ISBN: 0-425-18690-3 Order from: Amazon.com Barnes & Noble.com
While a bit lighter on historical background the others in the series, this book has more of an adventure feel, and has the usually competent mystery and excellent character development.
Reviewed by David on June 11, 2005
Genre: Mystery (Police Procedural, Historical)
Synopsis: The blind Sir Fielding, Magistrate of the Bow Street Court in 18th Century London, is sent to the coastal town of Deal. Smuggling, always a problem in the area, is reaching dangerous proportions: Deal's magistrate was recently murdered while investigating a smuggling gang.
As a temporary magistrate, Sir John, with the help of Jeremy the narrator, his young ward Clarissa and a constable, tackle both the smuggling and the murder of Sir John's magistrate. Despite cooperation from the local squire, the visitors find smuggling with deep support from the local populace and barely checked by local authorities. And the visitors' own lives are soon in danger as the investigation progresses.
Full Review: While Deal feels both smaller and less richly described than London, Sir John's and Jeremy's usual locale, there quite a bit of adventure, including some tense fighting to compensate. Much of the book is spent in methodical gathering of clues, including interrogation and correlation of the unreliable witnesses.
The main villain was easy to guess, but as befits a good procedural, gathering of proof is more complex than conjecture. The main characters, particularly Jeremy, Sir John and Clarissa are described well and show many aspects of their presonalities.
A slightly different feel from the more usualy installments, this book provides a combination of elements fully as enjoyable as the rest of the series.
Copyright: 2001
Series Name: Sir John Fielding Mysteries
Overall: 6; Plot: 6; Characters: 6; Style: 6; World-building: 6.5; Originality: 6.5;
Berkely Publishing Group (Berkeley Prime Crime), October 2002, Mass-market paperback
ISBN: 0-425-18690-3 Order from: Amazon.com Barnes & Noble.com