Review by Booklist Review
Along with series lead Thomas De Quincey, a self-confessed opium-eater who is also one of Victorian London's finest private-inquiry agents, the other characters in this cleverly plotted mystery all possess a shady side to offset their worldly talents. Famous doctors, and quite possibly the prime minister, have shadowy dealings, and Lord Cavendale's heir may be illegitimate. Morrell plays with our assumptions on many levels and uses connections between characters to cast doubt on others' culpability. Murder and violence ride rails and roads, converging with drug-addled De Quincey; his redoubtable daughter, Emily; and two police detectives who love her, at Sedwick Hill. Here, a countryside sanitarium houses possible perpetrators, potential victims, and a good number of England's peerage taking the cure. In short, this is a complex, top-notch mystery, with a large cast of characters and multiple, interwoven plotlines. You don't have to read this series in order, but you'll want to read every volume. Philosophical, uncannily perceptive De Quincey competes well with Sherlock Holmes for brilliance despite drug use, and his Holmes-like cynicism and intelligence suggest Cyrus Barker in Will Thomas' Barker and Llewelyn series.--Baker, Jen Copyright 2016 Booklist
From Booklist, Copyright (c) American Library Association. Used with permission.
Review by Publisher's Weekly Review
Set in 1855, Edgar-finalist Morrell's spectacular third and final whodunit featuring opium addict and author Thomas De Quincey (after 2015's Inspector of the Dead) finds De Quincey and Emily, his 22-year-old daughter and partner in detection, traveling by train from London to the Lake District, where he hopes to stop a landlord to whom he owes money from auctioning his beloved books. When lawyer Daniel Harcourt, who's also a passenger on the train, is strangled, the De Quinceys become involved in the subsequent investigation. With railway travel relatively new, the first murder ever on an English train causes an uproar and makes a speedy solution essential to restoring public trust. The powers that be, many of whom utilized the dead man's services, limit access to Harcourt's client files in a determined effort to cover something up. The narrative builds to a powerful but bittersweet ending that will leave readers hoping that Morrell eventually chooses to resurrect this superb series. Agent: Jane Dystel, Dystel & Goderich Literary Management. (Nov.) © Copyright PWxyz, LLC. All rights reserved.
(c) Copyright PWxyz, LLC. All rights reserved
Review by Library Journal Review
The final volume in Morrell's historical trilogy (following Murder as a Fine Art and Inspector of the Dead) brings to a close the adventures of Thomas De Quincey, his daughter Emily, and their friends, Scotland Yard detectives Ryan and Becker. Traveling from London, Thomas and Emily have the misfortune to be in the next compartment when a man is stabbed to death, the first murder ever on a British train. Daniel Harcourt, the victim, was a successful London solicitor with some important, influential clients. Just what was in the document case stolen by the murderer? When more violent incidents occur involving the railways, the technological marvel and economic lifeblood of 1855 Britain, Queen Victoria and Prince Albert insist that Thomas and Emily, aided by Ryan and Becker, should investigate. They uncover a web of deceit and murder, culminating in a revelation personally devastating to De Quincey. Verdict Morrell excels at constructing historically accurate mysteries with enough melodrama to satisfy any lover of Victorian novels. His protagonists are fascinating and entertaining; aficionados of the trilogy are going to miss De Quincey and company. [See Prepub Alert, 5/16/16.]-Barbara Clark-Greene, Westerly, RI © Copyright 2016. Library Journals LLC, a wholly owned subsidiary of Media Source, Inc. No redistribution permitted.
(c) Copyright Library Journals LLC, a wholly owned subsidiary of Media Source, Inc. No redistribution permitted.
Review by Kirkus Book Review
Railroaded in Victorian England.Infamous opium eater (and real-life historical figure) Thomas De Quincey returnsalong with his independent-minded, trouser-wearing daughter, Emily, and stalwart companions Ryan and Becker of Scotland Yardto solve the first murder to occur on an English train. As in Morrells (Inspector of the Dead, 2015, etc.) previous De Quincey adventures, the Victorian era provides the narratives setting and sensibility: the invention of rail travel, in De Quinceys mind, has had a chilling, dehumanizing effect on society, isolating and disconnecting passengers from the natural world in the interest of efficiency and profit. The homicide in question is indeed inhumanly grisly, and Morrells deft hand with thriller plotting provides copious chills and procedural satisfaction, but it is his mastery of character, shrewd exploitation of Victorian details and attitudes, and tonal sophistication (a wry humor leavens the gruesome violence and psychological complexity of Morrells conflicted heroes) that seduce and delight. The era-appropriate hydropathy health craze makes for a novel and intriguing nexus for the scandalous secrets and desperate scheming of the storys antagonists, and, in an elegant twist, the intricate strands of the whole (delightfully) sordid business weave together in a way that directly and devastatingly involves De Quincy and addresses the true-life tragic mystery that drove the actual De Quincey to opium addiction in the first place. Its a cracking yarn, irresistible as an emergency bottle of laudanum secreted in a shabby coat pocket. Richly detailed and engrossing; Morrell animates the Victorian era and delivers genre thrills with rare style and panache. Copyright Kirkus Reviews, used with permission.
Copyright (c) Kirkus Reviews, used with permission.
