Mysterious Tales of Old St. Paul: Three Cases Featuring Shadwell Rafferty

by Larry Millett

Tales of murder and the early exploits of detective Shadwell Rafferty Shadwell Rafferty’s last case may have led to his murder, but naturally—and happily, for followers of the indefatigable St. Paul detective—there’s more to the story. Mysterious Tales of Old St. Paul gathers three novellas from Larry Millett, casting back to Rafferty’s beginnings to recount a trio of intriguing cases that honed his skills before he joined forces with Sherlock Holmes.

In “Death in the News,” St. Paul citizens wake one morning to find that the sign on downtown’s tallest building that reads PIONEER PRESS has been altered—at considerable effort—to read LIARS. An elaborate prank, yes, but it foreshadows a far worse crime, and Rafferty is on the case. In “The Birdman of Summit Avenue,” cats are turning up dead in the yards of St. Paul’s prominent citizens, and suspicion swiftly falls on the wealthy avian enthusiast Ambrose Harriman; but the case turns darker still when a neighborhood boy is found murdered in Harriman’s yard. In “The Gold King,” an enigmatic stranger arrives in town, calling himself the Gold King and announcing his plans to unearth hidden treasure hereabouts, which eventually leads to a shocking conclusion.

Steeped in the mystery and history of nineteenth-century St. Paul, these interlocking detective stories feature the characters—and the local character—that have made the Shadwell Rafferty series irresistible. Spellbinding as ever, these stories also afford the curious pleasure of watching Rafferty find his footing on his way to becoming the consummate detective whose exploits have delighted readers again and again.

Genres: Historical Fiction, Mystery, Audiobook

240 pages, Hardcover

Published October 1, 2024

About the author

Larry Millett has combined his interest in journalism, architectural history, and mystery fiction to create an unusual writing career. A native of Minneapolis, he attended school there and then went on to obtain a bachelor’s degrees in English from St. John’s University and a master’s degree from the University of Chicago.

He began working as a general assignment reporter for the St. Paul Pioneer Press in 1972 and became the newspaper’s first architecture critic after a year of study on a fellowship to the University of Michigan.

Larry’s first book, The Curve of the Arch, appeared in 1985. Since then, he’s written eleven other works of nonfiction, including Lost Twin Cities, which has been in continuous print for more than twenty years.

Larry began writing mystery fiction in 1996 by bringing the world’s most famous consulting detective to Minnesota for The Adventure of Sherlock Holmes and the Red Demon. He’s published six other novels featuring Holmes, Dr. Watson, and St. Paul saloonkeeper Shadwell Rafferty.

Larry lives in St. Paul’s historic West Seventh Street neighborhood with his wife and occasional writing partner, Jodie Ahern, who is also an accomplished painter and a freelance copy editor.

Reviews

[Georgia Schaefer-Brown · Rating 5 out of 5]

Randomly found the audiobook on Libby and was very pleasantly surprised! Three mystery novellas set in St. Paul in the 1890s, fun stories with overlapping characters. Agatha Christie vibes. Especially interesting if you’re familiar with the twin cities—tons of historical tidbits that tie into the story very well! Would recommend.

[Sarah · Rating 3 out of 5]

The first story had me wondering why I spent so much money on this book. I simply didn't care.

I then took a couple months hiatus from the book.

The second two stories completely captured me and make me wonder, has MN always been a hot mess as it is so today with scandal, fraud and crime?! Fun to learn more about good ol' Summit Ave and the history there. I even stopped between the second and third story to do a little history research.

[Daniel · Rating 5 out of 5]

Wonderful mysteries in a Minnesota local setting. Very good to read, including many with the famous detective from 221B Baker Street.

[Chris · Rating 3 out of 5]

Not my usual cup of tea but as a gift from a friend, I couldn’t not read it. Loved all the St. Paul history tidbits and three fun novellas.

2>3>1

[David Knapp · Rating 4 out of 5]

I have read a number of Millett's works featuring bar owner and Sherlock Holmes-inspired detective Shadwell Rafferty - including all of his pastiches, where Rafferty partners with Holmes and Watson. But this is the first one I've read since I started doing goodreads reviews.

This work is actually a collection of three novellas. As you know, I avoid going into depth in these reviews to avoid spoilers, but here is the jacket description:

"Shadwell Rafferty’s last case may have led to his murder, but naturally - and fortunately, for followers of the indefatigable St. Paul detective - there’s more to the story. 'Mysterious Tales of Old St. Paul' gathers three novellas from Larry Millett, casting back to Rafferty’s beginnings to recount a trio of intriguing cases that honed his skills before he joined forces with Sherlock Holmes.

In 'Death in the News,' St. Paul citizens wake one morning to find that the sign on downtown’s tallest building that reads PIONEER PRESS has been altered - at great effort - to read LIARS. An elaborate prank, yes, but it foreshadows a far worse crime, and Rafferty is on the case. In 'The Birdman of Summit Avenue,' cats are turning up dead in the yards of St. Paul’s prominent citizens, and suspicion swiftly falls on the wealthy avian enthusiast Ambrose Harriman, but the case turns darker still when a neighborhood boy is found murdered in Harriman’s yard. In 'The Gold King,' an enigmatic stranger arrives in town, calling himself the Gold King and announcing his plans to unearth hidden treasure hereabouts, which eventually leads to a shocking conclusion.

Steeped in the mystery and history of nineteenth-century St. Paul, these interlocking detective stories feature the characters - and the local character - that have made the Shadwell Rafferty series irresistible. Spellbinding as ever, these stories also afford the curious pleasure of watching Rafferty find his footing on his way to becoming the consummate detective whose exploits have delighted readers again and again."

I thought "The Gold King" was the most-intriguing of the three stories, although "The Birdman of Summit Avenue" was solid as well. "Death in the News" was my least favorite. It was okay, but I thought the plot was overly complex and confusing at times. But I ultimately concluded that two solid novellas and one okay won deserved four stars.

As a whole, I thoroughly enjoyed rediscovering Shadwell Rafferty. So, look for future reviews of Millett's other works featuring the likeable St. Paul detective and his sidekick Thomas, which I'm motivated to reread after finishing this book.

[Annie · Rating 4 out of 5]

Originally posted on my blog Nonstop Reader.

Mysterious Tales of Old St. Paul is a collection of three novella length historical mysteries by Larry Millett featuring fictional sleuth Shadwell Rafferty. Released 1st Oct 2024 by The University of Minnesota Press, it's 240 pages and is available in hardcover and ebook formats.

These are well written stories, tied together loosely, and featuring an unvarnished plain-spoken saloon owner and sometimes detective who has a tie-in with the author's other series (Sherlock Holmes in Minnesota). The mysteries are nicely constructed and satisfyingly resolved. It's set in the late 19th century in Minnesota, and there's a palpable sense of setting, with an adolescent American midwest vibe and rough-and-ready characters.

The main character has an occasionally annoying tendency toward internal monologues, riffing on the methodology of Sherlock Holmes; and it's a fun homage, but becomes tiresome when it's overused.

The author is clearly very very well versed with local history and there is a wonderful verisimilitude throughout the book, with the mysteries skillfully interwoven around a scaffold of actual history. It's done so skillfully it's not clear where real history shades over into fiction.

Three and a half stars. Well written. It will likely appeal to readers who enjoy Anne Perry's William Monk series and similar.

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

[Thomas · Rating 4 out of 5]

Thanks to Larry Millet, The University of Minnesota Press, and NetGalley for access to the Advanced Reader Copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.

The atmosphere and sense of place in this set of stories is very strong and I could envision the characters and Old St. Paul as the mysteries progressed. Real characters and buildings of real Old St. Paul are so seamlessly intertwined in the story that it would be easy to forget that this is a work of fiction.

I liked how the three stories were connected, yet independent so we could follow our favorite characters through their adventures. I also enjoyed Shadwell Rafferty as a detective and his interactions with the various citizens, good and bad, of old St. Paul.

[Jan · Rating 5 out of 5]

St. Paul, Minnesota, State Capital and County Seat of Ramsey County, established 1849, home to
Shadwell Rafferty, saloon owner (Shad's Place) and part-time private eye. Rafferty did meet Holmes and Watson in 1896 and they remained friends for decades.
This is the latest in the Rafferty books and contains three new short stories filled with plot twists, red herrings, and not a few snickers. The only problem is that I now have to hunt down a few of the older books because I liked this one so well.
I requested and received a free temporary (not TTS) EARC from University of Minnesota Press via NetGalley. Thank you!
#ShadwellRafferty #SherlockHolmes #StPaulMn #Mysteries

[Betsy Hoek · Rating 3 out of 5]

This is a collection of three novella-length mystery tales set in St. Paul, Minnesota, in the late 19th century. The cases solved by the Irish-American bartender detective Shadwell Rafferty each have a touch of the bizarre that is reminiscent of Sherlock Holmes, Rafferty’s great inspiration and role model. These tales are lightly told with some colorful and memorable turns of phrase. However, the characters lacked definition, which made it harder to tell suspects apart and connect with the first two cases. The third case was more well-rounded in this respect and was genuinely suspenseful. Thanks to the publisher and Netgalley for the opportunity to read and review this book.

[Holly Ristau · Rating 5 out of 5]

You know, I think if Larry Millet wrote a recipe book, I'd love it! Rafferty is like an old friend and it's comforting to sit back and read about the imaginary PI when it's freezing outside and you just want to escape! Just like always, I'll read anything Millet writes and I'll love it!

[Katie · Rating 2 out of 5]

2.5 stars

[Nancy Doyle · Rating 3 out of 5]

Fun references to St Paul history in the 1890's. Very similar to Sherlock Holmes stories. Well written.

[Bethany · Rating 3 out of 5]

Fun if not especially deep.

[Dave · Rating 3 out of 5]

just okay. last story of 3 was the better of them to me. Dialog is stilted. found myself speed reading a lot.

[Maggie · Rating 3 out of 5]

Audio

[Beth · Rating 5 out of 5]

Love the historical context of action in St. Paul.

[Greg Giles · Rating 3 out of 5]

Three short stories, more yarns than mysteries, and more fancy than fiction. Quite moralistic, but with Millet's impeccable eye for character and detail, a fun read.