Book Talk | The Desk from Hoboken

 

THE DESK FROM HOBOKEN

A Genealogy Mystery, #1

by

ML Condike

Mystery / Women Sleuths / Forensic Genealogy

Publisher: Harbor Lane Books, LLC

Date of Publication: March 5, 2024

Number of Pages: 446 pages 

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After a personal loss, forensic genealogist RaeJean Hunter accepts what she believes is a straightforward case to ease back into the game: a student at Connecticut College has found human remains on the school campus. The College hires RaeJean to confirm their tentative identification that it’s a woman named Mary Rogers, whose cause of death has never been determined.

Unfortunately, it becomes downright dangerous. Someone thwarts her investigation of the same case that inspired Edgar Allan Poe’s “The Mystery of Marie Rogêt.” Still, she meets relatives, some helpful and others not, amid escalating threats. Using her skills, including DNA analysis, historical records research, genealogy mapping, and guidance from a mystical antique desk, she follows every clue.

 

 

 

 

 

 The Desk from Hoboken was a very up-and-down ride with plenty of twists, loops, and drops to keep you entertained throughout its run. From the very beginning, I was hooked on this interesting take on a mystery story. The forensic genealogy side to this book is something I haven't read but was completely fascinated by, especially since I'm a big fan of Forensic Files AND literary history. I found myself looking up different things about how genealogy works and got myself into one rabbit hole after another.

 

With the forensics and the history aspects of this story, there's just a lot of meat on these pages. There was so much to gravitate to and different places to look, such as the whole Chinese puzzle scenario (which was another interesting thing to look into). Although there's a lot of meat, it never feels too overwhelming. Everything goes chapter by chapter, instead of skipping around so you don't get confused. So instead of a mountain of meat, our author gives us piece by piece, thus opening the world but by bit as we are uncovering an over 100-year-old mystery. 

The only caveat I have about this book is that you have to pay attention to the characters because there's ALOT. There are quite a few people alive you have to keep track of and then there are the dead people you are investigating along with our main character. I found myself having to go back a few times to remember how one person is related to another, but after a few chapters, it got easier and I just made little mental notes to myself.

Overall, I was engrossed in The Desk from Hoboken. Readers will enjoy finding out how everything, including the desk, connects to the case that our main character is solving. It's a very unique read and if you're interested in mystery crime novels, this is one you need to put on your list. Until next time, Happy Reading!

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ML Condike’s novel, The Desk from Hoboken, is the first in a genealogy mystery three-book series. She also has short stories published in five anthologies. ML Condike completed Southern Methodist University’s Writer’s Path in Dallas in 2019 and is a member of Mystery Writers of America, Sisters in Crime North Dallas, Granbury Writers’ Bloc, and Key West Writers Guild.

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