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Benjamin January #5
Die Upon a Kiss
In February 1835, the cold New Orleans streets are alight with masked Mardi Gras revelers as the American Theater’s impresario, Lorenzo Belaggio, brings a magnificent yet controversial operatic version of Othello to town. But it’s pitch-black in the alley where free man of color Benjamin January hears a slurred whisper, spies the flash of a knife, and is himself wounded as he rescues Belaggio from a vicious attack. Could competition for audiences—or for Belagio’s affections—provoke such violent skulduggery? Or is Shakespeare’s tragic tale, with its spectacle of a black man’s passion for a white beauty, one that some Creole citizen—or American parvenu—would do anything to keep off the stage? The soaring music will lead January into a tangle of love, hate, and greed more treacherous than any onstage drama, as he must discover who is responsible...and who will Die Upon a Kiss .
480 pages, Mass Market Paperback
First published January 1, 2001
37 people are currently reading
526 people want to read
About the author
Barbara Hambly
204 books1,580 followersaka Barbara Hamilton
Ranging from fantasy to historical fiction, Barbara Hambly has a masterful way of spinning a story. Her twisty plots involve memorable characters, lavish descriptions, scads of novel words, and interesting devices. Her work spans the Star Wars universe, antebellum New Orleans, and various fantasy worlds, sometimes linked with our own.
"I always wanted to be a writer but everyone kept telling me it was impossible to break into the field or make money. I've proven them wrong on both counts."
-Barbara Hambly
Ranging from fantasy to historical fiction, Barbara Hambly has a masterful way of spinning a story. Her twisty plots involve memorable characters, lavish descriptions, scads of novel words, and interesting devices. Her work spans the Star Wars universe, antebellum New Orleans, and various fantasy worlds, sometimes linked with our own.
"I always wanted to be a writer but everyone kept telling me it was impossible to break into the field or make money. I've proven them wrong on both counts."
-Barbara Hambly
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 71 reviews
August 24, 2009
This book happened to catch my eye at the library. I don't think I knew that Ms. Hambly wrote mysteries before I found this volume. It's actually the 5th book featuring Benjaman January, a free man of color in New Orleans in the early 1800's. Like other Hambly characters, January is prone to omni-competence, which would detract if he wasn't such a beautifully developed character. Yes, he's both a competent surgeon and an outstanding musician, but all of it is part of who he is, not just skills tacked onto him. I feel I would recognize Mr. January if I passed him on the street.
Like all Barbara Hambly's books I've read, the setting is lavish in realism and detail. The plot almost, but not quite, gets lost in the rush and whirl of New Orleans during Carnivalle. The mystery was nicely done, and the characters were all lushly real. I've already requested the first book in this series from my local library.
If you're ONLY interested in the mystery aspect of a novel, skip this one. While the mystery alone is good, it only sings in the context of the setting and outstanding characters. However, if you enjoy historical fiction of any sort, if you enjoy a character-driven story, or if you're interested in what Opera was like in the early 19th century in New Orleans, read this book.
June 7, 2017
I should have a shelf SHAKESPEARE SPOKEN HERE but then I would embarrass myself by how many references went right over my head.
Anyhow.
In a Louisiana where white (rich) men regularly set up their official black mistresses (AKA placee, with the little french mark under the first e) in their own houses,
in a Louisiana where most (white) Subscription Balls have equally official (black) Blue Ribbon balls,
in a Louisiana where white men attend both but it is considered uncouth for white girls to attend the black balls and impossible for black girls to attend the white ball,
in a Louisiana where a white man can beat his black placee out of jealousy over - nothing really,
in this Louisiana, is it a good idea to put on a play about a black man loving a white woman and killing her out of jealousy?
Obviously! It's a great play! What could go wrong???eleventy???
Wonderful world-building with details of all the different parts of Louisiana. Physically you have the white and black neighborhoods, the upper class and the lower, and the dock district. Socially you have the French Creole, the Americans, and the Kaintucks - the territory, not the state - and Europeans. Also you have the blacks (slaves) and the colored (freed slaves and born free). In each physical place, which social class enters through the front door, the side door, or is kept waiting outside?
Who marries (or placees) for money? Everyone. Who is pressured to marry (or be placee) someone they don't like at all? Many people, colored and white, man and woman.
Who is killing opera folk? And why? Was there anyone who liked the dead man, anyone at all? What about the next dead man?
(incidentally, how DARE these men steal the limelight from the prima donna? Dying isn't that important, everyone does it eventually. Now, attention where it is due, please.)
I almost never figure these things out, but this murderer had little arrows everywhere, dropped in among the many, many arrows pointing in the wrong directions. On the other hand, I love when the reader and a few characters know the killer, but justice is never carried out because the killer is so much more righteous than the corpse.
Anyhow.
In a Louisiana where white (rich) men regularly set up their official black mistresses (AKA placee, with the little french mark under the first e) in their own houses,
in a Louisiana where most (white) Subscription Balls have equally official (black) Blue Ribbon balls,
in a Louisiana where white men attend both but it is considered uncouth for white girls to attend the black balls and impossible for black girls to attend the white ball,
in a Louisiana where a white man can beat his black placee out of jealousy over - nothing really,
in this Louisiana, is it a good idea to put on a play about a black man loving a white woman and killing her out of jealousy?
Obviously! It's a great play! What could go wrong???eleventy???
Wonderful world-building with details of all the different parts of Louisiana. Physically you have the white and black neighborhoods, the upper class and the lower, and the dock district. Socially you have the French Creole, the Americans, and the Kaintucks - the territory, not the state - and Europeans. Also you have the blacks (slaves) and the colored (freed slaves and born free). In each physical place, which social class enters through the front door, the side door, or is kept waiting outside?
Who marries (or placees) for money? Everyone. Who is pressured to marry (or be placee) someone they don't like at all? Many people, colored and white, man and woman.
Who is killing opera folk? And why? Was there anyone who liked the dead man, anyone at all? What about the next dead man?
(incidentally, how DARE these men steal the limelight from the prima donna? Dying isn't that important, everyone does it eventually. Now, attention where it is due, please.)
I almost never figure these things out, but this murderer had little arrows everywhere, dropped in among the many, many arrows pointing in the wrong directions. On the other hand, I love when the reader and a few characters know the killer, but justice is never carried out because the killer is so much more righteous than the corpse.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
September 16, 2019
I have enjoyed this series and it's setting in early 19th century New Orleans. No matter what the "mystery" in each, it's whole ambiance and feel of the time period and place through the eyes of a free black man, Benjamin January, that really makes these stories.
On the downside, I found this one to be somewhat choppy and sometimes felt that something important had been left out. Maybe that is on purpose, in order to make audiences think for themselves? All in all, I definitely still recommend the series and plan to continue it.
On the downside, I found this one to be somewhat choppy and sometimes felt that something important had been left out. Maybe that is on purpose, in order to make audiences think for themselves? All in all, I definitely still recommend the series and plan to continue it.
October 10, 2009
TOO complicated, I kept telling myself, but I liked the pomp of opera and the generous-hearted hero and his fascinating sisters. While I love the side characters of Hannibal and Shaw, EVERY scene with them involves opium for Hannibal and spitting tobacco juice for Shaw. I could have used the cues for the new characters to the series, the walk-ons, whom I could not keep straight. What did I learn? A lot about slavery, New Orleans, opera. The smells and sights are vivid - I am hungry now for dirty rice and oysters. And I learned, as I did in her last novel, that it is indeed possible to develop generosity in the face of severe oppression.
December 18, 2013
I liked the first book in this series, A Free Man of Color. The detective, Benjamin January is an engaging hero -- a Paris educated black man living in New Orleans' post-French, Creole-American incarnation. After a promising start this series runs out of steam, perhaps reaching a nadir is this book. Not that I could be totally sure, because I must confess I skimmed this one before giving up, at least for the moment. I might be being too hasty, but when a character living in 1835 thinks in Powerpoint bullet headings on the first page while being followed in a dark alley I kind of lose interest.
August 10, 2013
This was my least favorite Benjamin January book. I felt like the "main" plot line was getting lost the more I got into the story. I am a fan of opera, but there were so many people whose motivations were sketchy at best, it made me loose interest. It seemed frantic and overly convoluted. I only continued to read till the end because I enjoy the regular characters and wanted to find out what was happening with them.
July 4, 2018
Aaahhhh, another love/hate relationship...
There is much here that's quite good. I like the characters and much of the history and many small insights along the way strike me as excellent. There is some good writing, even in the descriptions, and the action and dialogue are well-done.
BUT...like the jury ("the jury was overwhelmed by the tangle of conflicting tales of Austrian spies, slave-smugglers, mysterious veiled ladies, nameless hired bravos, Italian politics, and enraged divas") I was overwhelmed as well. The resolution of this one depends on something being brought forward from the distant past, but for most of the book you are just puzzled and rather frustrated since you have no idea what in this farrago of STUFF is most important and it's pretty hard to follow at times. Plus, as usual there is a bit too much detail in the descriptions of swamps.
I do enjoy the insights into New Orleans in the early 19th century. And some of the descriptions. Better editing would help even this, however. It reminds me a bit of Cara Black and her compulsion to put in interesting historical tidbits even when they interrupt the flow. Grrrrrrr... These tidbits seem more accurate and Hambly's end note on opera in New Orleans in those years is interesting!
So, worth reading for some reasons but be prepared.
There is much here that's quite good. I like the characters and much of the history and many small insights along the way strike me as excellent. There is some good writing, even in the descriptions, and the action and dialogue are well-done.
BUT...like the jury ("the jury was overwhelmed by the tangle of conflicting tales of Austrian spies, slave-smugglers, mysterious veiled ladies, nameless hired bravos, Italian politics, and enraged divas") I was overwhelmed as well. The resolution of this one depends on something being brought forward from the distant past, but for most of the book you are just puzzled and rather frustrated since you have no idea what in this farrago of STUFF is most important and it's pretty hard to follow at times. Plus, as usual there is a bit too much detail in the descriptions of swamps.
I do enjoy the insights into New Orleans in the early 19th century. And some of the descriptions. Better editing would help even this, however. It reminds me a bit of Cara Black and her compulsion to put in interesting historical tidbits even when they interrupt the flow. Grrrrrrr... These tidbits seem more accurate and Hambly's end note on opera in New Orleans in those years is interesting!
So, worth reading for some reasons but be prepared.
May 14, 2022
Set in antebellum New Orleans, Hambly's Benjamin January series has long been one of my favorites. I'm not sure how I missed this one, but it's a winner. If you haven't read any of these, I'd start with the first one, A Free Man of Color, and proceed through the lot of them. January is the free man of color; his mother was bought and freed by St. Denis Janvier, who paid for January's musical and later medical education in Paris. While living in Paris, January met and married Ayasha, a Berber woman who died of the plague. In his grief, January moves back to his home, New Orleans, although he cannot practice medicine (or ride in cabs). The mystery plots are always well done, and you learn a lot about life in New Orleans as well as about history of slavery and of the free people of color. If you happen to be in New Orleans, I also recommend a visit to the Museum of the Free People of Color (Le Musée de f.p.c.). It is fascinating.
March 10, 2018
I wanted to like this, I really tried to like this. It just didn't grab me and I did not finish it.
There were a number of things about this that should have made it a perfect read for me: I love New Orleans and this is set there, I love Shakespeare and there's a Shakespearean connection, I enjoy the Civil War era as a book time period and this is in that era. And I like mystery.
I can't even really put my finger on why I couldn't get into this. It was well-written and I liked the character of January, but something about the pace felt a bit slow for me.
Overall I just wasn't engaged with the story and even though I kept at it to almost page 100, I realized I was just not into this book. With so many on my list, if a book doesn't grab me these days it's on to the next one. Fortunately, I got this at a book sale at my library and only paid ten cents for it.
There were a number of things about this that should have made it a perfect read for me: I love New Orleans and this is set there, I love Shakespeare and there's a Shakespearean connection, I enjoy the Civil War era as a book time period and this is in that era. And I like mystery.
I can't even really put my finger on why I couldn't get into this. It was well-written and I liked the character of January, but something about the pace felt a bit slow for me.
Overall I just wasn't engaged with the story and even though I kept at it to almost page 100, I realized I was just not into this book. With so many on my list, if a book doesn't grab me these days it's on to the next one. Fortunately, I got this at a book sale at my library and only paid ten cents for it.
October 13, 2019
As always, the characters and prose in the series are excellent. Unfortunately there's far too much going on in the book, making it hard to follow or appreciate. There is a glut of characters (in addition to the recurring characters), an attempted murder, then a successful murder, a political conspiracy with no connection to the murder, and then a side story that is a sleazy (but irrelevant) conspiracy... there're only so many red herrings I can handle!
Racist white people confide in January at the drop of a hat, and, in the specter of potential murder and violence, the book draws out over a several weeks long opera season.
I'd recommend this book, but, it's just so darn messy and glutted. I wish the author would edit it to have less characters and coincidences, and I'd certainly not recommend starting the Benjamin January series on this book.
Racist white people confide in January at the drop of a hat, and, in the specter of potential murder and violence, the book draws out over a several weeks long opera season.
I'd recommend this book, but, it's just so darn messy and glutted. I wish the author would edit it to have less characters and coincidences, and I'd certainly not recommend starting the Benjamin January series on this book.
October 14, 2021
As I have found with all of Hambly’s Benjamin January series books so far, this one continued with a very large cast of peripheral and central characters. I could not even begin to keep track of them all, though the development of the main characters who have moved from book to book was good. The plot was so very complex and convoluted that I doubt I am alone in not completely understanding the way the mysteries (definitely more than one) played out. But the strength of Hambly’s writing and the knowledge I am gaining in learning about this time period in history will likely cause me to read on in the series, after I take a break and read something a little less demanding.
February 15, 2024
Benjamin January is a freed man in New Orleans but since the Americans took over, slavers keep trying to enslave him. In this book he is working for the Italian Opera. When one of the characters, Belaggio is attacked, January saves him but is also wounded on his arm. January is not only a Paris trained medical doctor, but earns his money playing the piano. The attack is just the beginning the attacks on the opera. The opera company wonders if the attacks are because the company wants to put on the opera Othello. This story is not as good as the others I have read.
November 13, 2022
A wonderful, slightly silly romp - with an enormous cast of slightly confusing characters.
The writing is brilliant, as usual, and effortlessly moves from farce to pathos and excitement and danger to wistful reflection and sorrow.
Benjamin’s relationships with friends and family are delved into more deeply and we learn more about his life and the historical period with every novel in this series.
The writing is brilliant, as usual, and effortlessly moves from farce to pathos and excitement and danger to wistful reflection and sorrow.
Benjamin’s relationships with friends and family are delved into more deeply and we learn more about his life and the historical period with every novel in this series.
March 31, 2019
Hot damn, this was a good book.
I probably liked most of the earlier instalments a bit better,but I still super enjoyed this. The plot was fast paced and wonderful (with a lot of moments that made me scream WTF at my Kindle), the characters were all as incredibly charming as ever (I would kill a man for Benjamin January, no lie) and the setting was just done SO WELL (it made me want to go see an opera!)
This is possibly the best series I've ever read and I adore it. Seriously, heart eyes FOREVER.
I probably liked most of the earlier instalments a bit better,but I still super enjoyed this. The plot was fast paced and wonderful (with a lot of moments that made me scream WTF at my Kindle), the characters were all as incredibly charming as ever (I would kill a man for Benjamin January, no lie) and the setting was just done SO WELL (it made me want to go see an opera!)
This is possibly the best series I've ever read and I adore it. Seriously, heart eyes FOREVER.
September 19, 2019
I'm still confused.
I love this series, and the unlikely team of January and Shaw, but I found this plot impossible to untangle. Beautifully written, there were so many characters that I could not keep them straight. Having said that, it is still a good read, and it ended well.
I love this series, and the unlikely team of January and Shaw, but I found this plot impossible to untangle. Beautifully written, there were so many characters that I could not keep them straight. Having said that, it is still a good read, and it ended well.
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April 21, 2024Hambly is great at setting the scene; I feel as if I've really been to early 1800s New Orleans and behind the scenes at her theatres. However, I tend to lose track of the mystery. I don't read a lot of mysteries and I suppose red herrings are par for the course (to mix metaphors), but the arrival at the conclusion seems especially circuitous.
February 18, 2021
Reviews of this one seem all across the board, but I quite enjoyed it. I'm listening to these as they are released on Audible and am delighted whenever I see a new one pop up.
First, the narrator is great, and that helps. But I don't know, I liked the mystery (which, I think, had a satisfying solution) I liked the theatre setting, and I appreciated the various history lessons. The setting in general was extremely vivid. (I think maybe it helps that I'm not from New Orleans, so any inaccuracies go right over my head.)
I like January, I like the Columbo-like American detective, I like the chronically ill Irish musician/ladies' man, and I'm firmly invested in the lives of January's family, at this point.
I look forward to seeing what happens next.
First, the narrator is great, and that helps. But I don't know, I liked the mystery (which, I think, had a satisfying solution) I liked the theatre setting, and I appreciated the various history lessons. The setting in general was extremely vivid. (I think maybe it helps that I'm not from New Orleans, so any inaccuracies go right over my head.)
I like January, I like the Columbo-like American detective, I like the chronically ill Irish musician/ladies' man, and I'm firmly invested in the lives of January's family, at this point.
I look forward to seeing what happens next.
August 6, 2022
I like authors who make me feel ignorant. Jasper Fforde. Anne McCaffery. Barbara Hambly. I read something of theirs and I am humbled by people able to turn dry facts into fascinating storylines. Ben January is an amazing hero who probably would never use that word for himself.
October 23, 2023
these books are awesome!
December 14, 2023
2.5 stars, rounded up because the writing is good. But the plot is messy & confusing, there are too many characters & subplots, and the solution relied on a fleeting detail that wasn't explained.
February 23, 2024
Barbara Hambly's 5th book in the excellent Benjamin January series. This one in centered around the opera season/comings-and-goings in New Orleans, with murder & intrigue.
April 22, 2024
Keeping track of the characters was a bit of an annoyance. I had to go back a few times.
October 8, 2016
Loved the antics of 19th century opera! As always, as much history as novel in Barbara Hambly's books.
January 7, 2009
DIE UPON A KISS (Hist. Mys-Benjamin January-New Orleans-1830s) – NR
Hambly, Barbara – 5th in series
Bantam, 2002, US Paperback – ISBN: 0553581651
First Sentence: “…nigger,” muttered a man’s voice, hoarse in the dark of the alley but very clear.
Benjamin January is leaving the American Theatre, after a rehearsal of a new production of “Othello,” just in time to intervene in a vicious attack on the opera’s impresario. John Davis, manager of a rival opera company, is being accused of hiring the attack and asks Benjamin to investigate. As tensions mount, the company’s ballet mistress, and good friend of Benjamin’s, is attacked and the investigation becomes personal for January.
It is never a good sign which you keep checking to see how close you are to the end of a book. For me, the end didn’t come soon enough and I finally gave up.
I don’t mind a book with a lot of characters if they are distinguishable and come to life. These characters never did. I knew what they looked like physically, but had no real sense of them and what made them who they were. Even with Benjamin, while he was the most interesting of the characters, I’m not compelled to read more about him.
There was some very clever dialogue. I particularly liked the line about beautiful music not necessarily coming from a beautiful soul. The sense of time and place was strong.
I love books set in New Orleans. I’ve not been back post-Katrina, but one of its appeals is the sense of timelessness it has. I enjoyed “walking” down streets I remember with the characters knowing they look about the same as they did in the story.
While the author talks about bigotry and racism of the time, it felt more educational than involving. She had a tendency to reiterate information, seemingly not trusting the reader to having picked it up the first time or now remembering it.
As for the plot—what was the plot? I kept waiting to feel that sense of “ah, this is where we’re going” and never did. When we finally get to the real plot, it is as though it is another story entirely. Ms. Humbly falls victim to the occasional use of portents, which I despise. It seems to take a long time for anything to happen. Unless one has a love of music, particularly opera, I believe readers could find the plot ponderous, and that’s not really where the story goes anyway.
This is my second try at Hambly and, I am confidant, my last.
Hambly, Barbara – 5th in series
Bantam, 2002, US Paperback – ISBN: 0553581651
First Sentence: “…nigger,” muttered a man’s voice, hoarse in the dark of the alley but very clear.
Benjamin January is leaving the American Theatre, after a rehearsal of a new production of “Othello,” just in time to intervene in a vicious attack on the opera’s impresario. John Davis, manager of a rival opera company, is being accused of hiring the attack and asks Benjamin to investigate. As tensions mount, the company’s ballet mistress, and good friend of Benjamin’s, is attacked and the investigation becomes personal for January.
It is never a good sign which you keep checking to see how close you are to the end of a book. For me, the end didn’t come soon enough and I finally gave up.
I don’t mind a book with a lot of characters if they are distinguishable and come to life. These characters never did. I knew what they looked like physically, but had no real sense of them and what made them who they were. Even with Benjamin, while he was the most interesting of the characters, I’m not compelled to read more about him.
There was some very clever dialogue. I particularly liked the line about beautiful music not necessarily coming from a beautiful soul. The sense of time and place was strong.
I love books set in New Orleans. I’ve not been back post-Katrina, but one of its appeals is the sense of timelessness it has. I enjoyed “walking” down streets I remember with the characters knowing they look about the same as they did in the story.
While the author talks about bigotry and racism of the time, it felt more educational than involving. She had a tendency to reiterate information, seemingly not trusting the reader to having picked it up the first time or now remembering it.
As for the plot—what was the plot? I kept waiting to feel that sense of “ah, this is where we’re going” and never did. When we finally get to the real plot, it is as though it is another story entirely. Ms. Humbly falls victim to the occasional use of portents, which I despise. It seems to take a long time for anything to happen. Unless one has a love of music, particularly opera, I believe readers could find the plot ponderous, and that’s not really where the story goes anyway.
This is my second try at Hambly and, I am confidant, my last.
January 2, 2015
I frankly skimmed most of this book. I just didn't find it very engaging, which I attribute to two issues. First, I have a tendency to hate books, TV shows, etc., that feature a murder revolving around "artists" (actors, opera singers, etc.). These stories always tend to portray them as histrionic, melodramatic, always swooning over some abundence of emotion or throwing a wild diva fit, or exaggerating some small incident into a major calamity. I don't know, maybe that's an accurate depiction, but it tends to give me a headache. And why do I really care about what happens to a bunch of people that I find so deeply unlikeable? So that was problem one.
Problem two is that I'm becoming increasingly disinterested in January's interest in Rose. This book, and the past several, tend to have January go on and on about his last wife, and OH what passion they had and OH how her death still burns him to the core with the bitter remembrance of that sweet fire lost. But hey, now there's Rose, who he thinks is a good conversationalist and might make a pretty tolerable wife, all things considered.
Wow.
Maybe I'm supposed to feel sorry for January, but all I feel is that he's a terrible jerk who needs to pick up the shattered pieces of his life and move on, and until he does that, he should stay FAR AWAY from any other woman, much less Rose -- who, if she's half as smart as he thinks she is, she should never in a million years settle for a man that is so unbelievably lukewarm about her.
So yeah. I bought a bunch of the books in this series, so I will probably at some point force myself to read the next one, but that book is going to have to work wonders in order to restore my interest in this series.
Problem two is that I'm becoming increasingly disinterested in January's interest in Rose. This book, and the past several, tend to have January go on and on about his last wife, and OH what passion they had and OH how her death still burns him to the core with the bitter remembrance of that sweet fire lost. But hey, now there's Rose, who he thinks is a good conversationalist and might make a pretty tolerable wife, all things considered.
Wow.
Maybe I'm supposed to feel sorry for January, but all I feel is that he's a terrible jerk who needs to pick up the shattered pieces of his life and move on, and until he does that, he should stay FAR AWAY from any other woman, much less Rose -- who, if she's half as smart as he thinks she is, she should never in a million years settle for a man that is so unbelievably lukewarm about her.
So yeah. I bought a bunch of the books in this series, so I will probably at some point force myself to read the next one, but that book is going to have to work wonders in order to restore my interest in this series.
August 16, 2010
An opera of Othello is perhaps not the wisest choice for an Italian troupe's premiere performance in New Orleans in 1835. Benjamin Janvier, a musician and a free man of color, thinks it might well be the motive for a mysterious attack on the opera's conductor outside the theater one evening. (By the way, "To Die Upon a Kiss" are the dying words of Othello in Shakespeare's play.)
Hambly's writing is beautiful and absorbing. I enjoyed this novel very much, even if the mystery itself was a little out there. The interaction between characters who speak various dialects of French, English, Italian and Spanish is particularly engaging in this book. (Janvier is a polyglot). My interest in opera does not extend far past Gilbert & Sullivan, but I nevertheless enjoyed the characterization of the performers and the backstage environment of the new American Theater, built to compete with the French Théâtre d'Orléans.
I'm completely in love with these characters. I'm worried about the laudanum-addicted, consumptive Hannibal: he's been in bad shape for five novels now, how much longer can he hang on? I'm worried about Janvier's sister Dominique, the placée who is in love with her white protector, who is about to marry. And of course, there's Janvier himself: my biggest problem with this series is still my utter disbelief that he would remain in New Orleans despite the danger and the relentless oppression. It's very well that he enjoys his family, and the food and the music of his home, but I still wish he would beg, borrow or steal enough money for passage back to Europe. Taking Rose with him. But then there would be no more books, I suppose.
Hambly's writing is beautiful and absorbing. I enjoyed this novel very much, even if the mystery itself was a little out there. The interaction between characters who speak various dialects of French, English, Italian and Spanish is particularly engaging in this book. (Janvier is a polyglot). My interest in opera does not extend far past Gilbert & Sullivan, but I nevertheless enjoyed the characterization of the performers and the backstage environment of the new American Theater, built to compete with the French Théâtre d'Orléans.
I'm completely in love with these characters. I'm worried about the laudanum-addicted, consumptive Hannibal: he's been in bad shape for five novels now, how much longer can he hang on? I'm worried about Janvier's sister Dominique, the placée who is in love with her white protector, who is about to marry. And of course, there's Janvier himself: my biggest problem with this series is still my utter disbelief that he would remain in New Orleans despite the danger and the relentless oppression. It's very well that he enjoys his family, and the food and the music of his home, but I still wish he would beg, borrow or steal enough money for passage back to Europe. Taking Rose with him. But then there would be no more books, I suppose.
March 14, 2011
I'll admit it: having zipped through the first four Benjamin January mysteries, I was surprised to find this one initially very slow-going. It was a slog to wade through the overly-abundant players and myriad plot threads. Sometimes the familiar characters from previous books got very little attention -- just enough to remind us that they are still around. It was a bit depressing.
However...the patient reader will be rewarded by the unveiling of a rich story. If it also gets a bit mired in historical detail (which is awesome, but too much can make you feel like you're reading a textbook instead of a novel), well...the author is a historian and we forgive her these things, because we love the characters: Ben, Hannibal, Shaw, Rose, Dominique, Olympe. They make the book.
It's Carnival season in Ben's New Orleans of the 1830's, and two different opera houses are vying for the attention (and patronage) of the city. A thwarted attack early in the book draws free-man-of-color, sometime-physician and practicing musician Benjamin January into a tangled web of rivalry, jealousy, and violence. Who is out to sabotage the theater? Who is really the intended victim? The attacks are mounting, and Ben has to tread carefully if he's going to sort things out and save his own skin in the process.
Not the best of the Benjamin January mysteries, but worthwhile for fans of the series. Don't start here, but don't let more negative reviews put you off either. Recommended.
However...the patient reader will be rewarded by the unveiling of a rich story. If it also gets a bit mired in historical detail (which is awesome, but too much can make you feel like you're reading a textbook instead of a novel), well...the author is a historian and we forgive her these things, because we love the characters: Ben, Hannibal, Shaw, Rose, Dominique, Olympe. They make the book.
It's Carnival season in Ben's New Orleans of the 1830's, and two different opera houses are vying for the attention (and patronage) of the city. A thwarted attack early in the book draws free-man-of-color, sometime-physician and practicing musician Benjamin January into a tangled web of rivalry, jealousy, and violence. Who is out to sabotage the theater? Who is really the intended victim? The attacks are mounting, and Ben has to tread carefully if he's going to sort things out and save his own skin in the process.
Not the best of the Benjamin January mysteries, but worthwhile for fans of the series. Don't start here, but don't let more negative reviews put you off either. Recommended.
February 25, 2011
What is it that makes an author's work so distinctive? Is it their sentence structure, or choice of adjectives? Whatever it is I find Barbara Hambly's writing very appealing whether she is writing fantasy or historical fiction, and I love her atypical heroes and heroines. The Ben January books, of which this is the fifth, are historical detective stories set in New Orleans after the Louisiana purchase, but before the civil war. Ben is black, a freeman of colour, and this gives him a particular perspective and allows the author to make subtle points about racial attitudes then and now. He is also a talented musician and doctor, and this gives him the opportunity to become embroiled in any number of shady goings on in the city - perhaps a slightly implausible number by this book, and I thought that he might have become a little more wary about becoming involved due to the constant risk he runs of being either beaten up, sold into slavery, or both. Nevertheless the books, including this one, are excellently plotted and convincing stories, as I said above, I adore Hambly's prose and what she has to say about the period. I'm also looking forward to seeing what happens to Ben, Rose and Minou in future books - I hope they all see sense and emigrate to Paris and live happily ever after but knowing how Hambly likes to put her characters through the mill, I can't see that happening.
August 18, 2016
I am working my way through the entire series of Benjamin January novels; I find the recurring characters compelling and the mysteries are very interesting. Plus, they're set against the backdrop of Jacksonian New Orleans, which is a period I'm studying. It gives me a good feeling for the culture.
Anyway, this book takes place during Carnival in 1835. January is working in the orchestra at one of the two rival opera houses in town, as they prepare to mount an original production of Othello. To say that this is controversial during the time is to greatly understate the situation. In fairly short order January, his friend the ballet mistress, and other members of the cast are being attacked left and right -- a couple of them fatally. Naturally, January starts investigating.
The pacing lagged a little bit in this one. We got to see a lot of the politics of New Orleans opera, which was fine by me, but sometimes it felt disruptive to the other plots concerning a cruel slaver who might or might not also be a smuggler. There was one plot twist I didn't see coming at all, which explained a lot about one character's previous behavior. The whodunnit also took me by surprise, which is harder to do.
All in all, the book was pretty good. It just wasn't as gripping as the previous ones I've read.
Anyway, this book takes place during Carnival in 1835. January is working in the orchestra at one of the two rival opera houses in town, as they prepare to mount an original production of Othello. To say that this is controversial during the time is to greatly understate the situation. In fairly short order January, his friend the ballet mistress, and other members of the cast are being attacked left and right -- a couple of them fatally. Naturally, January starts investigating.
The pacing lagged a little bit in this one. We got to see a lot of the politics of New Orleans opera, which was fine by me, but sometimes it felt disruptive to the other plots concerning a cruel slaver who might or might not also be a smuggler. There was one plot twist I didn't see coming at all, which explained a lot about one character's previous behavior. The whodunnit also took me by surprise, which is harder to do.
All in all, the book was pretty good. It just wasn't as gripping as the previous ones I've read.
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