Blue Door £12.99 (349pp) £11.69 from the Independent Bookshop: 08430 600 030

31 Bond Street, By Ellen Horan

Reviewed by Emma Hagestadt

Friday 04 June 2010

On one of the coldest nights in 1857, a prosperous dentist, Harvey Burdell, is found stabbed to death in his Lower Manhattan townhouse. There are no witnesses to the crime but Emma Cunningham, Burdell's attractive housekeeper, is charged with murder.

In a gripping recreation of this true-life crime, Ellen Horan places Emma's burgeoning relationship with her brilliant defence lawyer, Henry Clinton, centre-stage. What really brings the novel to life is Horan's descriptions of the rapidly expanding city.

Manhattan's wealthy are only just starting their progress uptown, leaving the orchards and woods of Greenwich Village behind. Native Americans are being moved on to make way for the riverside factories and warehouses.

Suggested Topics
Voices
Kenyan game rangers with the carcass of an elephant killed by poachers

10 things you need to know about poaching

elephant appeal
Sport
This picture was posted by Cricket Australia with the message: 'Will the real Monty Panesar please stand up?!'

Cricket Australia accused of casual racism over Panesar tweet

sport
News
Tom Daley breaks his silence on his new romance in an interview on The Jonathan Ross Show

'It was love at first sight': Tom Daley opens up about gay relationship

people
Life & Style
One man and his blog: Herdyshepherd’s flock

Flock star: A shepherd in the Lake District now has 20,000 Twitter followers

tech
VIDEO
Arts & Entertainment
Chloe Howl, Ella Eyre and Sam Smith are up for the Brits Critics Choice Award 2014

Brit Critics' Choice Award shortlist revealed

arts + ents
Sport
Suarez's four-goal haul means that he has now scored 11 goals in his last four appearances against Norwich

Suarez scores four as he terrorises Canaries again

sportLiverpool 5 Norwich City 1: Uruguayan striker has now scored 11 league goals against the club
Arts & Entertainment
Shady character: Alexander Hanson during rehearsals

Alexander Hanson: Man of the moment

arts + entsOlivier-nominated actor and singer is set to star in Lloyd Webber's musical about the Profumo affair
Life & Style
The capability of computers to recognise emotion is gathering pace

Do we want our laptops to know when we're in a bad mood?

tech
Voices
Jude Law has reportedly quit filming of Jane Got a Gun after the director failed to turn up

Your chance to drink Champagne with Jude...

elephant appealBid for backstage access to Henry V in our charity auction
Arts & Entertainment
Theda Bara in 1917’s silent movie ‘Cleopatra’

Going quietly: The sad plight of silent movies

filmWith more than 70 per cent of early films lost, archivists are scouring the world to preserve the precious examples that remain
Extras

Sleep tight this winter: The 10 best electric blankets

indybest
Property
A slogan is for life: Clarissa Baldwin and friend

Canine crusade: CEO of the Dogs Trust has quite a tail to tell

life + styleClarissa Baldwin is the brains behind the slogan 'A Dog is for Life not just for Christmas'
News
Samuel Osborne, psychology student: 'We've been given marks for work but we don't know how that fits together into the big picture'

Should UK universities use an American-style grading system?

education
Arts & Entertainment
Charlotte Gainsbourg is the lead character in Lars Von Trier's Nymphomaniac

Cinema shows explicit sex trailer before Disney film

arts + entsFamilies saw teaser for Lars von Trier's X-rated Nymphomaniac
Life & Style

Frugal fayre: Where can you get the cheapest Christmas dinner?

food + drink
Arts & Ents blogs

Joseph Capriati: “Representing Napoli and representing Italy. That’s my spirit”

The Children’s Book Blog Christmas Countdown: The Latke Who Couldn’t Stop Screaming by Lemony Snicket

MK: Two years after his return…

Independent
Travel Shop
Pompeii, Capri and the Bay of Naples
 7 nights from £719pp Find out more
Europe’s Finest River Cruises
5 days from £819pp, 8 days from £999pp, 14 days from £1,499pp Find out more
Vietnam and Cambodia
 15 nights from £1,959pp Find out more

independent images

SPONSORED FEATURES

Enter the latest Independent competitions

Win anything from gadgets to five-star holidays on our competitions and offers page.

Business videos

Business videos from commercial thought leaders

Watch the best in the business world give their insights into the world of business.

Prizes & offers

ES Rentals

    Independent Dating
    and  

    By clicking 'Search' you
    are agreeing to our
    Terms of Use.

    The day we left Hitler behind: Survivors of the Kindertransport tell their stories

    The day we left Hitler behind

    Survivors of the Kindertransport tell their stories
    Scientists sequence oldest human DNA from fossilised leg bone found in Spain

    Scientists sequence oldest human DNA from fossilised leg bone found in Spain

    European was more closely related to a much earlier species of human living in Siberia about 700,000 years ago than to the later Neanderthals of Europe
    Nigella Lawson admits taking cocaine twice but says claims she was an addict are 'ridiculous'

    What made Charles Saatchi grab my throat, by Nigella Lawson

    I've taken cocaine at two times in my life - but I've never been an addict, she tells court
    Lee Rigby murder trial: Fusilier’s widow walks out as court is shown video tirade by defendant Michael Adebolajo

    Lee Rigby murder trial shown video tirade by defendant

    ‘May Allah forgive me if I acted in a way that is displeasing to Him’
    Leeds manhunt: Police make arrest after female officer shot

    Police make arrest after female officer shot in Leeds

    The officer's injuries are serious but non life threatening, police said
    Man of the moment: Alexander Hanson is set to star in Andrew Lloyd Webber's musical about the Profumo affair

    Man of the moment: Alexander Hanson

    The little known actor is set to star in Andrew Lloyd Webber's musical about the Profumo affair
    Going quietly: The sad plight of silent movies

    Going quietly: The sad plight of silent movies

    With more than 70 per cent of early films lost, archivists are scouring the world to preserve the precious examples that remain
    Flock star: A shepherd in the Lake District now has almost 20,000 Twitter followers

    Lake District shepherd has 20,000 Twitter followers

    Simon Usborne asks him how he came to have such a large 'farmy army'
    Rhodri Marsden: Do we want our laptops to know when we're in a bad mood?

    Do we want laptops to know when we're angry?

    Analysts fast-forward to a time when machines can respond to us more tenderly
    The pen is mightier than the keypad: A piece of new hi-tech kit aims to get us scribbling again

    New hi-tech kit aims to get us scribbling again

    Our use of computers has all but made the daily use of pen and ink obsolete, says Jessica Winter
    Canine crusade: Clarissa Baldwin - CEO of the Dogs Trust - has quite a tail to tell

    Canine crusade: Clarissa Baldwin has quite a tail to tell

    Baldwin is the brains behind the slogan "A Dog is for Life not just for Christmas"
    Is there more to sport than winning?

    Is there more to sport than winning?

    The coach of Chalfont St Peter's under-10s football team was relieved of his duties after he said: "I am only interested in winning"
    Should UK universities use an American-style grading system?

    Should we use an American-style grade system?

    If a pilot being run by the Higher Education Academy produces a workable solution, it will be goodbye Firsts, 2.1s and 2.2s, and hello to the US-style grade point average (GPA).
    The 10 best electric blankets

    The 10 best electric blankets

    Make getting out of the wrong side of bed on cold winter mornings a thing of the past with our selection of night-time covers