This book is another of the William Monk mystery series by Anne Perry. As historical fiction, it does not disappoint. I had never read any of the books in this series, and I was a little put off by the setting, mid-19th century London. I generally don’t read books with this type of setting. But as I read, I began to greatly enjoy the pace and the plot of the book, which has a number of plot twists that made for entertaining reading.
William Monk, the chief of the Thames River Police in mid-19th century London, is visited by Rathbone, his lawyer friend and confidant. Rathbone has been approached by a friend, Exeter, a rather rich developer, for help from the Thames River Police. It seems that his wife has been kidnapped and a ransom, which he can barely raise in time, is to be delivered in.a particularly nasty neighborhood. Would Monk oversee the exchange. Monk does and is waylaid by the kidnappers as are his men who he brought with him. Exeter and he are separated during the exchange, and when Monk finds him, his wife is dead and the ransom is gone. Monk soon realizes that one of his men must have tipped the kidnappers off, and so begins an investigation into murder and betrayal.
The characters of this book are well-drawn; Hooper, Monk’s right-hand man, is a former sailor with a dark secret. He falls in love with Celia Darwin, one of the witnesses to the kidnapping. Hooper does much of the investigation along with Monk and his other men. Just when I thought I had nailed the murderer, the plot twisted and new possibilities were presented. I was never sure about the culprit to the end of the book, and I have to say it was a surprise.
This is an entertaining book and well worth reading for any fan of mysteries. Highly recommended, 5/5 stars.
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