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How I discovered this book: it was submitted to Rosie's Book Review Team, of which I am a member, but I would have bought it anyway because I adore this series!
In a Nutshell: Mid-Victorian murder mystery, set in London. Book 7 of a series of stand-alones.
Loved it, loved it. When I got to 80% I found myself slowing down because I didn't want to read it too quickly. In this 7th book of the series, racism rears its ugly head, showing that it is far from being just a 20th and 21st century problem. Stride and Cully must deal with a series of arson attacks on businesses, and the brutal murder of an old Italian man.
Elsewhere, socialite Juliana Silverton is thoroughly enjoying the attention received since her engagement to hedonistic rich boy Henry Haddon, her delight marred only by a secret from the past ... and the appearance of Henry's younger half-brother's new tutor.
This book is as expertly structured as the rest of the series, and includes similarly colourful characters and the ever-present chasm between rich and poor, so much a theme in all the books - and in certain areas of life nothing has changed; young aristocrats with powerful connections are able to get away with the most heinous of crimes, just as they always have been and are now.
Although illustrating society's problems in the most deft way, Ms Hedges does not fall into the cliché of making all the privileged characters the 'bad guys'; I was pleased to see a happy outcome for one, in particular. I guessed the perpetrators of the crimes quite early on, but this didn't matter a jot; the joy of reading these books is the writing itself, the vivid pictures of 1860s London, and the slow unfolding of sub-plots.
I can't help but think of what star rating I will give a book while I am reading it, and this was a solid 5* all the way through, but what earned it my extra 'gold' star was the end twist that I never saw coming. It was beautifully executed, and made me smile as I realised how other aspects were explained by it.
If you haven't read any of these books, I recommend you start now - and I hope this is not the end of the series....
There are certain reviewers whose comments I value. You are ne of them. For this, many thanks ~ it makes the'tortured' process of writing worth while when a reader has really enjoyed and appreciated a book!
ReplyDeleteI know what you mean - there are some reviewers like that for me, too. I feel honoured to be one of yours! And I did so love this book - thrilled it is not the end of the series :)
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