It's Summer 1896 and while the Presidential campaign is in full swing NYC is being flattened by an unbearable heatwave.The violent murder of a newspaper owner and notorious blackmailer puts the city's Police Commissoner (Theodore Rososevelt) in a tight post because of the victim's connections with various big shots in the city (especially Wall Street) who are determined to sweep the crime under the rug.
Asked to drop the inquest, Roosevelt orders his assistant Otto "Rafe" Rafael to stop investigating. But Raphael refuses to let it get out of his sight and decides to launch his own investigation of the murder...

A captivating and highly entertaining whodunit and a very impressive portrait of NYC during its Gilded Age era. Corruption, greed, ambition, antisemitism, anarchy and political shenanigans are some of the ingredients that the reader will find in this adrenaline-fueled novel full of twists and turns, sparkling historical details and blessed with a cast of exquisitely drawn characters.

Historical fiction at its best and a wonderful slice of late 19th century American political and social life that deserves to be enjoyed without any moderation whatsoever!

Many thanks to Arcade/Skyhorse and Netgalley for this terrific ARC

3.5 stars. Weaving real historical figures in with his own, W.H. Flint tells of several days of terrible heat in New York City, and of the many people who died of heat prostration because of it, and adds a murder investigation to the misery of these days.

The murdered man was a publisher, but was actually a blackmailer, who made plenty off the wealthy robber barons and other business leaders of the city. Teddy Roosevelt was police commissioner of the time, and knew the blackmailed men. Actual Jewish patrolman Otto "Rafe" Rafael is given a promotion by author Flint as Roosevelt’s assistant. Rafe begins investigating on his own after reading the sketchy details in the coroner's report on the murdered man.

Flint rounds out his cast with a young woman who was the first female secretary in the New York Police department, and a young orphaned newsboy who saw something he shouldn't have, as well as anarchist plots against the wealthy of the city,

Rafe’s portrayal is based on Otto Rafael, the first Jewish police officer in New York City. The force was notoriously corrupt, though the author does not imply the real man was. Character Rafe slogs back and forth across the city in the crippling heat, tracking down people and clues, despite Roosevelt’s express orders to cease, as the questions get a little too close to the privileged rich men of the city.

The mystery was interesting, though the baddie was a little too obvious. I still liked this fictional interpretation of this period, and some of the stresses in the city due to immigration, outrageous wealth, bitter poverty, and corruption.

Rafe was determined and principled, and though the other characters were a little simply characterized. I still found this book enjoyable.

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

I liked this overall. It didn't have the polish of other similar stories, but it's certainly a respectable entry. I stayed mostly engaged and enjoyed most of the characters.

Thanks very much for the free ARC for review!!

The murder of newspaper publisher William Mann during the election year of 1896 sets in motion an interesting hunt for his killer by Otto "Rafe" Raphael, the first Jewish detective on the NYPD. Rafe is working as an aide to Commissioner Teddy Roosevelt who seems, at least initially, to be less gripped by the crime than expected. Mann antagonized many over the years and threatened an equal number with revelation of their peccadillos but who killed him? A young orphan knows- or at least he knows more than he should because he saw it. Don't miss the author's notes which identify the real people who make cameos or play roles. Thanks to the publisher for the ARC. This is good, albeit light, historical fiction.

Disappointing.

Has neither the precision of a crime novel nor the pizzazz of a noir piece to work. Every character is a stock creation with little nuance to them, and what little of that is there in the novel, Flint insists on spelling out just in case the reader happens to be a thickhead. More than anything, though, it's just dull. New York's troubles don't come alive, nor do Rafe's or Dutch's. Bland writing is just a criminal waste of a premise such as "Hot Time"'s.

Description (from cover): “For fans of The Knick, The Alienist, and The Last Days of Night, an entertaining, atmospheric crime thriller set in the Gilded Age.

New York, August 1896. A “hot wave” has settled on the city with no end in sight, leaving tempers short and the streets littered with dead horses felled by the heat. In this presidential election year, the gulf between rich and poor has political passions flaring, while anti-immigrant sentiment has turned virulent. At Police Headquarters, the gruff, politically ambitious commissioner Theodore Roosevelt has been struggling to reform his notoriously corrupt department. Meanwhile, the yellow press is ready to pounce on the peccadilloes of the Four Hundred, the city’s social elite–the better to sell papers with lurid stories and gossip or perhaps profit from a little blackmail on the side. When the body of Town Topics publisher William d’Alton Mann is found at the foot of the Brooklyn Bridge, any number of his ink-spattered victims may have a motive.

Hot Time is an immensely entertaining, deeply researched, and richly textured historical novel set in a period that reflects our own, with cameos by figures ranging from financier J. P. Morgan to muckraking journalist Jacob Riis. Our guides through New York’s torrid, bustling streets are Otto “Rafe” Raphael from the Lower East Side, one of the first Jewish officers in the heavily Irish force, who finds as many enemies within the department as outside it; Minnie Kelly, the department’s first female stenographer; Theodore Roosevelt himself; and the plucky orphan Dutch, one of the city’s thousands of newsboys, who may have seen too much.”

My Thoughts:

New York in the Gilded Age is an absolute darling time period to read about. The corruption in the city during this time is notorious and even more so in the New York Police Department. Theodore Roosevelt at this time is a police commissioner who has been working diligently to reform the police department and get rid of its corrupt ways. Facing battles from every corner, he is determined to make the police department one that the citizens of New York can respect and trust, which is no easy feat as police officers have been known to take bribes and be involved in crime themselves. Otto “Rafe” Raphael is the first Jewish police officer in a department full of Irish police officers and he is resolved to make a name for himself. When publisher William d’Alton Mann meets with Mr. Roosevelt one evening and is murdered the following day, Rafe is concerned that his mentor and hero may have been involved in the crime. Nevertheless, Rafe is set on figuring out the murder and who may have been involved at any cost.

From the slums of New York to the gilded homes of the Four Hundred, the author takes the reader through New York City in the middle of August 1896 where a “hot wave” has made life unbearable. Horses are dying in the streets, citizens are dying by the hundreds and tempers are easily set off due to the scorching heat with no relief in sight. When Mann’s body is found by the Brooklyn Bridge, Rafe is determined to solve the crime with the help of orphaned newsboy Dutch and no one, even the wealthy and famous, are safe from his suspicions and investigation. In the middle of the tumultuous summer of 1896 and a highly contested presidential election, the author weaves a murder mystery that is thoroughly engaging and highly attentive to details.

This book was a charm to read. The author did a lot of research regarding the main characters and the time period and it really shows throughout this book. Using descriptive details, the author paints a lovely murder mystery set in the middle of one of the worst heat waves in New York City’s history. One can only imagine what it was like for the people who lived during this time and the author does a fantastic job of setting the scene for the reader. I really hope that the author plans to make a series out of this as it was a phenomenal read and the characters were so well-developed and engaging that I hope they make a return in another installment. If you love historical mystery murders, you do not want to miss out on this excellent read by author W. H. Flint.

Overall Rating: 5 stars
Author: W. H. Flint

Series: N/A

Publisher: Arcade Crimewise

Publication Date: April 5, 2022

Pages: 245

Genre: Historical Mystery

Get It: Amazon

Disclaimer: This book was given to me by the publisher, through NetGalley, in exchange for my honest review. I reviewed this book without compensation of any kind. All thoughts and opinions are solely mine.

So apparently “W.H. Flint” is the pen name for a non-fiction author who has written works on Theodore Roosevelt, J.P. Morgan and the Gilded Age. This book is the best possible combination of exquisitely accurate historical detail and suspenseful, intriguing mystery. I love to feel like I’m learning while I’m being entertained. Highly recommend!