After having read The Diviners, I felt the urge to revisit this classic thriller by Caleb Carr. Many have credited Carr and The Alienist specifically as igniting a resurgence of interest in historical fiction thrillers (i.e., The Dante Club, Devil in the White City, etc.).
As with The Diviners, we are once again in NYC, which is in the midst of an horrific serial killer whose prey of choice are child prostitutes from the slums of the Five Points. Even more salacious is the fact that he likes to take his victims' eyes and that the prostitutes are all boys who dress up as female. Investigating this case is Commissioner Theodore Roosevelt (before he became President) and Dr. Kreizler (the Alienist).
Strengths of the story is following the analysis of the intrepid doctor. And Sara Howard is a strong female as one of the first women serving in the police department.
Weaknesses: the love story between Kreizler and his maid; the final encounter with the killer.
Food and Drink: just follow the menu of Chapter 10's dinner at Delmonicos--begin with platters of oysters and glasses of sherry and bitters; bottle of amontillado; followed by bass done in creamy Mornay sauce accompanied with Hocchheimer; then a saddle of lamb a la Colbert and a bottle of Chateau Lagrange; followed by Maryland terrapin; sorbet Elsinore; canvasback duck prepared with hominy and currant gelee accompanied with a glass of Chambertin; ending with Alliance pears steeped in wine, deep-fried, powdered with sugar and smothered in apricot sauce followed by petits fours.
If the above outlined banquet is a bit much, I'd recommend reading the book with roast beef and a glass of full-bodied red wine.
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