Favorite Quotes:

Sometimes stories are in the people whose life’s pages no one thinks of turning…

Reggie didn’t have the privilege of choice when it came to finding gainful employment. Economic times had fallen hard for those with numerous skills she didn’t possess.

She almost missed having someone to rush home and apply red lipstick for. Someone to turn in front of a mirror and adjust her skirt for. Someone she would watch the clock to be fashionably late for…

They both knew Luca had a past. Heck, anyone seeing that suave Valentino gait would know Luca Valari had a past. And probably a present.

There are layers and layers of crime here. You’d think it was a chocolate cake.

“He’s too good looking to be sinister,” Nate reassured with a wink at Hamish. “Besides, he doesn’t have the right mustache.”

Hamish couldn’t help but follow Reggie with his eyes. He hadn’t known fabric could cling like that. The material of her dress knew what it was doing…

My Review:

It took me several chapters to ease into this tale and acclimate to the writer’s style. This was a slowly developing story with tons of details that filled my head and initially appeared merely observational yet gradually most of these ancillary tidbits dovetailed into a finely woven tapestry. This was a thoughtful and insightful read that included, gangsters, mystery, a bit of pining romance, family drama, humor, Bostonian history, and one character’s interest in the newly created Superman comics.

Murder at the Flamingo kicked off a new series and was my first time reading the talented scribblings of Rachel McMillian. Ms. McMillian has a unique writing style and provided a complicated and intriguing plot populated with distinctive, intriguingly flawed, and complex characters. Her writing was highly descriptive calling forth sharp visuals that included not only the sounds and sights but also set the emotional tone for each scene. What I struggled the most with was the lack of communication between the characters as they all seemed so secretive and furtive, as such, the majority of the book consisted of the observations and inner musings of the highly captivating two main protagonists who aspired to be Nick and Nora from The Thin Man movies, although, unfortunately, they were lacking the adorable Asta.

Murder at the Flamingo takes you back to the 1930s when the nightclubs were packed with glamours ladies and dashing young men. Hamish has come to Boston to live with his cousin after being humiliated in his first court case. He is looking for a fresh start. Reggie is a former debutante looking to escape her parents and become an independent woman. The didn't count on getting caught up in a murder investigation.

For me, the mystery part of the book was just OK. It wasn't too hard to figure out what was going on so that part made the book a bit slow. What I liked most about the book were the characters. I loved Hamish. It's not often that you read about a male character with anxiety. Especially one in the 1930s. He was such a sweet guy and interesting character. I adored his conversation with his father toward the end of the book. Reggie was intriguing as well. A woman willing to turn her back on her pampered life in order to find herself and become independent wasn't common back the either. She was hilarious and a strong-willed. They are definitely characters I would want to read about again.

After young Toronto attorney Hamish DeLuca has a panic attack in court, he escapes to Boston, where his debonair and slightly shady cousin Luca Valari is preparing to open a glamorous new nightclub. As Hamish finds himself carried along in Luca's wake, he meets his cousin's receptionist Reggie Van Buren, another new arrival in the city who is escaping her circumscribed life as a Connecticut socialite/heiress.

Tightly wound Hamish and madcap Reggie are a couple right out of the straight out of the screwball comedies they both admire. They soon turn into a slightly bumbling version of Nick and Nora Charles as they investigate a murder that takes place on the nightclub's opening night.

Author Rachel McMillan's keen eye and rich detail make the book a fun read. But, the murder itself -- and the resolution -- almost seem like afterthoughts after going so deep into the period details. Still, it's a good read, and, apparently, the first in a series of Van Buren-DeLuca mysteries.

I received a complimentary copy of this book from Thomas Nelson through NetGalley. Opinions expressed in this review are completely my own.

I confess to it! I will give up and admit that I was not expecting to fall so very much in love with Mr. Hamish Deluca. But oh my stars!! He is a delight from the first pages to the last and by the time I closed the book, I was thoroughly convinced that I wished he were real. He and Reggie both, of course! And the atmosphere that surrounds them, the city of Boston itself, is very like a secondary character in the book. I was so utterly swept up into the glittering magic of Ms. McMillan's clear love of this city which permeates every aspect of the story. Decadent, delightful, and so wonderfully filled with quirky, extraordinary, likable (and unlikable!) characters, this is a feast for the reader who dares! :D

Firstly, can I just repeat? HAMISH IS AWESOME.

Okay. Now that I've gotten that off my chest, let me just give you a few short reasons why I think so. (At least, I promise I will try to keep my gushing short! ;) It's his properness, mixed with a bit of an adventurous side that struck me at first. And watching him struggle through dealing with his anxiety and panic just further endeared him to me. He is like a shy little puppy, who has all this amazingness inside of him just waiting for someone to notice and encourage it. He's unlike any other character I've ever met, but I mean that in all the BEST ways! I think what it really boils down to is that he's attempting to find himself. He has all this awesome inside, yes, but he's very unaware of it, especially in the beginning. This beautifully written story is his journey to discovering all the amazing parts of himself and realizing that the flaws he'd imagined he has were just that, his imagination. He simply has to learn that for himself though, no amount of telling him so will suffice. It must be experienced! And watching his gradual awareness and growth, as he finally begins to trust himself, brings such glorious moments! I am unashamed to tell you that he's my favorite. (As you, no doubt, have already figured out, right? ;)

Oh, but then there's Reggie! She has quite the journey herself and it's not any easier for her either. Watching the two of them work through their struggles (while dipping and dodging the crackling chemistry between them! *swoon*) and come through to the other side so much stronger...ah, it does my heart good. But it's not just their individual journeys that take center stage, Ms. McMillan has quite the murder mystery for them to solve! This is where the city truly comes alive. As the two circle around everywhere, searching out their answers, the mix of unconventional secondary characters who cross their path makes for so much fun. (Especially Luca and Nate, both of whom are quite unforgettable themselves!) Life in 1930s Boston is full of excitement and secrets, some of which are easily found out and others not so much. This setting is so lovingly described that I could easily picture every building and back alley, kudos to Ms. McMillan for that! One gets so swept up inside the time period that, when real life intruded while I was reading, I was much frowny-faced!

Oh! And I shouldn't forget the awesome little callbacks to Ms. McMillan's first series, Herringford & Watts. So many mentions that made me grin, yet so many questions I'm still anxious to figure out!

From beginning to end, this story was a delight to my senses. So full of charm and fun, I could not read fast enough. And I closed the last chapter with a heart full of Hamish and Reggie! Excited for book two, yet quite satisfied to go back and be enchanted all over again. And it's a good thing too, since I have such a long wait for the next one! Humph. :D Read it, friends! I promise you won't regret meeting Hamish. (But just remember, I totally saw him first! Well, after Ms. McMillan and Reggie, of course. ;)

**I received a complimentary copy from the author via Thomas Nelson & Netgalley. All opinions expressed are my own.

I am a big fan of historical mysteries so I dived into Murder at the Flamingo enthusiastically…and waited for someone to die but my word, it was a long wait! There was a lot of character building, unknown motives and suggestion but very little actionor investigating. The characters spent a lot of time in introspection and wondering at what the future holds. The actual murder, which does occur, as the title indicates, is simply resolved so it was a little disappointing on that front. The writing is eloquent and the characters interesting, I may have enjoyed it more if it was framed as a murder mystery so it’s a three out of five for me.

I received a complimentary copy of the book from Thomas Nelson through NetGalley. Opinions expressed in this review are completely my own.

The plot took a long time to build and it has just not grabbed my attention. To many pieces seems contrived. Couldn't finish it.

While I did enjoy the very descriptive narrative about Boston’s sights and sounds, I simply did not connect very well with this story. While I found it interesting to find that one of the main characters suffered from an anxiety/panic disorder, I never really felt that invested in any of the characters. The plot line was a bit muddled for me, and the murder from the title didn’t occur until 56% into the story. And to be honest, I was never really clear on whether it was an intentional or accidental death. It may have just been me, but I found the writing flow a bit confusing and stilted at times.

Thanks to #NetGalley and #ThomasNelson for providing the free ARC. The opinions are strictly my own.

With Rachel McMillan’s distinct historical voice and attention to detail, she paints a vivid historical mystery with a hint of romance against the backdrop of a brilliant 1930s Boston scene. In her distinct way, she makes the setting a secondary character of its own, vocal and important in its culture and story role. With a fabulous puzzle solved and room for more adventures to come, the city comes to life as the characters grapple with loyalty, independence, anxiety, and purpose.

Hamish and Reggie are endearing, quirky, enigmatic, and just plain lovable. Even secondary characters like Luca (whom you will dislike/love/want to hug all at once!) and Nate (and his wonderful candidness!) are sure to be favorites and promise to be even more essential in stories to come. And I just want to hang out with Reggie and watch films of the time!

Fans of McMillan’s previous Herringford & Watts series will be ecstatic to learn of the “next” generation (Hamish is a DeLuca, after all) and see tiny nods to the previous series and a familiar name or two!

Let’s stop right here and talk about Hamish. He is SUCH a product of his parents! But, he is his own kind of special, quirky, and important. Through his unique viewpoint, Rachel McMillan illustrates the challenges of mental illness — namely anxiety and panic — in a normalizing and emphatic way. This makes him wonderfully relatable — even for a reader with no personal experience with such challenges (like myself). I applaud her for using characterization to subtly bring awareness and empathy to the forefront in a way that adds so much to the story.

I could talk all day about more wonderful elements of this story — lemon cannolis, bicycles, jazz, picture shows, DANCES, light bulbs, classic literature, and an implied message of grace. Instead, I hope you choose to discover for yourself all the intricacies and fun of this little mystery.

I cannot wait to see where these beloved characters will take me next!

MANY thanks to Thomas Nelson for the review copy.

This historical mystery begins when two 20-somethings run away from home. Separate homes.

Hamish DeLuca runs away from his home in Toronto, Regina Van Buren runs away from her home in New Haven Connecticut. They both end up in Boston in the midst of the Depression, and they both end up working for, or with, Luca Valari as he performs all the wheeling and dealing necessary to open his high-class nightclub, The Flamingo.

Hamish intended to end up with Luca. Luca is his cousin, his favorite cousin. And the only person who ever seems to have treated Hamish as normal and not as “poor Hamish” afflicted with a nervous disorder. Hamish has severe panic and anxiety attacks. His most recent, or most embarrassing, occured in the middle of a courtroom as he attempted to defend his first client. In the aftermath, he discovered that even the job he thought he’d earned had been given to him as a favor to his father.

Hamish ran off to Luca.

Reggie ran away from her upper crust family and her upper crust boyfriend when said boyfriend decided to announce, in the middle of a huge family party, that he and Reggie were engaged. They weren’t. He hadn’t even asked. The force of the slap she administered could be heard echoing all the way to Boston. Or so it seemed.

She packed a bag and ran away, intending to make a life for herself away from her family’s privilege, money and restrictions. Luca hired her to answer his phone and stave off his creditors, not necessarily in that order, and to provide a touch of class to his new establishment.

Reggie and Hamish find themselves, and each other, working with Luca. But the trail of slimy double-dealings has followed Luca from Chicago to Boston – and it catches up with them all.

Escape Rating B: This is the first book in an intended series. Book 2, Murder in the City of Liberty, scheduled for publication next spring. As such, it has to carry the weight of all the worldbuilding for the series, and it’s a lot of weight.

The characters of both Hamish and Reggie are interesting, and Reggie in her exploration of Boston’s working class precincts is a lot of fun, but they cut themselves off from their backgrounds, leaving a lot about where they respectively began more than a bit murky.

But not nearly as murky as the character of Luca Valari, around whom so much of the story resolves. Luca seems to be absolutely dripping in charisma, and Hamish certainly hero-worships him. Reggie is grateful for a job opportunity that does not involve being groped and ogled, and is caught up in his spell to some extent, but not in a romantic sense. Still, she’s aware that Luca has something that makes people want to please him.

However, while it is obvious fairly early on that Luca is up to his eyeballs in something at least slightly dirty, neither Hamish nor Reggie are savvy enough to figure out exactly what, or how much, until it is far too late. Unfortunately for the reader, Luca is so good at keeping his secrets that even after all is supposedly revealed, it still feels like some things remain lost in that murk.

This is also a very slow building story. The titular murder does not occur until the mid-point of the story, and it is only then that things begin to move into a higher gear. While the introduction to the characters and their situation is interesting, it takes rather long to get to the meat of the story.

Murder at the Flamingo, as hinted at by its art deco inspired covers, takes place in the late 1930s, post-Prohibition, pre-World War II and in the depths of the Great Depression. This isn’t a period that has been seen a lot previously in historical mystery, so readers may not be as familiar with this setting as, for example, the “Roaring 20s” or the WWII time frame. More grounding in the setting might have been helpful.

If this time period interests you, another historical mystery series set in the 1930s, the Jake and Laura series by Michael Murphy, is worth taking a look at. The first book is The Yankee Club, and it comes at the period from a different perspective as both Jake and Laura, while doing well by the time the story begins, both had a much more hardscrabble upbringing than either Hamish or Reggie.

I liked Hamish and Reggie more than well enough to stick around for their next adventure. I want to see if Quasimodo manages to figure out that he really is Superman, and gets the girl after all.

I did not expect that this book would be as fantastic a read as it was, from the setting of Boston in the 1930's, to the most unique and appealing main characters, Hamish DeLuca and Regina Van Buren. Hamish flees Toronto after he freezes during a summary at court, where he ends up staying with his cousin, Luca. Luca is involved in some shady business, opening the club, the Flamingo, and Hamish gets embroiled in the mess. Reggie is fleeing her cushioned life in New Haven from a wealthy family and a boyfriend who announces their engagement before asking her, and ends up working for Luca. When Hamish and Reggie meet, their relationship starts to develop as they begin to solve a murder. Intelligently written, wonderful characters, with a look back into Boston in the '30's, I highly recommend this first in a hopefully successful mystery series.

Really likeable main characters, especially Hamish who suffers from panic attacks. Interesting to read about them in the context of the story and the time period. The plot was choppy and all over the place though.

I am completely, utterly, and totally in love with Hamish DeLuca. And yes, it really was necessary to use all three of those adverbs together.

So, why do I love Hamish DeLuca? Let me count the ways…

1. His vulnerability. Hamish has what we, in the modern world, would now recognise as an anxiety/panic disorder. That plays havoc with his confidence, but he actually has a hidden well of courage that he only begins to discover in this novel.
2. His loyalty. I’m not sure I can put this into words. But do I really have to? I mean, loyalty is loyalty. You’ll just have to read the book to experience it for yourself.
3. His dancing. I love a guy who can dance, and boy does he have the moves. Sadly, I doubt I would do him as much justice as a partner as Reggie does…
4. His bookishness/intelligence. He’s a smart guy, our Hamish. And he’s observant and intuitive. He’s a deep thinker and a deep feeler, and…*sigh* How could anyone NOT love that?!
5. His single dimple. Okay, so I’m being a bit superficial now, but—hello! Dimples! Or dimple, in Hamish’s case. Slay me! <3

Okay, but in all seriousness, none of these things would have been half so endearing if it wasn’t for the wonderfully vivid characterisation by Rachel McMillan. Reggie is equally enchanting, albeit in a more forthright way, and together, they are well on their way to becoming a favourite detective duo of mine.

But Rachel McMillan doesn’t just capture the heartbeat of her characters; she captures the energy of 1930s Boston and its nightclub scene as Luca prepares to open The Flamingo. It’s a vibrant world full of varied characters, brought to life through imagery-rich description and attention to detail.

I suppose I should mention the murder. Should I? Nah. You can find out all about that yourself. But I will say Hamish and Reggie definitely bested me in figuring it all out. I’d take my cap off to them if I were wearing one!

Needless to say, I’ll be eagerly anticipating Hamish and Reggie’s next adventure!

This book is a both a coming of age story and a murder mystery that will keep reader guessing. McMillan does a fabulous job bringing to life Boston in the 1930’s and readers will feel as though they are there. The characters in this story draw you right in and you can’t help but keep reading to find how they grow and chance. Hamish suffers from anxiety and panic attacks, making him an interesting character and at the same time highly relatable.  Reggie’s determination and gumption make her loveable. She is a character you can’t help but root for. If you like literary fiction with a mystery, or enjoy America in the 1930’s as a setting then you should definitely pick up this book!

This one is another delightful book from Rachel! The characters are a lot of fun, and I enjoyed the mystery. I love that Rachel has a style all her own!

Murder at the Flamingo is an excellent start to a glamours series and old school Boston that made me crave for more.

Hamish DeLuca arrives in 1937 Boston to stay with his cousin, Luca Valari. Luca intends to open a new high end dance club, The Flamingo, and would like to use Hamish’s skills while also using the connections of his secretary Regina 'Reggie' Van Buren.
This is a slow paced, well-written mystery, with well-drawn out characters which allows the scenes to be set before a body is finally discovered. Then Hamish and Reggie want to find the killer.
A good and enjoyable start to this new series.
I received a complimentary copy of this book from Thomas Nelson through NetGalley. Opinions expressed in this review are completely my own.

Wow, fellow readers. Just wow. There is so much I loved about Murder at the Flamingo, so get ready for some gushing about Rachel McMillan’s newest book.

First, there’s Boston. Seeing the city through Hamish’s eyes and learning some of the history from Nick had me ready to plan a vacation right then and there. McMillan did her research and wove it into this story so well the city came to life.

Then there’s the relationships. Luca and Hamish—cousins who are more like brothers. Hamish and his father. Reggie and Hamish. Nick and well, everybody. I just wasn’t ready to leave any of these characters (at least we have more books in this series to spend more time with this group).

And Hamish, dear, sweet Hamish. The man is kind-hearted and intelligent, yet his attacks can paralyze him at times. While I (thankfully) have not personally experienced anxiety attacks, McMillan seamlessly put me into Hamish’s mind during these episodes, I felt like I got a front row seat to what happens in the heads of those who struggle with this.

I thoroughly enjoyed McMillan’s Herringford and Watts series, but Murder at the Flamingo has lifted to an entirely new level. Entertaining, engaging and astounding (in the best kind of way), you don’t want to miss this book.

Disclosure statement:
I receive complimentary books from publishers, publicists, and/or authors, including NetGalley. I am not required to write positive reviews. The opinions I have expressed are my own. I am disclosing this in accordance with the Federal Trade Commission’s 16 CFR, Part 255.

A delightful read for those who love the glamour of the 1930s. This book is an ode to Boston and a testimony to the resilience of the human spirit. It is a journey of self-growth wrapped inside an intriguing mystery. Who’s the villain? There are many good culprits. But the hero is never in question. Hamesh DeLuca is a hero to love, the question is whether Reggie can see him that way.

While the beginning of this book seemed slow and a bit overly descriptive, it helped to set the atmosphere for the story, in my opinion. A very good start to a series I look forward to reading. Mysteries set in the 1930's have so many possibilities it will be interesting to see where this series goes next. I received a copy from NetGalley and the publisher and this is my honest opinion.

To call this a mystery or a thriller is a bit misleading. You have to get half way through the story before a murder occurs. I almost stopped reading it because the first third of the book was quite boring. Most of this book feels like someone talking about their own mental illness through the voice of Hamish.....one of the main characters. I like character development in a story but these characters were overly developed and I think the plot got somewhat lost as a result. I loved the time period (1937 Boston) and the attempt to make this feel like a Thin Man/Nick and Nora-type plot. It almost succeeds and I think if this author writes another book involving these characters she may actually accomplish that. And maybe in the next book it can be more about Hamish and their detective agency solving some crimes and less about his anxiety disorder. I received a complimentary copy of this book from Thomas Nelson through NetGalley. Opinions expressed in this review are completely my own.