Lord John in New York - Good Old Reads

Lord John in New York - Williamsons - Methuen & Co., London - 1918

Alice Muriel Williamson - Lord John in New York — Alice Muriel Williamson

You will like Lord John in New York until the last page.

High Point: The Williamsons created one adventure after another as the hero tracks down his sweetheart.

Low Point: The ending reads like a back-page newspaper article–not what this novel deserves.

Authors: C.N. & A.M. Williamson

Publication Date: 1918

Genre: Mystery

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You will like Lord John in New York by C.N. and A.M. Williamson until the last page.

Originally published in 1915, the novel reads as a comic book story. Lord John, an amateur detective, pursues the love of his life through adventure after adventure. As he unravels her secrets, the London-based aristocrat travels to New York, France, Egypt and back to London. Along the way, the Williamsons place Lord John in a number of side mysteries that, little by little, help him trace his sweetheart as he attempts to rescue her from mysterious and nefarious forces.

Until the conclusion, the book is full of rich descriptive narrative and dialog as the levels of suspense ebb and flow. The climax, unfortunately, reads like a brief newspaper article buried deep in the back pages. Rather than delivering the dramatic payoff the story has earned, the climax offers no suspense, no dialog, just a three-paragraph description of the conclusion.

I have the impression the Williamsons simply got tired, bored, or to be generous, perhaps had a hard deadline which precluded a refined finish. Whatever the reason, you’ll wonder if the destination was worth the effort of tracking the journey of Lord John in New York.