We’re in the twilight of summer, which means it’s the perfect season for an enthralling, propulsive historical heist novel, such as Alex May’s clever first novel THE HOUSEKEEPERS.
It’s London 1905 and one ‘Mrs. King’ is wrapping up her service in an opulent Park Lane estate. Her final task? ‘Double-checking’ the details regarding an extravagant ball for Miss de Vries, the daughter of the recently deceased, new money, head of the house, one ‘Mr. de Vries’. Once Mrs. King exits through Park Lane’s doorway, she enlists an eclectic number of folks from her past on a mission: to steal each and every book, blanket, trunk, couch. To leave nothing — absolutely nothing — behind.
The reasons for this endeavor are known to Mrs. King and Mrs. King alone, and the ramshackle group of misfit women infiltrate the manor, scheduling their heist to coincide with the distraction of the poshly attended gala.
As always with heists, motives are questioned, steadfast trusts grow fragile, plans go sideways, and matters escalate in the most engrossing of ways.
THE HOUSEKEEPERS is a comfortably self-assured caper, one that deftly leans on the upstairs/downstairs dynamics of both the manor and the changing world outside to heighten the tropes of the heist genre. Top it off with fine attention to detail regarding the idiosyncrasies and well-woven character work of the thieving ensemble and you have all the marks of a thrilling afternoon read.