"The Pale Blue Eye: A Novel"

Louis Bayard's historical novel The Pale Blue Eye is a great read! I really loved it. The action takes place at West Point in 1830, and Edgar Allan Poe -- who was in actuality a student there -- is a major character. The mysterious deaths at the center of the plot, as well as the retired police detective charged with solving them, are the creation of the highly imaginative and scholarly author. I won't say more because I don't want to put in any spoilers.

The book is full of well-integrated details about life in that era -- I wrote about one aspect here: Food in a Historical Novel.