About the Book:
Publication Date: March 24, 2015
Mulholland Books
Hardcover; 342p
ISBN: 9780316323932
Genre: Historical Mystery
David Morrell’s MURDER AS A FINE ART was a publishing event. Acclaimed by critics, it made readers feel that they were actually on thefogbound streets of Victorian London. Now the harrowing journey continues in INSPECTOR OF THE DEAD.
Thomas De Quincey, infamous for his Confessions of an Opium-Eater,confronts London’s harrowing streets to thwart the assassination ofQueen Victoria.
The year is 1855. The Crimean War is raging. The incompetence of British commanders causes the fall of the English government. TheEmpire teeters.
Amid this crisis comes opium-eater Thomas De Quincey, one of the most notorious and brilliant personalities of Victorian England. Along with his irrepressible daughter, Emily, and their Scotland Yard companions, Ryan and Becker, De Quincey finds himself confronted by an adversary who threatens the heart of the nation.
This killer targets members of the upper echelons of British society, leaving with each corpse the name of someone who previously attempted to kill Queen Victoria. The evidence indicates that the ultimate victim will be Victoria herself. As De Quincey and Emily race to protect the queen, they uncover long-buried secrets and the heartbreaking past of a man whose lust for revenge has destroyed his soul.
Brilliantly merging historical fact with fiction, Inspector of the Dead is based on actual attempts to assassinate Queen Victoria.
Praise for Inspector of the Dead“Riveting! I literally thought I was in 1855 London. With this mesmerizing series, David Morrell doesn’t just delve into the world of Victorian England—he delves into the heart of evil, pitting one man’s opium-skewed brilliance against a society where appearances are everything, andthe most vicious killers lurk closer than anyone thinks.” —Lisa Gardner, New York Times bestselling author of Crash & Burn and The Perfect Husband
What the Victorian Experts Say:
“Even better than Murder as a Fine Art. A truly atmospheric and dynamic thriller. I was fascinated by how Morrell seamlessly blended elements from Thomas De Quincey’s life and work. The solution is a complete surprise.” —Grevel Lindop, The Opium-Eater: A Life of Thomas De Quincey
“The scope is remarkable. Florence Nightingale, the Crimean War, regicide, the railways, opium, the violence and despair of the London rookeries, medical and scientific innovations, arsenic in the food and clothing—all this makes the Victorian world vivid. The way Morrell depicts Thomas De Quincey places him in front of us, living and breathing. But his daughter Emily is in many ways the real star of the book.” —Robert Morrison, The English Opium-Eater: A Biography of Thomas De Quincey
“I absolutely raced through it and couldn’t bear to put it down. I particularly liked how the very horrible crimes are contrasted with thedeveloping, fascinating relationship between Thomas De Quincey and his daughter, Emily, who come across as extremely real. It was altogether a pleasure.” —Judith Flanders, The Invention of Murder: How the Victorians Reveled in Death and Detection and Created Modern Crime
Buy the Book
Amazon US
Amazon UK
Barnes & Noble
Books-A-Million
iBooks
IndieBound
Kobo
Review:
In Victorian England, during the intensity of the Crimean War, a man is killing off upper class members of British Society one by one. Set on revenge to right a wrong from long ago, the killer is performing these deeds in outlandish and garish ways. At each murder scene he leaves the name of a man who attempted to assassinate Queen Victoria in the past. With the fairly new world of detective work and many innovations in evidence and seeing a crime scene, two members of the Scotland Yard, detectives Ryan and Becker will investigate along with infamous Thomas De Quincy, the opium-eater, and his daring daughter, Emily.
An incredibly engaging and fast-paced historical thriller. Right from the start there is an incredibly gruesome and very imaginative murder that takes place within a church, only no one saw the murder or the killer. Then, with a string of similar killings, the Detectives and De Quincy’s go into action. It was very interesting to me to read about the beginnings of detective work as well as Thomas’ thoughts on what took place. As a true historical figure and one who was addicted to opium, he often had the clearest thoughts, and definitely the most intriguing. Along with Thomas, I loved his daughter, Emily who quickly won me over with her bloomer skirts and her vials to test dresses for arsenic. With much historical accuracy, I felt vaulted into Victorian England. I was glad that the story went so many places, from aristocratic homes, to underground societies to the Palace with Queen Victoria and Prince Albert. My only complaint would be that there were many points of view to keep track of in this novel; however, the story from the killer’s point of view was one of my favorites.
A great story if you are a fan of intense, intricate, historical murder mysteries.
This book was received for free in return for an honest review.
Publication Date: March 24, 2015
Mulholland Books
Hardcover; 342p
ISBN: 9780316323932
Genre: Historical Mystery
David Morrell’s MURDER AS A FINE ART was a publishing event. Acclaimed by critics, it made readers feel that they were actually on thefogbound streets of Victorian London. Now the harrowing journey continues in INSPECTOR OF THE DEAD.
Thomas De Quincey, infamous for his Confessions of an Opium-Eater,confronts London’s harrowing streets to thwart the assassination ofQueen Victoria.
The year is 1855. The Crimean War is raging. The incompetence of British commanders causes the fall of the English government. TheEmpire teeters.
Amid this crisis comes opium-eater Thomas De Quincey, one of the most notorious and brilliant personalities of Victorian England. Along with his irrepressible daughter, Emily, and their Scotland Yard companions, Ryan and Becker, De Quincey finds himself confronted by an adversary who threatens the heart of the nation.
This killer targets members of the upper echelons of British society, leaving with each corpse the name of someone who previously attempted to kill Queen Victoria. The evidence indicates that the ultimate victim will be Victoria herself. As De Quincey and Emily race to protect the queen, they uncover long-buried secrets and the heartbreaking past of a man whose lust for revenge has destroyed his soul.
Brilliantly merging historical fact with fiction, Inspector of the Dead is based on actual attempts to assassinate Queen Victoria.
Praise for Inspector of the Dead“Riveting! I literally thought I was in 1855 London. With this mesmerizing series, David Morrell doesn’t just delve into the world of Victorian England—he delves into the heart of evil, pitting one man’s opium-skewed brilliance against a society where appearances are everything, andthe most vicious killers lurk closer than anyone thinks.” —Lisa Gardner, New York Times bestselling author of Crash & Burn and The Perfect Husband
What the Victorian Experts Say:
“Even better than Murder as a Fine Art. A truly atmospheric and dynamic thriller. I was fascinated by how Morrell seamlessly blended elements from Thomas De Quincey’s life and work. The solution is a complete surprise.” —Grevel Lindop, The Opium-Eater: A Life of Thomas De Quincey
“The scope is remarkable. Florence Nightingale, the Crimean War, regicide, the railways, opium, the violence and despair of the London rookeries, medical and scientific innovations, arsenic in the food and clothing—all this makes the Victorian world vivid. The way Morrell depicts Thomas De Quincey places him in front of us, living and breathing. But his daughter Emily is in many ways the real star of the book.” —Robert Morrison, The English Opium-Eater: A Biography of Thomas De Quincey
“I absolutely raced through it and couldn’t bear to put it down. I particularly liked how the very horrible crimes are contrasted with thedeveloping, fascinating relationship between Thomas De Quincey and his daughter, Emily, who come across as extremely real. It was altogether a pleasure.” —Judith Flanders, The Invention of Murder: How the Victorians Reveled in Death and Detection and Created Modern Crime
Buy the Book
Amazon US
Amazon UK
Barnes & Noble
Books-A-Million
iBooks
IndieBound
Kobo
Review:
In Victorian England, during the intensity of the Crimean War, a man is killing off upper class members of British Society one by one. Set on revenge to right a wrong from long ago, the killer is performing these deeds in outlandish and garish ways. At each murder scene he leaves the name of a man who attempted to assassinate Queen Victoria in the past. With the fairly new world of detective work and many innovations in evidence and seeing a crime scene, two members of the Scotland Yard, detectives Ryan and Becker will investigate along with infamous Thomas De Quincy, the opium-eater, and his daring daughter, Emily.
An incredibly engaging and fast-paced historical thriller. Right from the start there is an incredibly gruesome and very imaginative murder that takes place within a church, only no one saw the murder or the killer. Then, with a string of similar killings, the Detectives and De Quincy’s go into action. It was very interesting to me to read about the beginnings of detective work as well as Thomas’ thoughts on what took place. As a true historical figure and one who was addicted to opium, he often had the clearest thoughts, and definitely the most intriguing. Along with Thomas, I loved his daughter, Emily who quickly won me over with her bloomer skirts and her vials to test dresses for arsenic. With much historical accuracy, I felt vaulted into Victorian England. I was glad that the story went so many places, from aristocratic homes, to underground societies to the Palace with Queen Victoria and Prince Albert. My only complaint would be that there were many points of view to keep track of in this novel; however, the story from the killer’s point of view was one of my favorites.
A great story if you are a fan of intense, intricate, historical murder mysteries.
This book was received for free in return for an honest review.
About the Author:
David Morrell is an Edgar, Nero, Anthony, and Macavity nominee as well as a recipient of the prestigious career-achievement Thriller Master away from the International Thriller Writers. His numerous New York Times bestsellers include the classic espionage novel. The Brotherhoodof the Rose, the basis for the only television mini-series to be broadcast after a Super Bowl. A former literature professor at the University ofIowa, Morrell has a PhD from Pennsylvania State University. His latest novel is INSPECTOR OF THE DEAD, a sequel to his highly acclaimed Victorian mystery/thriller, Murder as a Fine Art, which Publishers Weekly called ”one of the top ten mystery/thrillers of 2013.”
For more information visit David Morrell’s website. You can also connect with him on Facebook and Twitter.
David Morrell is an Edgar, Nero, Anthony, and Macavity nominee as well as a recipient of the prestigious career-achievement Thriller Master away from the International Thriller Writers. His numerous New York Times bestsellers include the classic espionage novel. The Brotherhoodof the Rose, the basis for the only television mini-series to be broadcast after a Super Bowl. A former literature professor at the University ofIowa, Morrell has a PhD from Pennsylvania State University. His latest novel is INSPECTOR OF THE DEAD, a sequel to his highly acclaimed Victorian mystery/thriller, Murder as a Fine Art, which Publishers Weekly called ”one of the top ten mystery/thrillers of 2013.”
For more information visit David Morrell’s website. You can also connect with him on Facebook and Twitter.
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