never show such carelessness with guns. Certain that there's more to the story, Jo puts her investigative instincts to the test and enlists Eddie Gallagher, a handsome, ambitious, "rumpled and brash" young reporter, to help. Jo and Eddie's stealthy sleuthwork takes them from the cavernous morgue of Bellevue Hospital to the dangerous docks by South Street to a drunk man on Mulberry Street who warns, "Shallow graves always give up their dead." As they venture closer to the truth, darkness looms larger and those in the shadows do whatever it takes to keep their secrets buried.
These Shallow Graves succeeds as a wonderfully paced thriller, a heart-pounding romance and an unflinching look at the hard choices one young woman must make when society disparages her dreams. --Kyla Paterno, reviewer