Arrowood and the Thames Corpses

by Mick Finlay

Overview

‘Brimming with dark humour, fast-paced action … this is a top-class series that grows in stature with every new book’ Lancashire Evening Post

SHORTLISTED FOR THE 2021 HWA GOLD CROWN AWARD
LONGLISTED FOR THE 2021 CWA GOLD DAGGER

London Society takes their problems to Sherlock Holmes. Everyone else goes to Arrowood

South London, 1896. William Arrowood, Victorian London’s less salubrious private detective, is paid a visit by Captain Moon, the owner of a pleasure steamer moored on the Thames. He complains that someone has been damaging his boat, putting his business in jeopardy.

Arrowood and his trusty sidekick Barnett suspect professional jealousy, but when a shocking discovery is pulled from the river, it seems like even fouler play is afoot.

It’s up to Arrowood and Barnett to solve the case, before any more corpses end up in the watery depths . . .

‘An excellent historical thriller set in late Victorian London … highly recommended’ ***** Netgalley reviewer

‘Fantastic book. Beautifully written’ ***** Netgalley reviewer

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9780008324520
Publisher:	HarperCollins Publishers
Publication date:	06/23/2020
Series:	Arrowood Mystery , #3
Pages:	400
Sales rank:	422,910
Product dimensions:	5.00(w) x 7.70(h) x 1.20(d)

About the Author

Mick was born in Glasgow but left as a young boy, living in Canada and then England. Before becoming an academic, he ran a market stall on Portobello Road, and has worked as a tent-hand in a travelling circus, a butcher’s boy, a hotel porter, and in various jobs in the NHS and social services. He teaches in a Psychology Department, and has published research on political violence and persuasion, verbal and non-verbal communication, and disability. He now lives in Brighton with his family.

Editorial Reviews

★ 08/17/2020

In Finlay’s outstanding third Victorian whodunit featuring private inquiry agents William Arrowood and Norman Barnett (after 2018’s The Murder Pit), the detectives, unlike Sherlock Holmes, whom Arrowood both envies and despises, continue to get prosaic clients with prosaic problems. One such problem, however, becomes much more complex. Captain Moon, the owner of a pleasure steamer that operates on the Thames, reports that someone, probably his business rival Captain Polgreen, has been vandalizing his boat when it’s docked at night. Arrowood and Barnett agree to talk to Polgreen, who denies the charges and claims instead that it was his vessel that was damaged by Moon. The case takes a much darker turn after Barnett and Moon find two ropes tied to Moon’s steamer the morning after their visit to Polgreen: 14 children’s skulls are strung along one rope, and a second is affixed to the murdered bodies of a man and two women. The tension builds as the investigators probe who sent Moon this grisly message and why. Finlay’s grim depictions of the inhabitants of the more impoverished parts of London evoke Dickens. Fans of gritty historicals will be richly rewarded. (June)

Publishers Weekly

‘A crime novel of thrilling intricacy … Arrowood is a terrific creation, and this book wins five rosettes’ The Tablet

‘Think Sherlock Holmes is the only detective working in Victorian London? Meet William Arrowood, the hero of Mick Finlay’s series of absorbing novels … Finlay depicts a seedy, desperate London and vivid characters with considerable skill’ The Times

‘A good belting read … a gripping historical crime novel … book clubs will love it especially fans of C J Sansom’ NB Magazine

‘Outstanding … Finlay’s grim depictions of the inhabitants of the more impoverished parts of London evoke Dickens. Fans of gritty historicals will be richly rewarded’ Publishers Weekly (starred review)

‘Mick Finlay, the new master of gritty, gruesome and gripping historical crime fiction … Brimming with dark humour, fast-paced action, intriguing twists and turns, and a cast of characters that could well have been conjured up by the late, great Mr Dickens, this is a top-class series that grows in stature with every new book’Lancashire Evening Post

‘Loved it – the sights, sounds, smells, and horrors of Victorian London are so vividly portrayed’ Roz Watkins

‘Mick Finlay’s richly told story evokes the bustling all-encompassing worlds of CJ Samson and Charles Dickens. I loved it’ Lesley Thomson

PRAISE FOR MICK FINLAY:

‘Another brilliant read from Mick Finlay . . . even better than [Arrowood]’ B.A. Paris

‘Gripping’ Daily Telegraph

‘astounding … If you crave Victorian age murder mystery, love darkly gothic atmospheres and want your detective rather tattered and torn at the edges Arrowood is your man.’ SHOTS

‘Enthralling’ Publishers Weekly (starred review)

‘Arrowood is a flawed but engaging hero and the plot spins from peril to twist and back with real panache’ The Times

‘A fantastic creation’ The Spectator

‘Richly inventive’ Daily Telegraph

‘Compelling’ Seattle Times

From the Publisher