City of Shadows, the delightful fifth entry in the Counterfeit Lady series from historical mystery writer Victoria Thompson (City of Schemes), finds heroine Elizabeth Bates returned from her honeymoon and happily busy with married life. Content to have left her prior life as a professional con artist behind, nevertheless Elizabeth finds herself unable to refuse a request for aid from a dear friend. Her friend's mother has fallen under the influence of Madame Ophelia, a séance medium who is clearly intent on draining their financial resources. Only Elizabeth's shady connections and inside knowledge can save them.
Soon, Elizabeth finds herself fully absorbed in machinations as she and all her friends, including her respected attorney husband, Gideon, plot to run a con of their own. They gleefully concoct a masterful plan to out-con the Madame and her associates. But who will win this test of actors and high-concept deceptions--the dangerous charlatan with her criminal co-conspirators or Elizabeth's crew of gifted amateurs and friends from both sides of the law?
This charming tale has a clever, engaging heroine surrounded by a marvelous cast of secondary characters. Set against the colorful backdrop of late-Gilded Age New York, the heroine's commitment to the suffragette movement provides noteworthy historical context. The interwoven schemes to trick the Madame are brilliantly complicated and thoroughly enjoyable. Although the novel is easily read as a standalone mystery, readers will certainly want to indulge in the prior four connected stories. --Lois Faye Dyer, writer and reviewer