Mary Higgins Clark

She’s always had a keen eye for clothes and design, and has become respected in New York’s fashion world as a highly talented up-and-coming clothier. Ethel Lambston has depended on Neeve to provide her with a stylish and well-designed wardrobe, and that’s why Neeve becomes concerned when Ethel never picks up her newest order at the boutique. After a few days of anxious waiting, Neeve begins to believe that something is wrong. This is when she decides to do a bit of her own investigating. Little by little, with help from some friends and acquaintances she makes, Neeve begins to piece together the last few weeks of Ethel Lambston’s life. As she does, she finds out that more than one person had a motive for murder. There’s Ethel’s bitter ex-husband and his new wife, her nephew, who’s due to inherit, several designers whose secrets Ethel was going to publish, and an organized crime connection. When Ethel’s body is discovered, it turns out that Neeve’s instinct was all too accurate. The closer Neeve gets to the truth, the closer she gets to real danger as the killer becomes aware that Neeve may be the only person who can make the connection between the victim and the killer.

One of the elements that runs throughout this novel is the crossing, you might say, of genres. While My Pretty One Sleeps is most definitely a crime fiction novel. There’s a murder, there’s an investigation, there’s a sleuth, and so on. But you could also call it a romance novel. Neeve Kearny is single, and although it’s not belaboured in the book, she’s never really been able to make a deep and permanent commitment to anyone. In the course of her investigation, Neeve meets Jack Campbell, who works for Givvons and Marks, a publishing house. Not long before her death, Ethel Lambston had approached Campbell about publishing a tell-all book about the fashion world, and Neeve thinks that Jack Campbell may have some information about her disappearance. The two begin to see each other, first professionally and then romantically. It turns out that the two have met before, and Jack was never able to forget Neeve. Their developing relationship turns out to be a sub-plot that runs throughout the novel.

Higgins Clark uses flashbacks to reveal Renata Kearny’s background and personality, and the circumstances of her death. By the end of the story, Renata Kearny has become almost as real a character as the living ones. We get a strong sense of the kind of person she was, and what she was like. New York City serves as a dramatic backdrop to the events of the novel; its unique character is an essential ingredient in the story. Readers get the sense that the story wouldn’t really have “fit” in another setting.

The same is true of Higgins Clark’s use of a professional setting. In this case, the fashion industry serves as an important element in this novel.

Higgins Clark uses the fashion industry of New York City as the backdrop to weave together a murder mystery and romance, and ties together this “package” with strong connections between past and present.

Review by Margot Kinberg, Confessions of a Mystery Writer