Andy is invited to Lavender House to solve the mystery behind the death of the family's matriarch. The peculiar house and its tenants come as a big surprise to him. While dealing with a recent personal life-changing event, Andy throws himself head first into the unusual case. One by one, he learns of the residents' secrets and future plans, and nothing escape's Andy's witty eye. At last, he is ready to announce the fatal murderer...

The novel is written in good ole Agatha Christie style. Love the LGBT vibe of the novel. I would label this as a cozy mystery, it's a fast and pleasant read. Andy Mills is my absolute favorite character, and hope this is the first of his many mysteries.

Thank you, NetGalley for a free and advanced copy of the novel in the exchange for my honest review.

Evander (Andy) Mills is dismissed from the force and is approached at the opportune moment to take on a case. Head of the famous Lamontaine soap empire, Irene Lamontaine, dies suddenly and the story just doesn’t add up. Andy is surprised when Pearl hires him and advises that she believes her wife Irene has been murdered. The year is 1952 and the queer community must stay underground. Pearl's home is called Lavender House and it is nothing like Andy has ever imagined. As he gets to know they family he starts to like them and it makes it both harder and easier to solve the case.

I appreciated a different perspective on a detective style mystery. There were several twists, but early on the reader could predict how the story would play out. Each character has a unique personality and the reader can easily imagine all of the emotions they go through.

The narrator did a wonderful job and told the story well.

Thank you NetGalley and Macmillan Audio for the advance audiobook copy. This advance copy was received in exchange for an honest review. The thoughts expressed are my own.

I wanted to like this but it was so hard to.
The cover is amazing. The name drew me in
But it had such a slow start and didn’t pick up until much later and just lost me. I wish I had read it instead of listened to the audiobook. The main character is all gritty and noir vibes which can be fun but every other woman character was so rough to listen to. The concept was interesting and I loved the commentary and struggle to be queer in that decade and then seeing what it was like to live freely in the house.

💜 ℙ𝕌𝔹 𝔻𝔸𝕐 ℝ𝔼𝕍𝕀𝔼𝕎 💜

Lavender House
By Lev A.C. Rosen @levacrosen
288 pages
Pub: Oct 18, 2022

🎧 Audiobook:
9 hours 57 mins
Narrated by Vikas Adam @vikasadam

⭐⭐⭐⭐ • 4/5 stars

Lavender House is a whodunit set in 1950s San Francisco. It explores the criminalization of homosexuality, but is also just a wholly original locked-room mystery. All of the characters are complex and interesting, which is really what kept me engaged. The mystery was fun and well-paced, and kept me guessing til the end.

Lavender House been described as a queer, historical, "Knives Out" and that's an apt description.

I did a read-along with audio and print and enjoyed both formats. The narrator did such a fantastic job with the large cast of characters. TBH it was a bold move casting a masculine voice to narrate a book with so many feminine voices, but Vikas knocked it out of the park. 👏 Well done!!

One of my favorite parts of historical fiction is that it often introduces me to topics I'm unfamiliar with. This book had me researching "The Lavender Scare" and learning more about LGBTQ+ history in the US.

Definitely recommend The Lavender House for anyone who enjoys a good mystery, and especially for folks who enjoy reading books with queer representation 🌈

Thank you @forgereads for my print copy and the extra goodies. The lavender soap is to die for!And thank you @macmillan.audio and @netgalley for my ALC. 💜

Set in 1952 San Francisco, Lavender House is a very atmospheric 'locked room' mystery featuring a queer found family.

Lavender House is the grand and secluded home of Irene Lamontaine, matriarch of the famous soap company that bears her name. It's not only the lab where she creates new soap formulations, it's also the only place where she can be her true self with her wife Pearl and other members of their LGBTQIA family. When Irene suddenly dies, Pearl seeks out Evander Mills to investigate. It's safe to invite him into their secret life because he's a (former) police officer who was recently outed during a gay club raid. Jobless and homeless, Mills signs on and is amazed at the freedoms available within Lavender House, something he yearns for in his personal life.

After it's determined Irene was murdered and external parties are cleared, Mills investigates members of the household and discovers all sorts of secrets. Did someone within Irene's carefully assembled inner circle have the motivation and means to end her life?

While many readers compare this novel to the film Knives Out, I didn't make that connection. For me, this was less about the mystery and more of a commentary about American society's history of hostility toward queer people, specifically in a place that's important to LGBTQIA rights and activism. It bothered me that Mills was quick to flirt/kiss/have sex with every gay male character in the story, making him one-dimensional and reinforcing a negative/outdated stereotype.

I listened to the audiobook narrated by Vikas Adam whose narration was spot-on to set the tone for the novel. Thank you to Forge Books, Macmillan Audio, and NetGalley for the review copies of this unique historical mystery.

Thanks to Netgalley and the publisher for allowing me to read/listen!

I really enjoyed the narrator's voice! Audiobooks can be iffy for me, and this was done well. Knives Out but make it gay? I had to know more! The synopsis sounded intriguing and it delivered! I loved the characters, the dynamics, the twists and turns and reveals were pretty good. This was such a fun and enjoyable read and I also love that a soap empire is a side plot. This book was just a fun time overall. I'm not particularly into historical fiction but this surprised me, the author made it immersive and digestible.

Set in 1952-San Francisco, Lavender House follows disgraced former-police officer, Evander 'Andy' Mills. Andy was recently fired from the SFPD after being caught in a compromising position during a raid on a gay bar. Without steady work and shamed by former acquaintances, Andy is floundering, so when he is approached by an older woman named Pearl with a proposition, he readily accepts.

Pearl needs an experienced investigator to look into the death of her wife, soap magnate, Irene Lamontaine. Even though Irene's death appears to be an accident, Pearl has her doubts. She needs the truth. Thus, she invites Andy to their estate, Lavender House, to look into the incident. It seems like a simple, yet interesting assignment, and may be exactly what Andy needs to get his life back on track.

Arriving at Lavender House, Andy discovers something he has never experienced before. A safe haven filled with a found-family of Queer people. Andy is astounded by how comfortable everyone is with just being themselves. There is no need to hide, no risk of hateful repercussions. How could any violence come to this place?

Before long, as Andy gets to know the individuals living within the gated estate, he begins to think that maybe Pearl is onto something after all. Perhaps Irene did fall at the hands of another, but was it a stranger, or someone the women consider family?

Lavender House was such a delightful change of pace for me. I'm not quite sure I have ever read a Queer Historical Murder Mystery before, but I sure would like more!!

I absolutely adored the setting and tone of this novel. Rosen brought a real film noir quality to it, which fit so perfectly with a 1950s-detective story, enhanced even more by the wonderful narration from Vikas Adam.

The themes and topics explored within were handled so tactfully and blended perfectly with the overall mystery. I liked how neither aspect was heavy-handed; they each contributed evenly to the overall course of the story. I enjoyed all of the characters and loved the idea of this safe space set amidst a very unsafe world.

My one slight critique would be that the mystery felt almost too simple. The linear narrative and minimalist investigation left me wanting more. I do understand that there is something to be said for sticking to the basics and nailing what you do. I do get that. I just feel like Rosen definitely has the talent to push this even further.

It sort of felt like driving a performance car on the highway. It's comfortable and enjoyable, but you definitely miss the exciting twists and turns of a back-country road. I just wish this could have been built out a little more. However, with this being said, can we talk about this ending!? This has to be the start of a series, right?

I mean, there could not have been a more perfect set-up for the continuation of this story. I really hope it happens, because I feel like there is a big need in the market for this type of story. I would absolutely, 100%, no doubt in my mind, pick up the next book if there ever is one. I feel like I have so much to learn about Andy and I would love to tag along with him as he solves more mysteries!!!

Thank you so much to the publisher, Forge Books and Macmillan Audio, for providing me with copies to read and review. I will be keeping my fingers crossed that I get to see more of Andy Mills!

Set in the 1950s, Lavender House is an atmospheric mystery involving the death of Irene, the head of a renowned soap empire. Andy is hired by her eccentric family to discover the truth after having his own career upended. Within the walls of Lavender House, Andy finds not only the secrets of the mystery, but also a sense of openness and security that he has never known.

This book got me hooked immediately. From the atmospheric setting to the uniqueness of the characters, I really enjoyed this story. Throughout I found myself becoming more attached to the family as each told their story and really didn't want any of them to be guilty! There were parts of this book that I was flipping pages wanting to get to the bottom of the mystery, parts where I was laughing and felt like I was bonding with the characters, and others that I had a hard time reading as the truth was staggering to read. Overall, this book was an excellent fall read and I'd recommend anyone looking for a unique mystery. An LGBTQ= version of Knives Out pretty much hits it on the head!

The narrators did a phenomenal job in painting this picture, managing the inflections of the characters, and keeping up with the tone of the story. I thought this audiobook was really well done!

Thank you to NetGalley and MacMillan Audio for an ALC in exchange for an honest review. In honor of pub day today, will post to my IG @manis.and.manuscripts tomorrow (10/19).

Lavender House by Lev A.C. Rosen

First I want to say I was pleasantly surprised by this book it was a historical fiction book with a mystery inside it. Irene Lamontaine, head of the famous Lamontaine soap empire is found dead. Irene’s recipes for her signature scents are a well guarded secret in this mysterious family that lives behind the gates. It take place in the 1950's in San Fransisco. Pearl who was Irene's wife hires Andy a disgraced detective in the police force when he gets caught in a gay bar raid.

Andy agrees to take on Pearl's case to look into Irene's death. Andy decides to leave no stone unturned. Andy figures out that it is someone in the house so he sets to investigate. The book goes into who duno it mode which played well for me.

What I loved the most about the book its rich history of the life of gay people in the 1950's in how they did all kinds of things to hide their identity. It wasn't just a mystery it had all this rich detail about the time period and how gay people had to live. I remember myself in the early 90's living near San Fransisco still dealing with some of the same things. I was a young gay Air Force Veteran that had to go to great lengths to hide my identity in the military and yes the military would send police into gay bars to find soldiers and then discharge them. We use to go all the way down to LA gay bars to get away in turn reducing the chances of getting caught to who you are.

I truly connected with this book on so many personal levels which made me become invested in the different characters in the book. I was so pleasantly surprised by how much I loved this book it spoke to me on so many levels. What I fear with the backlash to the LGBTQ community we are experiencing now we may be returning to this same fear and hiding who we are.

Vikas Adam narrated this book and I thought did a great job giving each character there own unique voice. I really liked how the story was read it was really easy to listen to. This was a 5 star read and I highly recommend reading this book. I wasn't to surprised to who ended up committing the murder at all.

Thank you to Netgalley and MacMillan Audio for a free audio copy of this book for an honest review. All opinions expressed in this book review are my own.

Thank you so much for an ALC! While there were paths of the book that I enjoyed, I found it to be too cheesy. The narrator also played into this with his voice, and the noir, over-the-top feel of the book just made it too difficult to enjoy!

Rating 3.5

1950's, Agatha Christie, LA Noire, dash of Knives Out, but make it queer and you get "Lavender House"

SF Police man Andy has been kicked off the police force after being found during a raid of a gay club in the bathroom with another man. Unsure what will become of his life now he has been outed and his career taken away, a society woman with a family also hiding their true selves request's Andy's help in solving the mysterious death of their matriarch.
Lavender House gives murder mystery who done it, while exploring the difficulties being queer in the oppressive post WWII era, while also expressing the joy and love of found and chosen family.

When I saw Lavender House was being marketed as Knives Out with a queer historical twist, I immediately wanted to read it. I was excited to explore a similar premise with new characters.
Set in the 1950s, the Lavender House is a safe haven for a wealthy queer family. Told through the POV of disgraced and outed cop, Evander, who is hired by Pearl to investigate the potential murder of her partner, Irene, at Lavender House.
I listened to this on audio, and enjoyed the narrator’s voice for Evander, but I had trouble telling some of the characters apart and it took me awhile to know who was who. I think this story could have benefited from a whole cast of characters.
The overall story and mystery felt a bit flat to me. Considering the Knives Out comparison, I expected more disfunction and outlandish behaviour. I didn’t feel a lot of tension or build-up, and the big reveal was not a surprise to me. It felt like it had a lot of potential, but just never really got there.
Ultimately, a reader who enjoys a character drive, cozy mystery may enjoy this.
Thank you Macmillan Audio for the audiobook in exchange for an honest review!

(4.5 stars rounded up to a 5)

Lavender House by Lev AC Rosen is a queer historic gumshoe mystery. The ebook version is 256 pages. I listened to the audiobook, which clocks in at a little under ten hours and is narrated by Vikas Adam.

In 1952, Irene Lamontaine, the head of the eponymous soap empire, recently passed away under slightly mysterious circumstances. Her estate offers a unique freedom; all of the residents there can live exactly as who they are as queer individuals. In order to keep their secrets, they keep everyone else out. Though now they're worried they're keeping a murderer in. Irene's widow hires the recently sacked San Francisco police officer Evander "Andy" Mills to uncover the truth behind Irene's death. After all, they'll understand his secret.

I really enjoyed this and basically read it in one sitting. I love mysteries and this one was so full of queer people it made my heart sing.

Since this is a queer historical there are some heavy parts, since many people queer people of the time were looked down on as deviants. So do keep this in mind and check the CWs.

The narrator does an amazing job here, and now I'm going to look up other books that they read.

I'm excited to read more in this series (hopefully!) as the ending sets up a potential continuation. I loved Andy and would really love to read more of his story, helping queer people in San Francisco solve mysteries.

CW: murder, violence, homophobia, homophobic slurs

The publisher provided an audio ARC of this book for me to review. All opinions contained herein are my own.

I'm not sure how much help my review is going to be here, because I'm pretty certain I would have given it a different rating (though maybe not that different) had I not done the audio. I really wish I hadn't jumped on this ARC instead of waiting for the hard copy to come in to my library.

This is a queer murder mystery. It is not like Knives Out at all, so don't go in expecting that. Terrible marketing is what that is. The narrator is an ex-cop, recently fired for being caught with his pants down in a raid on a gay bar, and he's actually suicidal when Pearl finds him, and hires him to investigate what she thinks is the murder of her lover, Irene, the owner of Lavender House. She ran a famous soap company as well, and I cannot tell you how much I regret that I didn't realize soap would be a big part of this book and as I am sensitive to smells and hate most manufactured ones, this book was not fun in that regard at all.

Again, because of the audio, I am now unable to tell if I would have liked this better if I had read the hardcover instead, but I did do the audio, and it very much did not work for me. I thought I just didn't vibe with the narrator, but it turns out he narrated the audio for The Charm Offensive, an audio I very much enjoyed, so it was really just the way he read this one that got to me. He was incredibly melodramatic in his reading, and he gave it a real noir vibe. I dislike noir. Within the first 25 pages I disliked almost all the characters except for some of the employees living in Lavender House (a queer haven, basically). I thought the mystery was uninteresting, and while it was clear I was supposed to be liking this queer haven the narrator Andy had been brought to, the voices the narrator used for them all made them seem whiny and privileged and snide and name some other adjectives. I was feeling so negative about them that I did not buy that aspect of the story at all. It sounded like all these people hated their lives and didn't really like each other, either.

The investigation I found dull.

So, a miss. You might fare better.

Lavender House is a historical murder mystery that takes place at a queer "safe house." I really enjoyed the twists and turns of this story as well as the fullness of the characters. The story itself can be dark and gritty but things get wrapped up well. While I would definitely recommend this for anyone interested in a historical queer whodunit, be sure to check trigger warnings before picking this book up!

Thank you to the publishers, author and NetGalley for the free copy of this audio book.

This was a little slow paced but interesting read. Somewhat easy to guess the twists but a fun read overall, with a good narrator.

This was such a great book. We have a historical murder mystery that also deals with homosexuality being illegal.

It’s not something that I want to think about, but it’s a very real part of history that it was, in fact, illegal to be gay. Well, not “be” gay, but to act on it was illegal. It’s sad and this book really points out the difficulties that anyone who identified as homosexual struggled with. There was more than just a lifestyle that could get them in trouble since their secret had to remain hidden no matter what else happened. This meant that even when other things happened to them, they were less likely to report it.

This book follows a former police officer who was caught in a raid of a gay bar. This ended in his arrest and his status as a former officer. He’s approached by a woman that wants to hire him to look into a suspicious death. She believes it’s murder, and she wants him to confirm or deny her suspicions. She takes him to Lavender House and he soon learns this house is a safe space for people like him. He agrees to take on the case and in the process does much soul searching.

I really enjoyed the audio as well. I received it from NetGalley and definitely recommend!

⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

Lavender House was a great premise – a wealthy queer family in the 1950s (somewhere in Marin County) hires a detective (who has lost his job working for the SFPD after being outed) to investigate the death of one of their own, even though it looks as though it would have been an accident. While initially excited about the prospect of the plot, I became concerned about what it would mean to have a fun whodunit in this almost utopian scenario. Surely it could not be a member of the queer family, as it would have reinscribed harmful narratives about queer people, which seemed like the last thing this book wanted to do.
While the book did address this issue – our detective repeatedly thought how unhappy he would be if the murder was anyone in this family – It also avoided really dealing with that question. While the mystery itself was not particularly complex, the character work was strong, the setting was excellent, and many of the questions about family and belonging were thought through in interesting ways.
I was initially unsure about Vikas Adam as a narrator, and usually I love audiobook readers. However, as the book went on, I ended up liking him more. His voices for the whole cast of characters were well done.

Was very excited to listen to Lavender House since the synopsis reminded me of Knives Out with a queer twist
and that is just what LH was - a fun queer historical mystery. Admittedly the genre was a bit out of my wheelhouse but something about the premise pulled me in. Compared to my usual mystery novels, this was much lighter and cuter than the dark twisted stories that usually pull me in; very satirical and enjoyable

The main character was instantaneously likeable and his queerness fit well within his larger personality. With the comparison to Knives Out, this was a much slower, quieter narrator than I expected. As for the mystery itself, it really did feel important to the story. Instead this is more a story I would recommend to those who enjoy character driven narrative.

Thank you to Macmillan Audio & NetGalley for allowing me to listen to this advanced audiobook

I liked this. The premise is great. The setting is interesting. The cover is incredible. I wanted to like it more than I did. It took a long while to get going, and the pace was slow. I just couldn't get into it.

I think my expectations that were a little too high. The "Knives Out but gay!" was an exciting idea, but it didn't fully work for me.

I did not enjoy the narration. This is one of those rare times that I would recommend just reading instead of listening to get the best experience.

There are a lot of 4 and 5-star reviews so this could have just been a miss for me. I say give it a shot if you are interested. This book may be for you even though it wasn't for me.

Thank you to Lev A.C. Rosen, Macmillan Audio, and NetGalley for the chance to read and review the book.