Murder at the St. Alice

It is 1908. Charlotte, a spirited, 15-year-old orphan, needs money to fund her education as a pharmacist. Leaving Victoria, British Columbia, where she lives with her aunt, Charlotte finds employment as a waitress at the St. Alice Resort Hotel on Harrison Lake. With some cursory training and a book called the ‘Up to Date Waitress’, Charlotte starts work. With one or two exceptions, she is popular with other staff members and guests. Mr. Doyle, an elderly visitor, takes an interest in Charlotte’s life, and she reciprocates by playing chess with him and providing herbal medicine when he is unwell. When he dies, the herbal remedy nearby, Charlotte is accused of murder.

This fast-paced story with an engaging and vivacious heroine and plenty of action is an enticing read. Charlotte’s adventurous new life and all its possibilities are seen through her youthful, eager eyes. References to the recently ended Boer War and staff involvement inspired by the suffrage movement set the time period as do attitudes regarding staff expectations. Descriptions of the bustling life and setting of the St. Alice are vivid, revealing its high class elegance and beautiful natural background, with the added bonus of actual photographs. Lives of the upstairs guests are shown in contrast to the downstairs staff that includes two maids aged eight and twelve. Thrown into the mix are potential romances between Charlotte and a couple of admirers. There is a large cast of characters each believably portrayed.

With the promised murder of the title not occurring until two-thirds of the way through the book, the solution of the crime is impacted. Though there is tension when Charlotte is arrested, the mystery wraps up too quickly with unheralded coincidences and unrealistic surprises coming together quite suddenly. Nevertheless, there is more than enough action and interest to keep readers aged ten to fourteen happily turning the pages of Murder at the St. Alice.