Shadow of a Doubt is a neo-noir fantasy murder mystery and the first book in the Mirabel Sinclair mysteries by Jeff Reynolds. Released 7th Dec 2021, it's 336 pages and is available in paperback and ebook formats. It's worth noting that the ebook format has a handy interactive table of contents as well as interactive links and references throughout. I've really become enamored of ebooks with interactive formats lately.

This is fantasy noir aimed at the folks who enjoyed the Garrett Files (Glen Cook) and Kevin Anderson's oeuvre. There's a mean streets vibe with a young female former cop working as a PI who gets drawn into a deeply unpleasant magical murder and corruption plot trying to get to the bottom of her mentor's death. She's angry, idealistic, and impulsive, and it nearly gets her killed on a daily bases.

I found more appeal and a stronger rapport with the book's secondary characters, Mirabel's ally and friend (and love interest) Ingy and the quarter pixie receptionist Petunia than with the main character. Still, the bones of a good story are there and I enjoyed the read overall. I have a special soft spot for PI noir and especially fantasy PI noir and I will definitely pick up and read any follow-ups to the series.

Three and a half stars rounded up for the good story. I'm looking forward to what comes next.

Disclosure: I received an ARC at no cost from the author/publisher for review purposes

Shadow of a Doubt by Jeff Reynolds, a fun story. A noir style book involving dreams, magic, and others. very enjoyable.

Mirabel Sinclair, a detective’s assistant who’s chafing to run her own cases, gets her chance, and then some, in this alternate 1930s noir set in a Baltimore populated by humans, fae and fairy tale creatures (e.g., trolls, gnomes, etc.)

When her mentor and boss is murdered while they’re following up on the murder of his closest friend, Mirabel is devastated and filled with a desire for revenge.

Anti-immigrant, anti-Black, and anti-otherworldly beings sentiment is prevalent, and Mirabel’s friends, and the love of her life Ingrid, happen to fall within these categories. Mirabel knows she’s going to dealing with dangerous people and dangerous magic situations on her hunt, and she does spend a lot of her time getting shot, mostly by disregarding her friends wanting to back her up.

Thank goodness there is a fairly happy wrap-up to this story, though there are story threads left open for possible more tales in this fascinating world.


I appreciated the author's use of the time period and the detective story to comment on race and sexual orientation, as the wonderful Ingrid has to frequently kick Mira’s ass for her to remind her that Ingrid isn’t particularly safe anywhere as a Black woman, much less Mira’s troll and pixie friends, but that doesn't mean that Ingrid (or the others) should not have a right to choose what actions they take.

Regarding the magic—damn! Ingrid was amazing (in more ways than one) and I found Mira’s ability to work magic intriguing and frightening.
Though the author indicates in his Afterward that this is a one-off, I liked the world and the characters, and I’d be happy to read more in this setting.

Thank you to Netgalley and to SFWA for this ARC in exchange for my review.

Shadow of a Doubt (Mirabel Sinclair Mysteries by Jeff Reynolds sounded exactly like my kind of historical fantasy with a good dash of noir. I will say that it's a solid read, but unfortunately it doesn't really stand out from the crowd in terms of characters or world-building. The mystery and the twists are probably the best aspects. I was just hoping for more from the characters and I was hoping to learn much more about the world they live in as well.

4 stars for great bones and worldbuilding that could serve as the launchpad for an engaging series. In an alternate reality's hardboiled 1930's Baltimore populated by otherworldy species like trolls and elves as well as humans, Mirabel Sinclair chafes at her limited role as a detective's protégée A chance arises to prove that she's capable of taking on the role for herself: find a magical goose that lays golden eggs. But when the case turns deadly, her thoughts turn from proving her own worth to doing whatever it takes to get revenge.

I may not be the right audience for this story. It may be the difference between a reader of hard-boiled detective novels encountering one with a seasoning of fantasy elements versus a reader of fantasy novels (me) coming in with different expectations. The focus of the story is more on the pursuit of the case than on character development or exploration of Mira's use of magic. Beyond her angst about being unprepared and unworthy when the crap hit the fan, I was never able to get a good mental sense of the woman whose eyes we see the story through or the friends who served as her support and inspiration. Story-wise, the pace didn't click for me until several chapters in and decelerated from the expected sense of urgency at times when I would have expected the stakes to be even higher. Some clues Mira encountered felt too easily decipherable. A couple of elements of the larger puzzle had me backtracking to check if I'd misread details.

I really enjoyed this book, while i thought Sinclair had everything figured out, even I did not see that plot twist coming!

I wish we got to dive deeper into the world of magic, especially with Rowan and Mirabel, also the backgrounds of other main characters like
Jacob and Petunia.
I understand everything can't be explained in one book but I was hoping for a little bit more.

Special thanks to NetGalley, the publisher and the author for a free, electronic ARC of this novel received in exchange for an honest review

I appreciate the publisher allowing me to read this book. I really enjoyed this book and can't wait to read more from the author.