Review: A Present Past by Sergei Lebedev

Synopsis: The Soviet and post-Soviet world, with its untold multitude of crimes, is a natural breeding ground for ghost stories. No one writes them more movingly than Russian author Sergei Lebedev, who in this stunning volume probes a collective guilty conscience marked by otherworldliness and the denial of misdeeds. 

These eleven tales share a mystical topography in which the legacy of totalitarian regimes is ever-present—from Katyn to Chechnya, from Lithuanian KGB documents to the streetscape of unified Berlin, from the fragments of family history to the echoes of foot soldiers in Russia’s wars of aggression. 

In these stories, as in Lebedev’s acclaimed novels, the voices of things, places, animals, and people seek justice for a restless past, where steel claws scrape just beneath the surface and where the heredity of evil is uninterrupted, unacknowledged, unnamed.

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I loved Lebedev's "Untraceable" - so was looking forward to reading more from him.

This series of short stories, haunting tales of a Soviet past intruding on a Soviet present, were very different from the abovementioned work, but were intriguing in themselves nonetheless. I would have to say that my favourite tale was "Titan" - the story of a person of interest to the Soviet Secret Police, who managed to turn the tables on them in a rather unique way.

For anyone wanting to further explore Russian literature, definitely pick this up!

Review: The Invisible Hour by Alice Hoffman

Synopsis: One June day when Mia Jacob can no longer see a way to survive, the power of words saves her. The Scarlet Letter was written almost two hundred years earlier, but it seems to tell the story of Mia’s mother, Ivy, and their life inside the Community—an oppressive cult in western Massachusetts where contact with the outside world is forbidden. But how could this be? How could Nathaniel Hawthorne have so perfectly captured the pain and loss that Mia carries inside her?

Through a journey of heartbreak, love, and time, Mia must abandon the rules she was raised with at the Community. As she does, she realizes that reading can transport you to other worlds or bring them to you, and that readers and writers affect one another in mysterious ways. She learns that time is more fluid than she can imagine, and that love is stronger than any chains that bind you.

As a girl Mia fell in love with a book. Now as a young woman she falls in love with a brilliant writer as she makes her way back in time. But what if Nathaniel Hawthorne never wrote The Scarlet Letter ? And what if Mia Jacob never found it on the day she planned to die?

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Mia Jacobs - reader, time traveler, muse.

A young girl escaping her cult-like existence, discovers that reading can transport her to another world - quite literally - and in doing so, she discovers a strength her mother never quite found for herself. Is Hawthorn's book based upon her life or is her current life the result of her time travel.

I think this is definitely deserving of more than one reading - after the first, you definitely need to go back and start again to ensure you have taken in all the little hints and clues to this story. There is much to be said of the power of the written word.

My first Hoffman book, and though not really a fan of the time-travel genre, I did enjoy this one.

Review: A Thief's Justice by Douglas Skelton

Synopsis: London, 1716. Revenge is a dish best served ice cold…The city is caught in the vice-like grip of a savage winter. Even the Thames has frozen over. But for Jonas Flynt – thief, gambler, killer – the chilling elements are the least of his worries…

Justice Geoffrey Dumont has been found dead at the base of St Paul’s cathedral, and a young male sex-worker, Sam Yates, has been taken into custody for the murder. Yates denies all charges, claiming he had received a message to meet the judge at the exact time of death.

The young man is a friend of Belle St Clair, and she asks Flynt to look into the murder. Their probing leads them to possible government corruption, Jacobite plots, the horrors of Newgate prison, and a desperate showdown on the ice.

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I will preface this by saying to the reader - please read the first in the series - An Honorable Thief.

This is the second in the series, set in 18th Century Hanoveran London, Queen Anne, who died in 1714, was succeeded by her second cousin, the Elector of Hanover, George I, as Under the Act of Settlement 1701, excluded Roman Catholics from the line of succession - and this included her half-brother, the Catholic James Edward Stuart.

Once again, Jonas Flynt is set a task (no questions asked) by Colonel Nathaniel Charters, puppet / spy master, head of the Company of Rogues. It is another tale heavy with murder, Jacobite plots, and espionage, as Jonas traverses the underbelly of London in the service of Charters.

I will say this - one of the events in the tale is based on fact, which I loved reading about!

Looking forward to the next in the series - A Grave For A Thief - and to eventually sitting down with the whole series and starting from the beginning again.

Review: By Treason We Perish by AJ Mackenzie

Synopsis: One lone detective faces down a twisted medieval web of spies and intrigue.

October, 1338. A great war has begun, one that will define Europe for a century. King’s Messenger Simon Merrivale returns to England in disgrace, his life barely intact, after a bid to create a pro-English state in Savoy goes disastrously wrong.

With the battle lines drawn, a new and overwhelming threat emerges. King Edward III has assembled an uneasy alliance of European powers to enforce his claim to the throne of France. But corruption is rife both at home and abroad, emptying the king’s war chest. Lack of money could cripple everything that has been built. Enemies lie hidden amongst the ranks of friends. Wolves in sheep’s clothing.

Faced with the difficult task of not only discovering the traitors but recovering his position and respect, Merrivale has a complex and potentially deadly mission at hand. For if just one conspirator escapes justice, all will fall.

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This series is set in the 14th Century, during the reign of King Edward III of England. In this particular tome, the newly burgeoning wool trade with Flanders and the trade in saffron is at the heart of the mystery that King's Messenger, Simon Merrivale must solve.

Wool became the backbone and driving force of the Medieval English economy between the late thirteenth century and late fifteenth century and at the time the trade was described as “the jewel in the realm”! And as such, it was heavily taxed and regulated by the English Crown. You can read more here: Britain Express - Edward III and the Development of Trade.  Saffron, as today, is a very expensive spice that was produced under certain conditions. It is still processed manually, the dried stigma of the saffron crocus flower is incredibly delicate, making it difficult to harvest, especially in great quantities, hence its high price. Like the wool and saffron trade, the medieval Italian Banking families are also comprehensively dealt with as well, especially England's links to the Bardi and Peruzzi - as they too play a role in this tale.

I will preface my review by saying that this is the first in a new series. However, upon reading it, I felt that much had happened (backstory-wise) that was not - again, my own thoughts - adequately covered off. It read like I had just jumped into the middle of a series - maybe a short prequel might be in order to set things right - or will this be explored more as the series progresses, I wonder.

The author, whilst providing much information on the key subjects that form part of the narrative, I think, assumes you have some idea of what was happening at this particular time in history. And a general read of the times would be an advantage, though the author does provide a list of characters at the beginning.

Having said that, there is much to admire in this book: a good mystery; themes of murder, corruption, medieval politicking, scandal; and the promise of a series.

I am looking forward to the next installment.

Review: The Devil's Flute Murders by Seishi Yokomizo

Synopsis: Locked room mysteries are hot again, and this classic from the golden age of crime presents a mind-bending Japanese mystery from the great Seishi Yokomizo, whose fictional detective Kosuke Kindaichi is a pop culture phenomenon akin to Sherlock Holmes.

This time the beloved scruffy sleuth Kosuke Kindaichi investigates a series of gruesome murders within the feuding family of a brooding, troubled composer, whose most famous work chills the blood of all who hear it.

Readers will be totally engrossed by one of Yokomizo’s most clever guessing games, in which everyone has something to hide…

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The style is fairly consistent - and one the author Seishi Yolomizo explores well - deep, dark family secrets, which when brought into open, give birth to jealousy, greed and ultimately ... murder. And here again, we have all those elements: a family saga of love and hate, revenge and redemption; many suspects but always one whom you are least likely to suspect; a suspenseful mystery, tied together by a long narrative that conveys the essence of the story, location and characters to perfection. This is Yokomizo's trademark.

In this instance we have a mysterious disappearance, a locked room murder mystery, a jewel robbery, and the haunting and ominous tones of a flute. All set in post WWII Japan. And at the centre of it all is our sleuth - Ko suke Kindaichi.

I cannot recommend this series enough, with our detective, Kindaichi, who according to the local policeman, looks more like a criminal than a world famous detective and is a indolent as a cat when not on a case!

See my other reviews of the books of Seishi Yokomizo.

Review: Britain's Most Prolific Burglar by Martyn R Beardsley

Synopsis: Harry Edward Vickers, aka Flannelfoot, was possibly Britain’s most successful ever burglar. Not financially - he stole cash and low-value items (even, bizarrely, false teeth!). The success was in his hundreds of burglaries spread over many years without being caught. The lives of career criminals are invariably dotted with prison sentences, but thanks to his caution and cunning, Flannelfoot operated night after night, year after year with an impunity which embarrassed the police.

In the twenties and thirties, Londers were deserting the overcrowded capital for the burgeoning suburbs of ‘Metroland’. Flannelfoot was equally attracted to these areas, and one of his hallmarks was to steal a bicycle at the scene of his last break-in of the night and cycle to the nearest tube station.

Burglars and burglaries are never glamorous, but one reason why the Flannelfoot saga engendered fascination more than fear is that he was never confrontational, never violent, and in fact so stealthy that few ever saw him.

His one-man crime epidemic led to Scotland Yard assembling a team more used to solving murders than the plundering of gas meters. After a lengthy and painstaking investigation, a carefully planned night-time surveillance operation involving several teams of officers led to the sensational capture of Flannelfoot.

Flannelfoot routinely features in crime anthologies and was the subject of a feature film, but this is the first full biography of the man who became a legend in his own lifetime.

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Whilst the premise appealed to me greatly, the narrative seemed to take as long as Flannelfoot's career of crime. Much could have been left out and thus condensed to make it a more "readable" story. Less is best in this instance.

Beardsley adds into the narrative, the careers of two of the more prominent detectives who would have much to contribute to Flannelfoot's criminal demise - these being Walter Hambrook (who I was more interested in) and Thomas Thompson.

The narrative itself fluctuates between that of Flannelfoot (Henry Vickers aka Henry Williams), until it converges on events that would see Flannelfoot brought to justice. Beardsley finishes off with a final assessment on those involved in the case, discusses the spate of copy-cat crimes, and Flannelfoot as portrayed in the media.

As I mentioned, there was some things that could easily have been left out to keep the flow of the narrative going - I dislike it when I feel that the author is "forced" to reach a set page number a book in order for publication. I personally would rather read 100 pages of actual content than 200 or more pages on waffle.

Truce-crime fans will enjoy reading this anyway.