Review by Booklist Review
*Starred Review* The jaw-dropping cleverness of Kasasian and his Gower Street detectives shines again in this fourth alternately twisted (in several senses) and hilarious series mystery that may tax the patience of readers lacking a sense of humor. Amid the elegance of their privileged Victorian London life, personal detective (never private detective) Sidney Grice and his perceptive ward, March Middleton, confront the gritty horrors of poverty and the messy realities of violent death, jumping from clue to postulation like sharks on meth. Witty, seemingly irrelevant asides; parallels to former cases; and magnificent leaps of logic provide hours of speculative entertainment for readers. The extraordinary cast of characters Molly, the grammatically creative housemaid; an autistic detective with a wandering glass eye; and the bizarrely named crooked undertaker Crepolis Snushall, among others remind one of Terry Pratchett's confections. But the central mystery the slaughter of Nathan Garstang in the same manner as his family's household decades before provides a stark contrast in mood (dark, horrific) and description (gory, shocking), more reminiscent of Poe or Stephen King. It's a weird combination, but it works: intriguing historical mystery, great characterization, slapstick humor, subtle wit, and, yes, all that gore.--Baker, Jen Copyright 2017 Booklist
From Booklist, Copyright (c) American Library Association. Used with permission.
Review by Publisher's Weekly Review
Kasasian's fourth Victorian-era whodunit featuring the misanthropic Sidney Grice and his ward, March Middleton, falls short of the high standard set by such previous entries as 2016's Death Descends on Saturn Villa, which cleverly integrated humor into Grand Guignol plot lines without diluting the horror or the puzzle. In this outing, Grice's snark; the malapropisms of his inept maid, Molly; and tongue-in-cheek references-a doctor recommends "Dr Lestrade's Nerve Tonic, Gregson's Cocaine tablets and... Mycroft's Extra Strength Laudanum"-distract from what should have been a compelling mystery. Charity Goodsmile consults Grice and Middleton about the murder of her father, Nathan Mortlock, in his London home. Mortlock's valet, Austin Hesketh, discovered his master in bed with his throat cut shortly after returning from visiting his mother; 11 years earlier, Hesketh was on a similar excursion when Mortlock's father and five others were massacred. Grice's investigation of Mortlock's murder expands to include the older ones. Given the brilliance of earlier volumes, fans can hope for a return to form next time. (Apr.) © Copyright PWxyz, LLC. All rights reserved.
(c) Copyright PWxyz, LLC. All rights reserved
Review by Library Journal Review
The unabashedly arrogant personal detective Sidney Grice, and his beleaguered ward, Miss March Middleton, are hired by a beautiful woman to solve the bloody locked-room death of her father in a house that was the scene of a notorious mass murder a decade ago. The relationship between the irascible and overly literal Sidney and independent and tetchy March continues to evolve, and Sidney's delightfully strong-minded maid Molly, prone to malapropisms, plays a major part in this fourth adventure (after Death Descends on Saturn Villa) set in 1880s London. Verdict This distinctive historical series is highlighted by its atmospheric writing, quirky characters, droll wit, and macabre touches. A treat for series fans as well as crime fiction devotees who relish convoluted plotting, a bit of gore, and idiosyncratic humor.-ACT © Copyright 2017. 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
A fourth case for pre-eminent personal detective Sidney Grice and his ward and assistant, Miss March Middleton (Death Descends on Saturn Villa, 2016, etc.), delves into grisly murders old and fresh in Victorian London.Miss Charity Goodsmile is recently bereaved of her father, whose throat was slit in his bed. The late Mr. Nathan Mortlock became sole heir to the Garstang fortune and the grim house known as Gethsemane after his family and nearly all their servants were brutally murdered more than a decade ago. On both occasions, the house was locked as securely as a fortress. The legacy intrigues Mr. Grice, in the callous manner typical of arrogant genius detectives, and he agrees to look into the case. Miss Middleton and Mr. Grice carry on an exhaustively detailed investigation while their maid continually spouts malapropisms that amuse neither Mr. Grice nor the reader. The pair examine the body and discover that Mr. Mortlock was strangled and tortured before his death. They question a parade of stock charactersa ghoulish undertaker, a dignified butler, a pretty French maidbut the housekeeper drops dead before they learn much from her. They scrutinize the crime scene and visit an insane asylum to question the maid who allegedly murdered the Garstangs all those years ago. The investigation builds to a wildly elaborate yet coherent conclusion involving corruption, mistaken identity, and a secret marriage. Kasasian faithfully imitates the tale's Gothic forbears in both bloody horror and florid prose. Readers might be better served by digging into the original Victoriana. Copyright Kirkus Reviews, used with permission.
Copyright (c) Kirkus Reviews, used with permission.
