Like many other lifelong readers, my introduction to literature was made via the classics. One of my all-time favorites is THE GREAT GATSBY, which was published 100 years ago, on April 10, 1925. So imagine my excitement when I began reading the newly released THE GATSBY GAMBIT. Claire Anderson-Wheeler utilizes her creativity to retell the story with many of the beloved characters from F. Scott Fitzgerald’s work.

The substantial change is the addition of Jay Gatsby’s younger sister, Greta, who is returning to the Gatsby Mansion in West Egg, Long Island, after graduating from finishing school. Upon Greta’s arrival, she finds the mansion filled with many of the household staff she remembered before leaving for school, as well as Jay’s usual cast of cronies, like Nick Carraway, Jordan Baker, and Daisy and Tom Buchanan. Of course, it is no secret that the Buchanans are having marital problems, while rumors of Daisy and Jay having a fling circle around their group.

"Greta is a sharp amateur sleuth who can act almost like an outsider to the people and relationships that make up the Gatsby Mansion. It is a refreshing update indeed!"

Jay is hosting a party to welcome back Greta, among other things, and even Tom’s hated brother, Edgar, is invited. The gathering is everything you would expect from a Jay Gatsby bash in the Roaring Twenties. However, the gaiety soon will be replaced by horror when Greta finds Tom's lifeless body sitting in the captain’s chair of Jay’s boat. A bullet hole is in his head, and a gun is lying beside him.

What began as a light-hearted typical night at the Gatsby Mansion immediately becomes a potential scandal. Did Tom kill himself as the evidence would lead one to believe? Or could one of the other guests have set it up to make it look like a suicide to cover up a murder? Jay and Daisy would make likely suspects, and some partygoers overheard Tom arguing with Edgar behind closed doors. When rumors of a letter written by Tom to his wealthy mother asking for a substantial loan is floated, other potential factors behind Tom’s death are introduced.

All of this is being handled by the police. They arrive in a timely fashion and are led by Inspector Francis, who is not a fan of the Gatsbys and their wealthy chums. As the investigation gets underway, Daisy notices that her priceless pearl necklace has disappeared. Anyone could have taken it, and it becomes yet another thing for Inspector Francis to consider. It is at this point that the novel takes on the mood of a classic murder mystery in the style of Greta’s favorite author, Agatha Christie.

Clues and motives are bandied about, but it all will come down to who had the opportunity. No one is above suspicion as Anderson-Wheeler steers this ship with some clever plotting that always keeps the reader guessing.

As I was reading, I recognized how the events being laid out completely changed the original source material as there is no George Wilson in this story to take Jay Gatsby’s life in an act of misplaced revenge. THE GATSBY GAMBIT fully delivers with the characters we love and the time and setting that made THE GREAT GATSBY so special. Greta is a sharp amateur sleuth who can act almost like an outsider to the people and relationships that make up the Gatsby Mansion. It is a refreshing update indeed!