Victorian Mystery Theme Continues

I just finished another Victorian-era mystery. This one is the first in a series about Inspector Pitt published in 1979 by Anne Perry. It's called "The Cater Street Hangman."

This book is finely nuanced. While Will Thomas hits you with fast-action, witty, sly commentary and rather exotic characters, Tyler's book mirrors Victorian restraint. The characters are well-developed, and the plot moves along nicely with the requisite twists, turns and surprises. I would have liked to know more about Pitt, but I know more will information will follow. I am anxious to see how the romance between Pitt and the privleged Charlotte comes along. I believe those would be my only "wishes" for this book. I truly enjoyed it, stayed up way too late reading it and can't wait for the next installment!

On a sidenote, Anne Perry has a rather interesting background and childhood. She and a girlfriend murdered the girlfriend's mother back in the early 1950s. You can read more about it here. Ms. Perry herself has a website with wonderful information on her books and her style as well.

Until next time, may your reading be both pleasurable and profitable.

"Limehouse Text" Great Read

I cannot tell you how disappointed I am that I have now made it through all four of Will Thomas' Barker and Llewelyn mysteries. I devoured these books. They are SO GOOD! I want more!

This third in the series (I started with the fourth and then went from first through third) ties up some loose ends. In this one we get to learn a little more about the mysterious woman coming to groom Harm, Barker's Pekingese dog. We also watch Barker and his sublimely witty assistant solve the murder of Barker's previous assistant, Quong. This is a tour de force of Victorian England's China Town (Limehouse) replete with underground kingpins, bruisers, cops on the take, etc.

I can't say enough about this series. I can't wait for the next one.



Until next time, may your reading be both pleasurable and profitable.

To Kingdom Come is Another Explosive Story

Will Thomas' second Barker and Llewelyn novel furthers the development of Llewelyn's role as an assistant to a private enquiry agent, a.k.a., a private detective. This time around our two protagonists must infiltrate an Irish terrorist group masquerading as builders of "infernal devices." Our young assistant falls in love with the sister of one of the Irishmen.

While the ending seemed a bit transparent to me, I still enjoyed the book. I love Llewelyn's wry sense of humor and his self-deprecating style. Barker continues to be an anomaly only serving to pique my interest further.

All in all, this really is a wonderful series. I'm truly enjoying it.

May your reading be both pleasurable and profitable!

Some Danger Involved Great Debut

After reading Will Thomas' most recent novel, I decided to go back and start from the beginning of his series. "Some Danger Involved" is the first of the Barker and Llewelyn mysteries.

We get to meet Thomas Llewelyn, downtrodden and despairing. He answers an advertisement for a private enquiry agent's assistant. I think the chapter detailing his interview is one of the best meeting of what becomes a partner and his assistant ever written! Here comes another Holmes and Watson.

Thomas has a great knack for description of both characters and setting. His research is meticulous, and it shows through his crisp writing.

This plot of the book revolves around Llewelyn's coming of age and experience in his travails as Barker's assistant. The case which they are hired to investigate is the crucifixion of a immigrant Jew and the subsequent stoning of another Jewess. Is there a pogrom fomenting through the machinations of eugenic ministers and academics, or is this the act of some deranged lunatic?

I'm really enjoying this series, and I've already started on the next one!

May your reading be both pleasurable and profitable!

Historical Mystery Is a Hit

"The Hellfire Conspiracy" is a gem of a book. It is the fourth in a series of mysteries by Will Thomas set in Victorian England, ca 1885.

Thomas Llewelyn is an assistant to private enquiry agent Cyrus Barker. After a young girl is kidnapped and subsequently ravaged and murdered, the two take on the case of finding and stopping what is a serial killer in the East End of London.

Llewelyn is a former Oxford student who has lost his wife and has previously run afoul of the law. Barker is a former captain plying the Chinese trade routes. Their relationship is a neat fit, similar to that of Watson and Holmes.

The author has done a marvelous job of incorporating real-life personalities into his book including W.H. Stead, Amy Levy, Beatrice Potter and others. His knowledge and depiction of London at this time is equally admirable. Not since Caleb Carr's "The Alienist" have I read such a wonderfully accurate and well-researched historical suspense and mystery.

I think I will try to read Thomas' previous books. My interest is piqued!

Until next time, may your reading be both pleasurable and profitable.

Touching Story Moves Children

"Sadako and the Thousand Paper Cranes" by Eleanor Coerr is the story of a small child who contracts the "atom bomb disease" (i.e., leukemia) after the bombing of Hiroshima.

Sadako is a vivacious young girl who loves to run. She is a bundle of energy. She does contract the disease, and eventually she succumbs to it. In an effort to bring about healing and good luck, Sadako endeavors to make 1,000 paper cranes.

This is a sad story made even more sad by the fact that little Sadako puts her faith in ancestor worship and superstitious practices rather than in Jesus Christ. The author communicates well the fact that innocent people are hurt in war, and that life bring us many things that are outside of our control.

My children were moved by the story, but they didn't like it. But such is life. Stories don't always end happily.

Ahoy, matey! Pass the rum!

Wayne Curtis' book, "and a Bottle of Rum: A History of the New World in Ten Cocktails," is just a delight to read. If only every history book could be this fun!

The author strives to take us through the history of the New World as shown through the history, evolution and development of that most quintessential of New World spirits, rum. I wasn't sure how rum fit into the history of our country, but it truly does. From colonial times, through temperance movements, Prohibition and the post-modern era, rum has been through it all. And what a driver of commerce it has been!

Curtis' writing style is wonderful. He has wit and humor; all of it is subtle. He must be the Jerry Seinfeld of history and travel literature. One example (about the privateer/buccaneer/pirate, Capt. Henry Morgan):

Most of all, retirement meant that Morgan could now frequent the rumshops more
often, regaling all with tales of his past adventures. But soon his health
declined, and even visits to the rumshops became too taxing for him. He
was confined to his estate, where he spent his days drinking with the few
friends who hadn't abandoned him. Each morning began with a bout of
vomiting. His legs were so swollen that he couldn't walk. He was
unable to urinate and often weak from diarrhea. The naturalist Hans Sloane
described him as 'lean, sallow-colored, his eyes a little yellowish and Belly
jutting out or prominent.' Captain Morgan's later life goes unmentioned in
the marketing material for his namesake rum." (p. 50)

Even when explaining the differences in the production of various spirits:

Distillation concentrates and intensifies the subtle tastes found in the
original low-alcohol product.. Brandy has thus been called the
distilled essence of wine, and whiskey the distilled essence of beer.

And rum? It is, as we shall see, the distilled essence of fermented
industrial waste." (p. 23-24)

In any case, if you are searching for a fun historical read or even some recipes for some cocktails serving rum (but a cocktail is in actuality a drink that contains bitters), then this book is for you!

May your reading be both pleasurable and profitable.