{"id":19583,"date":"2022-01-20T17:20:11","date_gmt":"2022-01-20T22:20:11","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/klishis.com\/reading\/?p=19583"},"modified":"2026-09-13T10:05:26","modified_gmt":"2026-09-13T14:05:26","slug":"murder-under-her-skin","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/klishis.com\/reading\/archives\/19583","title":{"rendered":"Murder Under Her Skin"},"content":{"rendered":"

Murder Under Her Skin<\/a><\/em> (2021) Stephen Spotswood<\/a> (Pentecost and Parker)<\/p>\n

\"Murder<\/a>Set in NYC and rural VA in 1946.<\/p>\n

Will has been working for Ms. Pentecost for more than a year now, and is enjoying becoming a private investigator.<\/p>\n

But when Will gets a telegram from her old boss–Big Bob Halloway–asking to look into the death of one of the Tattooed Woman–Ruby Donner, because one of their own, Valentin Kalishenko, was being held for the crime.<\/p>\n

With no blood pumping through it, Ruby\u2019s flesh had gone the sickly pale of the dead. Without that rosy background glow, the ink of her tattoos stood out brilliantly, floating on top of her skin like leaves on a pond.<\/p><\/blockquote>\n

The case is complicated because Ruby was from the town, and the police would prefer to blame one of the circus people rather than one of their neighbors, while the circus people feel as if one of their own is getting railroaded for a crime he didn’t commit, because the police weren’t interested in looking any further.<\/p>\n

So Will and Ms. Pentecost head south.<\/p>\n

I didn\u2019t think the guy who\u2019d gotten labeled the \u201cSheffield Valley Rooster Thief\u201d was a good candidate for murder or attempted arson.<\/p><\/blockquote>\n

The writing is good, I love Will, and nothing is straight or easy. It’s not just about crime in the 1940s, but also looks at racism and queer lives.<\/p>\n

So I look forward to another entry in the series.<\/p>\n

Publisher: Doubleday
\nRating: 8\/10<\/strong><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Murder Under Her Skin (2021) Stephen Spotswood (Pentecost and Parker) Set in NYC and rural VA in 1946. Will has been working for Ms. Pentecost for more than a year now, and is enjoying becoming a private investigator. But when Will gets a telegram from her old boss–Big Bob Halloway–asking to look into the death […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_jetpack_newsletter_access":"","_jetpack_dont_email_post_to_subs":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_tier_id":0,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paywalled_content":false,"_jetpack_feature_clip_id":0,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":"","jetpack_publicize_message":"","jetpack_publicize_feature_enabled":true,"jetpack_social_post_already_shared":true,"jetpack_social_options":{"image_generator_settings":{"template":"highway","default_image_id":0,"font":"","enabled":false},"version":2},"jetpack_post_was_ever_published":false},"categories":[12,292,48,204,33,8,742,148],"tags":[581,741,568,992,567],"class_list":["post-19583","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-8-10","category-ebook","category-female","category-good","category-historical","category-mystery","category-physical-health","category-queer","tag-bisexual","tag-ms","tag-pentecost-and-parker","tag-post-world-war-ii-era","tag-stephen-spotswood"],"jetpack_publicize_connections":[],"jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"jetpack_shortlink":"https:\/\/wp.me\/piQkW-55R","jetpack-related-posts":[{"id":27305,"url":"https:\/\/klishis.com\/reading\/archives\/27305","url_meta":{"origin":19583,"position":0},"title":"Murder Under Her Skin, Audio Book","author":"Michelle","date":"June 11, 2026","format":false,"excerpt":"Murder Under Her Skin, Audio Book Stephen Spotswood narrated by Kirsten Potter (Pentecost & Parker #2) Set in Stoppard VA in 1947 I had some preconceived notions of what to expect from the Pig\u2019s Hole, and it did not disappoint. It had clearly started life as a cheaply made shotgun\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "8\/10"","block_context":{"text":"8\/10","link":"https:\/\/klishis.com\/reading\/archives\/category\/8-10"},"img":{"alt_text":"Murder Under Her Skin","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/klishis.com\/reading\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/01\/Murder-Under-Her-Skin-197x300.jpg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1","width":350,"height":200},"classes":[]},{"id":25856,"url":"https:\/\/klishis.com\/reading\/archives\/25856","url_meta":{"origin":19583,"position":1},"title":"Fortune Favors the Dead, Audio Book","author":"Michelle","date":"February 21, 2026","format":false,"excerpt":"Fortune Favors the Dead, Audio Book (2020) Stephen Spotswood narrated by Kirsten Potter (Pentecost and Parker Mystery #1) Set in NYC in 1945 \u201cI trust you to use your best judgment. Don\u2019t do anything you aren\u2019t comfortable doing.\u201d \u201cYou realize I used to dress up like a showgirl and have\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "8\/10"","block_context":{"text":"8\/10","link":"https:\/\/klishis.com\/reading\/archives\/category\/8-10"},"img":{"alt_text":"Fortune Favors the Dead","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/klishis.com\/reading\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/10\/Fortune-Favors-the-Dead.jpg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1","width":350,"height":200},"classes":[]},{"id":18382,"url":"https:\/\/klishis.com\/reading\/archives\/18382","url_meta":{"origin":19583,"position":2},"title":"Fortune Favors the Dead","author":"Michelle","date":"October 18, 2021","format":false,"excerpt":"Fortune Favors the Dead (2020) Stephen Spotswood (Pentecost and Parker) Set in New York in 1945. Will Parker ran away to join the circus, to escape her abusive father. But an event one night in 1942 in NYC changes everything, and she ends up working for Lillian Pentecost, a private\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "7.5\/10"","block_context":{"text":"7.5\/10","link":"https:\/\/klishis.com\/reading\/archives\/category\/7-5-10"},"img":{"alt_text":"Fortune Favors the Dead","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/klishis.com\/reading\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/10\/Fortune-Favors-the-Dead.jpg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/klishis.com\/reading\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/10\/Fortune-Favors-the-Dead.jpg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1 1x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/klishis.com\/reading\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/10\/Fortune-Favors-the-Dead.jpg?resize=525%2C300&ssl=1 1.5x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/klishis.com\/reading\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/10\/Fortune-Favors-the-Dead.jpg?resize=700%2C400&ssl=1 2x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/klishis.com\/reading\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/10\/Fortune-Favors-the-Dead.jpg?resize=1050%2C600&ssl=1 3x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/klishis.com\/reading\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/10\/Fortune-Favors-the-Dead.jpg?resize=1400%2C800&ssl=1 4x"},"classes":[]},{"id":27302,"url":"https:\/\/klishis.com\/reading\/archives\/27302","url_meta":{"origin":19583,"position":3},"title":"Secrets Typed in Blood, Audio Book","author":"Michelle","date":"July 25, 2026","format":false,"excerpt":"Secrets Typed in Blood, Audio Book (2022) Stephen Spotswood narrated by Kirsten Potter (Pentecost & Parker #3) Set in NYC in 1947 \"I\u2019ll say this, though\u2014she refused to meet my eyes. That screams someone with something to hide.\u201d My boss shook her head. \u201cI don\u2019t think that was intentional,\u201d she\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "8.5\/10"","block_context":{"text":"8.5\/10","link":"https:\/\/klishis.com\/reading\/archives\/category\/8-5-10"},"img":{"alt_text":"Secrets Typed in Blood","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/klishis.com\/reading\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/12\/Secrets-Typed-in-Blood-198x300.jpg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1","width":350,"height":200},"classes":[]},{"id":27312,"url":"https:\/\/klishis.com\/reading\/archives\/27312","url_meta":{"origin":19583,"position":4},"title":"Murder Crossed Her Mind","author":"Michelle","date":"July 28, 2026","format":false,"excerpt":"Murder Crossed Her Mind (2023) Stephen Spotswood (Pentecost and Parker #4) Set in NYC in 1947 Defense attorney (and ower of apologies to Lillian Pentecost) Forest Whitsun has come asking for help. His friend--the retired secretary for the law firm he used to work for--is missing, and he is certain\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "8\/10"","block_context":{"text":"8\/10","link":"https:\/\/klishis.com\/reading\/archives\/category\/8-10"},"img":{"alt_text":"Murder Crossed Her Mind","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/klishis.com\/reading\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/07\/Murder-Crossed-Her-Mind.jpg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/klishis.com\/reading\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/07\/Murder-Crossed-Her-Mind.jpg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1 1x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/klishis.com\/reading\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/07\/Murder-Crossed-Her-Mind.jpg?resize=525%2C300&ssl=1 1.5x"},"classes":[]},{"id":22633,"url":"https:\/\/klishis.com\/reading\/archives\/22633","url_meta":{"origin":19583,"position":5},"title":"Secrets Typed in Blood","author":"Michelle","date":"December 29, 2023","format":false,"excerpt":"Secrets Typed in Blood (2022) Stephen Spotswood (Pentecost & Parker) Set in New York City in 1947 This is one of the books that I wanted to read, but couldn't get myself in the mood for. So I went ahead and read it. First, I really hate the new covers.\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "8\/10"","block_context":{"text":"8\/10","link":"https:\/\/klishis.com\/reading\/archives\/category\/8-10"},"img":{"alt_text":"Secrets Typed in Blood","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/klishis.com\/reading\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/12\/Secrets-Typed-in-Blood.jpg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/klishis.com\/reading\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/12\/Secrets-Typed-in-Blood.jpg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1 1x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/klishis.com\/reading\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/12\/Secrets-Typed-in-Blood.jpg?resize=525%2C300&ssl=1 1.5x"},"classes":[]}],"jetpack_likes_enabled":false,"jetpack_featured_media_url":"","_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/klishis.com\/reading\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/19583","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/klishis.com\/reading\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/klishis.com\/reading\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/klishis.com\/reading\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/klishis.com\/reading\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=19583"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/klishis.com\/reading\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/19583\/revisions"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/klishis.com\/reading\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=19583"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/klishis.com\/reading\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=19583"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/klishis.com\/reading\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=19583"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}