A Plague Of Sinners by Paul Lawrence
Dec. 9th, 2010 09:32 pm![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
quippeThe Blurb On The Back:
London, 1665
The great plague rages rampant outside London’s city walls. Harry Lytle was safe – or so he thought until Nathaniel Hedges dropped dead on the other side of the dinner table.
Fresh from his trials and tribulations in The Sweet Smell Of Decay, Harry Lytle just can’t escape a crime scene. Ignoring the pleas of the loyal maid Jane to flee the plague-ridden capital, he finds himself put under orders by Lord Arlington, on behalf of the King Charles Stuart, to investigate the murder of the Earl of St Albans. Together with his familiar and grisly accomplice, Dowling the Butcher, he sets out on the trail of murder – but what can the ‘black dogs’ tell him? And what clues are to be found in the wines that seem to accompany each demise?
A Plague Of Sinners is the second in Paul Lawrence’s brilliant series of historical thrillers, The Chronicles of Harry Lytle. Murder, intrigue, vibrant storytelling and a good dose of gallows humour once more bring Restoration London to life in all its glory.
Ambitious clerk Harry Lytle’s dreams of an exciting career within the intelligence service have slumped amidst the countless reports and papers he’s required to read and file so he’s poured his hopes into his courtship of Liz Willis, the beautiful daughter of merchant Oliver Willis. However London is in the grip of the plague and his servant Jane nags him to leave the city while there is still time.
As Harry vacillates on whether to go, events are taken out of his hand when Lord Arlington instructs Harry and his sidekick, Dowling the Butcher, to investigate the grisly murder of the Earl of St Albans, a man known to have had a violent disagreement with a local wine merchant. Soon more bodies turn up, many associated with wine or the Earl’s argument and Harry and Dowling soon face danger, not only from shadowy figures who want them dead but also from London itself as the plague intensifies and leaves no one – not even Harry’s closest friends – safe.
Although this is the second in a historical series, I hadn’t read the first and you don’t need to as there’s sufficient hints and references for you to understand what has happened to Harry and Dowling. A lot of research has clearly been done on the period but there’s a peculiar lack of atmosphere to the novel. Much of it is due to the fact that I didn’t believe in Harry’s reaction to the plague – supposedly terrified of contracting it, he nevertheless continues to put himself in contact with sufferers and never seems too concerned about the effects.
The murder investigation is perfunctory, with Harry frequently being side tracked by his pursuit of Liz Willis and the main twists are somewhat telegraphed. Much turns on whether you take to Harry and Dowling as characters and while we’re supposed to see Harry as a flawed but ultimately caring man, he struck me as too self-involved, pompous and ultimately slow on the uptake. Dowling, by contrast, is a sanctimonious no one who does little except follow Harry’s orders and turn up at opportune moments.
Ultimately I wanted to like this book but it never quite hit the mark, with the result that I found it a little tedious at times and I’m not sure whether I’m tempted to read more in the series.
The Verdict:
This book, the second in a series of thrillers set in Restoration England, never really came alive for me – mostly because I found it difficult to engage with the main character and his sidekick. The author has clearly done a lot of research, which shows through in the pages, and I liked the underlying ideas but the execution and in particular the characterisation means I’m not sure whether I’m tempted to check out the other books.
The great plague rages rampant outside London’s city walls. Harry Lytle was safe – or so he thought until Nathaniel Hedges dropped dead on the other side of the dinner table.
Fresh from his trials and tribulations in The Sweet Smell Of Decay, Harry Lytle just can’t escape a crime scene. Ignoring the pleas of the loyal maid Jane to flee the plague-ridden capital, he finds himself put under orders by Lord Arlington, on behalf of the King Charles Stuart, to investigate the murder of the Earl of St Albans. Together with his familiar and grisly accomplice, Dowling the Butcher, he sets out on the trail of murder – but what can the ‘black dogs’ tell him? And what clues are to be found in the wines that seem to accompany each demise?
A Plague Of Sinners is the second in Paul Lawrence’s brilliant series of historical thrillers, The Chronicles of Harry Lytle. Murder, intrigue, vibrant storytelling and a good dose of gallows humour once more bring Restoration London to life in all its glory.
Ambitious clerk Harry Lytle’s dreams of an exciting career within the intelligence service have slumped amidst the countless reports and papers he’s required to read and file so he’s poured his hopes into his courtship of Liz Willis, the beautiful daughter of merchant Oliver Willis. However London is in the grip of the plague and his servant Jane nags him to leave the city while there is still time.
As Harry vacillates on whether to go, events are taken out of his hand when Lord Arlington instructs Harry and his sidekick, Dowling the Butcher, to investigate the grisly murder of the Earl of St Albans, a man known to have had a violent disagreement with a local wine merchant. Soon more bodies turn up, many associated with wine or the Earl’s argument and Harry and Dowling soon face danger, not only from shadowy figures who want them dead but also from London itself as the plague intensifies and leaves no one – not even Harry’s closest friends – safe.
Although this is the second in a historical series, I hadn’t read the first and you don’t need to as there’s sufficient hints and references for you to understand what has happened to Harry and Dowling. A lot of research has clearly been done on the period but there’s a peculiar lack of atmosphere to the novel. Much of it is due to the fact that I didn’t believe in Harry’s reaction to the plague – supposedly terrified of contracting it, he nevertheless continues to put himself in contact with sufferers and never seems too concerned about the effects.
The murder investigation is perfunctory, with Harry frequently being side tracked by his pursuit of Liz Willis and the main twists are somewhat telegraphed. Much turns on whether you take to Harry and Dowling as characters and while we’re supposed to see Harry as a flawed but ultimately caring man, he struck me as too self-involved, pompous and ultimately slow on the uptake. Dowling, by contrast, is a sanctimonious no one who does little except follow Harry’s orders and turn up at opportune moments.
Ultimately I wanted to like this book but it never quite hit the mark, with the result that I found it a little tedious at times and I’m not sure whether I’m tempted to read more in the series.
The Verdict:
This book, the second in a series of thrillers set in Restoration England, never really came alive for me – mostly because I found it difficult to engage with the main character and his sidekick. The author has clearly done a lot of research, which shows through in the pages, and I liked the underlying ideas but the execution and in particular the characterisation means I’m not sure whether I’m tempted to check out the other books.
