A Girl Like You
”Henrietta and Inspector Howard are the best pair of sleuths I've come across in ages. A fantastic start to what is sure to be a long running series.” ―Tasha Alexander, New York Times bestselling author
Henrietta Von Harmon works as a 26 girl at a corner bar on Chicago's northwest side. It's 1935, but things still aren't looking up since the big crash and her father's subsequent suicide, leaving Henrietta to care for her antagonistic mother and younger siblings.
Henrietta is eventually persuaded to take a job as a taxi dancer at a local dance hall―and just when she's beginning to enjoy herself, the floor matron turns up dead. When aloof Inspector Clive Howard appears on the scene, Henrietta agrees to go undercover for him―and is plunged into Chicago's grittier underworld.
Meanwhile, she's still busy playing mother hen to her younger siblings, as well as to pesky neighborhood boy Stanley, who believes himself in love with her and keeps popping up in the most unlikely places, determined to keep Henrietta safe―even from the Inspector, if need be. Despite his efforts, however, and his penchant for messing up the Inspector's investigation, the lovely Henrietta and the impenetrable Inspector find themselves drawn to each other in most unsuitable ways.
More Reviews:
2021 Independent Publisher Book Awards (IPPY Awards): Gold Winner in Book Series – Fiction
2017 IPPY Awards: Gold Mystery Winner
2016 Readers Favorite: Gold Mystery Winner
2016 Foreword Indies: Gold Mystery Winner
2016 Foreword Indies: Romance Finalist
2016 Shelf Unbound: Top 100 Notable Indie
2016 Chanticleer Awards: Mystery and Mayhem 1st place Winner
2016 USA Best Book Awards: Fiction Romance Finalist
2016 Beverly Hills Book Awards: Regional Fiction Winner – Midwest
2016 Next Generation Indies: Romance Finalist
2019 Next Generation Indie Book Awards: Finalist in Series
2016 Reader Views: Historical Fiction Winner; Regional Winner – Great Lakes; Tyler Tichelaar Award
”Henrietta and Clive are a sexy, endearing, and downright fun pair of sleuths. Readers will not see the final twist coming.” ―Library Journal
“Fans of spunky, historical heroines will love Henrietta Von Harmon.” ―Booklist
“Cox’s use of literary detail brings scenes into full focus as the reader anxiously races through the pages of this deliciously written cloak and dagger affair. A delightful story.” ―Readers’ Favorite
“A Girl Like You is very intriguing, well-written, and the plot very entertaining. Readers will be drawn into the sights, smells, and seedy side of Chicago.” ―Reader Views
“Even if a mystery didn’t enfold, this would be a thoroughly satisfying novel…. The embedded mystery, however, takes this book to another level, a feat of successful merging of genres.” ―Chanticleer Reviews
“Chicago in the 1930s: Be still, our history-obsessed hearts. Dashing inspector Clive Howard convinces Henrietta Von Harmon to go undercover in Chicago’s dark underworld of crime, and her mission for evidence leads to an undeniable romance sure to leave readers swooning.” ―Bookstr, Top 5 Historical Fiction Reads for Romance Lovers
“Here is another wonderful mystery series set between the wars that is less Maisie Dobbs and more Amory Ames (albeit with a lower class main character) or Kate Shackleton but should appeal to fans of all between the wars mysteries or even just fiction for that matter.” ―ReadSpace
“As the two continue to sleuth together, Henrietta realizes that the most difficult thing to keep under wraps might be her heart.” ―Buzzfeed, 5 Historical Mysteries for Romance Lovers
“The authentic setting rich in cinematic detail of Chicago during The Great Depression is the perfect backdrop for a plethora of vivid characters in Michele Cox’s novel A Girl Like You. A highly entertaining mystery.” ―Sande Boritz Berger, author of The Sweetness
“Anyone who enjoys a well-written romantic mystery set in a gritty time and place will enjoy A Girl Like You.” ―M.A. Adler, author of In the Shadow of Lies
“The book’s cast of additional characters, headed by Inspector Howard, accompanies Henrietta through a murder, a dangerous job, and touching reminders that life turns on small intimacies. This engaging book bodes well for the following works in the series!” ―Barbara Stark-Nemon, author of Even in Darkness
*Listed as a “Top Read” by PopSugar, Elle, Buzzfeed, Brit&Co, Culturalist, Redbook, Bookstr, Bustle, Shelf Unbound, and many others*
Author Bio:
Michelle Cox is the author of the multiple award-winning Henrietta and Inspector Howard series as well as "Novel Notes of Local Lore," a weekly blog dedicated to Chicago's forgotten residents. She suspects she may have once lived in the 1930s and, having yet to discover a handy time machine lying around, has resorted to writing about the era as a way of getting herself back there. Coincidentally, her books have been praised by Kirkus, Library Journal, Publishers Weekly, Booklist, and many others, so she might be on to something. Unbeknownst to most, Michelle hoards board games she doesn't have time to play and is, not surprisingly, addicted to period dramas and big band music. Also marmalade.
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Self-published with She Writes Press