3.3 stars

This is romance but the murder mystery is the louder component. I didn't mind because I get to then use it for Halloween Bingo, lol. The romance is there but quieter and slow, this was very atmospheric. Set in New Orleans during the Civil War (1862), a lot of thick air, rain, Beast Butler hatred, and that languid pace.

Zach is our provost marshal, a cavalry Major finishing up healing in New Orleans. When a doctor is killed in a graveyard he is called in to solve the murder. He meets the woman who was with him, Emmanuelle, newly widowed and works at the same hospital the victim was at. We get some background on Zach, he's famous for solving a serial killer case out west, so he doesn't just take things at face value.

The murder mystery slowly unravels, was Emmanuelle the actual intended victim? The reader never really knows more than Zach and as more people around Emmanuelle wind up dead and she's not totally honest with Zach, she's a suspect, but a suspect Zach is finding himself attracted to.

This story was all atmosphere, mystery, and languid. There were creditable red-herrings for the murder mystery but towards the 60% it becomes a little clear who is responsible. Around 80% I felt like it started to drag, mostly because I was sick and tired of Emmanuelle lying or not telling the truth to Zach about certain things, like, come on, truth time. The romance is more in the subtleties and Zach's character mostly saves the romance side because he's pretty swoony.

Sept/Oct was the perfect time to read this, need time and patience to sink into the languid pace, and prepare to grow impatience with characters not being truthful and taking too long to share things with Zach. ( )

A gripping, suspenseful tale set during the Civil War in occupied New Orleans, Midnight Confessions is dark and haunting, and not a little creepy - though I'm a big coward, so don't take my word for it on the last bit. Still, I really enjoyed this book. I usually don't go for murder mysteries, but I'm set on reading everything by Candice Proctor so I couldn't turn this one down. If you approach the book more as a mystery than a romance, I think your chances of enjoying Midnight Confessions increase considerably. I still loved the romance part - and Zach Cooper and Emmanuelle de Beauvais are a couple of fascinating, strong characters - but their developing relationship and almost every conversation is entirely determined by the plot, the series of murders that confound and terrorize them. In this sense, the romance was a tad overwhelmed by the suspense plot. Apart from the hero and heroine, the city of New Orleans is as much a character in its own right here, and I think that's why I enjoyed reading Midnight Confessions. No one creates atmosphere like Proctor, and the dangerous, beautiful city comes so alive here. It practically breathes mystery and passion, violence, dark secrets, death and love.

I really couldn't say whether the mystery itself was that well crafted or skillfully executed because that's not really my bag, baby, and I think in cases like these I'm easily satisfied. Though I will say that, while I liked all the different elements, characters, and intersecting relationships that were set into play to create the mystery, how they all fell into place, and the denouement was a let down. Things that were supposed to be the big, scandalous, twisted mystery, had been apparent/obvious all along, leaving me to feel that something didn't go quite right with the story being told, the puzzle that was constructed. But still, I really liked Zach and Emmanuelle together, especially the surprising fact that he's younger than her. This was an engrossing read for me, despite my qualms. ( )