Newest Crime (Historical) Reviews
Crime (historical)
The London of Sherlock Holmes - Over 400 Computer Generated Street Level Photos by Thomas Bruce Wheeler
Should I trust a book that has a typo on the FRONT cover? Would I purchase a book that practically says, as its first words, the e-book version is better than this paper thing? This, despite setting up very much the wrong impression, is a gateway into the world of Sherlock Holmes - but does, as I say, blatantly show itself up as flawed, while the electronic version could count as a very worthwhile app for the Conan Doyle buff. Full review...
Young Sherlock Holmes: Fire Storm by Andrew Lane
The estate of Arthur Conan Doyle has authorised Andrew Lane to write a series of books about the early years of Sherlock Holmes, and if this book is typical then they made an excellent choice. Through these stories we see the development of the complex and sometimes contradictory aspects of Sherlock's personality, set in the context of the most thrilling adventures and courageous acts of derring-do a young person could desire. Full review...
The Killing Way by Anthony Hays
Post-Roman invasion and Great Britain shows the signs of a beleagured nation. And straight away Hays gives us an historical flavour - Saxons, Picts and names such as 'Ambrosius Aurelianus' are mentioned early on in the book. Full review...
Sherlock Holmes: The Breath of God by Guy Adams
A body is discovered in London. The young gentleman concerned, a Mr Hilary De Montfort, had enjoyed a good life: no money problems for example and as far as anyone can ascertain, no enemies either. The motive is therefore fuzzy at best. The state of his body when it was discovered was bizarre - it looked as if he'd been hurled from a great height, even although he'd been discovered in an open space around Grosvenor Square. And in the words of Dr Watson himself (it is he who narrates in the main) ' ... as varied as our capital might be, it will always be found wanting of mountain ranges.' Full review...
Shadowblood: A Novel Of Sherlock Holmes by Tracy Revels
For those picking up a Tracy Revels novel for the first time, she writes Sherlock Holmes fiction with the twist that Holmes is a supernatural being, coming from the Shadows. In the hugely enjoyable romp Shadowfall, Watson discovered this, and was plunged headlong into an adventure involving Titania, Spring-Heeled Jack, voodoo, and various other dark and mysterious beings. That one ended with the good doctor losing his memory of the story – but I was always hoping that was merely a temporary measure, and indeed, it’s not long here before he starts to recall Holmes’ true nature. Full review...
The Baskerville Legacy: A Novel by John O'Connell
1900, and a man on a ship coming back from the Boer War to edit the Daily Express meets one of his heroes in the form of Arthur Conan Doyle. With similar experiences and interests yet different enough to bounce off each other they take up the idea of collaborating on a plot. When they do fix on time to do so, it leads to literary prospects, which lead to a week's research together on Dartmoor, which leads to The Hound of the Baskervilles. But perhaps in a way that only one of them intended. Full review...
The Case of the Grave Accusation: A Sherlock Holmes Adventure by Dicky Neely and Paul R Spiring (Editor)
Much in the way that legend says that King Arthur will return when his country needs him, Sherlock Holmes and Dr Watson have returned because an accusation has been made against their creator, Sir Arthur Conan Doyle. The charge is that the great man plagiarised The Hound of the Baskervilles from his great friend Bertram Fletcher Robinson – and then went on to commit adultery, blackmail and murder in order to conceal what he had done. Holmes' rooms in Baker Street have not changed a great deal – if one can overlook the addition of a desktop computer and better plumbing – but it's not long before the pair are off to Dartmoor to discover the truth. Full review...
The Thirty-nine Steps by John Buchan
Ask anyone about 'The Thrity-nine Steps' and I guarantee they'll be able to tell you it's a spy story with Richard Hannay at its heart. Most people will be able to tell you how it starts. But when you ask, 'Yes, but what ARE the 39 Steps?' most people will falter. Full review...
Shadowfall: A Novel of Sherlock Holmes by Tracy Revels
You remember Sherlock Holmes, yes? Deerstalker, pipe, leetle grey cells… (Oh, sorry, that was Poirot, but same kind of deductive ability), naked winged-woman on, or at least floating above, the sofa in Baker Street… wait a minute? Seriously? Full review...
The Outstanding Mysteries of Sherlock Holmes by Gerard Kelly
I'll spare people the details of Holmes and Watson as crime-solvers – I'm assuming anyone likely to pick this one up is probably familiar with the Victorian duo. This is generally very faithful to the Arthur Conan Doyle originals and the best stories in this set of thirteen sound authentic enough to take their place alongside some of the canon. Full review...
Rendezvous at the Populaire : A Novel of Sherlock Holmes by Kate Workman
After chasing his arch-enemy Moriarty without success on a cold night in November 1882, Sherlock Holmes is left maimed and unable to walk without the use of a cane. Despondent, he decides to give up his career as a detective – but is talked into taking an extra special case, as a Madame Giry comes across the Channel to beg his help with the mysterious 'ghost' which is terrorising the Opera Populaire… Full review...
The Further Adventures of Sherlock Holmes: Star of India by Carole Bugge
A woman with a distinguished scent about her appears flustered at a concert recital. A famous landlady gets kidnapped while on an innocent holiday to the west country. A malformed, brilliant modern-day alchemist gets murdered. There is only one person, who famously went over a certain Alpine waterfall, who could piece all this and more into a threat to the Royalty and Empire itself. But there is also only one person, who famously seemed to have stayed dead in going over the same Alpine waterfall, with the strength of mind to put the whole game into play. Full review...
The Further Adventures of Sherlock Holmes: The Peerless Peer by Philip Jose Farmer
It's World War One, and Britain has got wind of some brilliant scientific research, that has created a new bacterial weapon capable of wiping out the world's supply of sauerkraut. But a dastardly German has stolen the formula. Before he can give a variant based on boiled meat, cabbage and potatoes to the kaiser, his most recent nemesis - Sherlock Holmes, no less - must be brought out of beekeeping retirement. Cue an adventure and a half, as he and Watson take to the skies for the first time in their hectic lives, end up in darkest Africa, and encounter a certain yodelling, long-haired nobleman, more than up to the name of King of the Jungle... Full review...
John Shakespeare: Prince by Rory Clements
This is the third in the excellent Elizabethan murder mystery series, featuring John Shakespeare, brother of Will. An inexplicable murder is linked to a much deeper plot of political dimensions, leading Shakespeare into danger and tragedy. A series of bombings, which appear to be targeting the immigrant population causes huge unrest and fear, and leads to the uncovering of further political dimensions. Full review...
Betrayal at Lisson Grove by Anne Perry
After recently reading Perry's Acceptable Loss and thoroughly enjoying it, I was looking forward to reading this book and hoping it would be as good as read. The novel opens with Pitt, Special Branch, in the midst of frenzied action trying to catch a suspect. Suspected of murder, it's imperative that he's caught. They weave between crowds, duck through alleys, but their best efforts are simply not good enough. The man is not caught. He's free to strike again. This all makes for a good, old-fashioned chase as Pitt makes up his mind to board a ferry for France, believing that's where the suspect could be heading. Pitt is extremely thorough and meticulous in all matters of policing but this may very well bode ill later on in the story. We learn of deep unrest in parts of the world: Europe and Ireland in particular. And Perry is good at giving her readers a little palatable history here and there, to keep us all in the loop. Full review...
Acceptable Loss by Anne Perry
I must admit to not taking to the rather stylized front cover and nor did I take to the title. I got the initial impression that this novel was going to be all about heaving bosoms and manly men without too much substance. Was I right though? I gave a bit of a sigh as I started on chapter one. Straight away we meet two of the central characters, Mr and Mrs Monk. Mrs Monk (Hester) seems to have brought a local street urchin into her lovely home. All sounds a bit odd and also a bit intriguing. Perry back-tracks a little for the benefit of her readers and lets us know how this situation has come about. The boy is street-wise but he's also now desperate for a warm, safe bed and regular meals if he's lucky. He's had a dreadful life up till now and has somehow survived a terrible ordeal - and yes, you could say that it's the stuff of nightmares. I loved his name - Scuff and I automatically called him Scruff in my head, every time. Full review...
A Red Herring Without Mustard by Alan Bradley
Eleven year old Flavia is the youngest daughter of the de Luce family and she doesn't get on all that well with her elder sisters, Feely (Ophelia) and Daffy (Daphne). It could be rather lonely for her as her father is an eccentric stamp collector and her mother died in the Himalayas some ten years before, but she has her faithful bicycle, Gladys, for company and when she's not doing some sleuthing she's tinkering in her laboratory, where she has enough chemicals and poisons to give the modern-day Health and Safety person a heart attack. Full review...
Abbess of Meaux: The Law of Angels by Cassandra Clark
A widow who remarried in the Middle Ages became, once again, subject to her husband, and many women of independent means preferred, therefore, the greater financial freedom afforded by taking the veil. After the death of her husband Hildegard joins the Cistercians, one of the richest and most powerful groups in Europe at the time, and sets out to found a small convent near her childhood home. Chance leads her to investigate the death of several men whose bodies she finds on her way, and in each subsequent book in the series she finds herself yet again risking her life to investigate and solve crimes. Full review...
Three Miles by Robert Dinsdale
Captain Abraham Matthews is so desperate to catch the villainous Albie Crowe and bring the youngster to justice that some people would say he was obsessed. After six months, Matthews has finally tracked down his prey, and captures him just three miles from the police station. But with Albie's boys trying to rescue him, other men without Abraham's moral compass more interested in vengeance than justice, and the Luftwaffe dropping bombs on Leeds, this is set to be the longest three miles of either of their lives... Full review...
Lumen by Ben Pastor
Cracow, Poland, October 1939: The Germans have recently occupied Poland and are seeking to establish their authority. Captain Martin Bora of the Wehrmacht (the German army) has just arrived in the city from the battlefield to take up a posting to Intelligence. His boss asks Bora to drive him to a convent every day to see the renowned Abbess, rumoured to have mystic and healing powers. A few days later, though, she is found shot dead in the grounds of her convent. Bora is asked to investigate and report back. He proceeds to investigate who shot her and why, but as his investigation continues, there are more questions for Bora and the reader. Where does this case fit in with the priorities of the occupying forces? Full review...
Death and the Maiden by Frank Tallis
Just to clear the confusion out of the way, this book has nothing to do with the novel of the same name by Gladys Mitchell. Both take their name from an early Schubert piece, in which Death entices the Maiden to leave the world of men. The maiden resists. It was a common enough theme at the time: the death of beauty. Full review...
Dark Fire by C J Sansom
1540 was the hottest summer of the sixteenth century but Matthew Shardlake was doing his best to hold his legal practice together, which was made more difficult by the fact that he believed himself to be out of favour with Thomas Cromwell. He tried to keep a low profile but when he defended the accused in a most unpopular case – that of a girl accused of brutally murdering her cousin – he found that the king's chief minister had a new assignment for him. Unless he could solve Cromwell's problem his client was likely to die a slow and nasty death. Full review...
Devoured by D E Meredith
It is the 1850s, and religion and science are at war. Hatton and Roumonde carry out investigations in the morgue, and even at crime scenes, but their findings are seen as of little value in Victorian England. Indeed, to many of their colleagues, what they do to the human body is downright blasphemous. They struggle on, sending begging letters to rich patrons so they can buy equipment, and trying to persuade the police to accept the findings of their autopsies, but they make slow progress. In this engrossing case, their efforts are rewarded and they are called in by Inspector Adams of Scotland Yard to help with the murder of Lady Blessingham, who has had her head smashed in with a fossil. This immediately plunges them into a series of murders, each more bizarre and horrible than the last, which are all connected to theories of evolution and the creation of the world. Full review...
In the Shadow of Gotham by Stefanie Pintoff
'Never Judge… ' Every time I look into the Bookbag to see if there's anything I fancy, I should remind myself: 'Never judge a book by its cover'. Pintoff's first novel in the Simon Ziele series, indeed her first published novel, 'In The Shadow of Gotham' is yet another of those ill-served by both its title and its cover.
In fairness Americans are probably more familiar with Gotham as a nickname for New York City than we Brits – to whom it simply conjures up variations on a theme of Batman. Full review...
The Kingdom of Light by Giulio Leoni and Shaun Whiteside
Famous poet Dante is at present the prior of Florence, which gives him responsibility for investigating crime. Several murders occur in quick succession - there must be a connection… but how, why? I approached this book with excitement. The underlying premise seemed to be interesting - take a famous character and place them in situations unknown to us. The portents were good! (Can you feel, a but?) Full review...
A Game of Sorrows by Shona Maclean
Two years have passed since Alexander Seaton found his redemption. He is comfortably settled in his life at the University, about to be sent on the academic expedition of a lifetime, and wondering how best to ask the woman he loves to be his wife. Then a case of mistaken identity, which almost costs him his love and the respect of his friends leads Alexander to discover he has a cousin in town – the son of his late mother's brother, come from Ireland to seek his help. Full review...
Heartstone (Matthew Shardlake) by C J Sansom
Henry VIII was not one to ponder on his failings but his recent invasion of France had gone completely wrong and the French fleet was preparing to cross the Channel and invade England. The only way that Henry could raise the money to gather a large militia army was to debase the currency and the country was put in the grip of raging inflation and economic crisis. Meanwhile the English fleet gathered at Portsmouth. Full review...
Blotto, Twinks and the Dead Dowager Duchess by Simon Brett
There is a long tradition of country house murder novels, and Simon Brett has a glorious time parodying them in the Blotto and Twinks series. All the stock characters are there: the dim but honourable young man, the clever and emancipated young woman, the loyal lower orders and the dastardly (and preferably foreign) villains. Death is treated in the most light-hearted, almost off-hand manner, and danger is as regular an occurrence as kippers for breakfast. In hands as experienced as Simon Brett's this should be a rich mine for comedy, and to some extent it is, but still, it has to be said, something is lacking. Full review...
Act of Murder by Alan Wright
In 1894 Wigan was having a feast of cultural entertainment. The Morgan-Drew players from London were presenting a celebrated Victorian melodrama, but nearby the Richard Throstle Magic Lantern Company was presenting a ghoulish extravaganza called Phantasmagoria. They're at opposite ends of the cultural scale but the town was just recovering from the recent miners' strike and it seemed that happily there might be something for everyone. It wasn't to last though as the town is soon in turmoil after a gruesome murder. Detective Sergeant Samuel Slevin of the Wigan Borough Police is called in to investigate and soon discovers that much is not as it seems. Full review...
Avenging the Dead by Guy Fraser
It's 1863 and the Superintendent covering the inner city area of Glasgow has his hands full. First off an alarming forgery scandal has just been discovered and no sooner has he drawn breath than one, two and counting suspicious deaths occur. Instinctively, I want to say that it's all good, clean fun. Because it is. The language Fraser uses is very much of that era which lends the book a particular old-fashioned and rather twee, charm. It's all over the book in spades. On almost every page. Let me give you just one endearing example of the flavour of the book 'None of Mrs Maitland's four regulars at her superior guest house for single gentlemen would even dream of taking another's seat ...' Full review...
The Calton Papers by Norman Russell
Philip Garamond had had an abiding interest in botany since his teens and when we first meet him he's on his way to Sotheby's intent on making a bid for the Calton Papers. Sir George Calton's papers include an unpublished account of Darwin's explorations on the Beagle, some letters and a geographical survey of the British Isles. Garamond's ambition had always been to own a botanical garden on Madeira, but he lacked the funds and the Calton Papers seemed to be as close as he would get to owning something special. Full review...
Writ in Stone (Burren Mysteries) by Cora Harrison
Once again we are transported back to medieval Ireland, following the life and times of the charismatic lady judge, Marra, and her fiancé King Turlough . A violent and horrific murder sets the stage for a dramatic prelude to the happy couple's nuptials! Full review...
Instruments of Darkness by Imogen Robertson
The lively heart of this book is Harriet Westerman. Harriet is a capable woman and manager of her family's estate in Sussex, while her husband (a naval Commodore) is away at sea. Her neighbours at Thornleigh Hall are a titled family in decline: the owner is crippled, his heir is missing, and his second son is an alcoholic. Against this background Harriet finds the body of a dead stranger holding a ring displaying the Thornleigh arms. Meanwhile, in London, a young father is murdered in his music shop. Harriet's actions uncover a link. She turns for help to Gabriel Crowther, an anatomist and reclusive recent arrival in the area. Their enquiries allow the author to paint a wide ranging picture of life in Georgian England, and to tell a rollicking good tale reminiscent of Daphne du Maurier. Robertson uses her knowledge of the period with a light touch: the level of detail advances the plot without overcomplicating the story. Full review...
The Sting of Justice (Burren Mysteries) by Cora Harrison
Having recently read and reviewed Cora Harrison's second Burren mystery, it was with great excitement that I noticed that Bookbag had the third in the series available to review! I had a strong suspicion that a treat was in store for me-and I was not disappointed. Full review...
Michaelmas Tribute (Burren Mysteries) by Cora Harrison
Several surprising murders in the kingdom of the Burren, on the Western coast of Ireland, lead our heroine (Mara) on a tortuous quest for the truth. Were the killings unpremeditated - or brought about through resentment, greed and the desire for revenge? Aided by her scholars in the Law School, Mara doggedly pursues the truth, to bring 16th century justice to her community. Full review...
Alexandria by Lindsey Davis
Marcus Didius Falco, a professional informer working for the Emperor Vespasian, has been to many places in his time, but for once he's on a family outing. Well, mostly. An 'informal commission' (read: no money) from Vespasian finds Falco at the Great Library in Alexandria uncovering his usual brand of intrigue, murder and incongruous mayhem. And getting to know a crocodile. Full review...
Murder in Paradise by Alanna Knight
It is 1860. Constable Jeremy Faro, much to his chagrin, is lifted from his Edinburgh beat and dispatched to Kent to pick up the trail of the master criminal, MacHeath. All too aware of MacHeath's genius for evasion, Faro goes through the motions of finding him, only to become embroiled in a local case of petty theft, which might be connected to the disappearance of a young girl. At the same time, he discovers a terrifying secret about his best friend's wife-to-be. Are all of these events connected, and has the demonic MacHeath really fled, after all? Full review...
Death on a Branch Line by Andrew Martin
Like all the best literary detectives, Jim Stringer is a mixture of know-all and know-nothing. As an ex-railway worker he can identify when the local young firemen are over-stoking their engines. He can't figure out why, though, in the sweltering heat of the summer of 1911. He is well used to solving heinous crimes – this is the fifth book he's been in, after all. But he is not used to criminals stopping over in the York station he works at as a traffic policeman, on their way to the gallows. And when he asks of a condemned aristocrat if the man did it, he is certainly not used to the answer being I don't know. Full review...
Revelation (Matthew Shardlake 4) by C J Sansom
Matthew Shardlake is an enigmatic lawyer, shunned and mocked by many in society, due to his physical deformity: he comes across as an immensely compassionate and clever man - born ahead of his time. Matthew shows immense physical and moral courage, strongly facing up to insults and taunts, at the same time as confronting a murderous enemy, who for most of the novel has the upper hand. Full review...
An Expert in Murder by Nicola Upson
In March 1934 author and playwright Josephine Tey travelled from her home in Scotland to London for the final week of her successful play Richard of Bordeaux. On the train she met Elspeth Simmons, who, coincidentally, was travelling to meet her boyfriend and to see the play yet again. When they arrive at King's Cross to Elspeth's delight they're met by one of the stars of the show but their arrival coincides with a murder on the train. Full review...
Last Nocturne by Marjorie Eccles
It was whilst she was at Evensong that Grace Thurley decided that she would not marry her fiancé. Instead she took a job as a social secretary to recently-widowed Edwina Martagon and moved to London. Eliot Martagon had shot himself in his study some months earlier, leaving neither suicide note nor any indication that there was a problem in his life. Full review...
Death In Hellfire (John Rawlings Mystery) by Deryn Lake
John Rawlings, an apothecary in eighteenth century London, is set a task by John Fielding, the founder of the Bow Street Runners, which involves the investigation of a gentleman's club. This club, frequented by members of the upper classes, has a reputation for organising orgies. Rawlings is lucky enough to attend one of the gatherings, but apart from sexual excess, can find nothing terribly wrong until one of the club's members is found dead, apparently poisoned to death. This incident is followed by another murder. Can Rawlings find out what is going on before someone else dies? Full review...
