annieb123's Review of Gallows Court

by Martin Edwards

A superb Golden Age mystery packed with twists, from the winner of the Diamond Dagger 2020

LONDON, 1930

The night is sooty, sulphurous, and malign. A spate of violent deaths has horrified the capital and the smog-bound streets are deserted. No woman should be out on a night like this. But Rachel Savernake is no ordinary woman.

To Scotland Yard's embarrassment, she solved the Chorus Girl Murder, and now – along with journalist Jacob Flint – she's on the trail of another killer.

Savernake and Flint's pursuit of the truth will mire them ever-deeper into a labyrinth of deception and corruption. Murder-by-murder, they will be swept ever-closer to that ancient place of execution, where it all began and where it will finally end: Gallows Court.

Reviews for Gallows Court:

'Superb – a pitch-perfect blend of Golden Age charm and sinister modern suspense, with a main character to die for. This is the book Edwards was born to write' Lee Child

'Packed with evocative period detail, twists and turns and a fascinatingly enigmatic anti-heroine' Financial Times

'Edwards has managed, brilliantly, to combine a Golden Age setting with a pace that is bang up-to-date. A great sense of the era observed through a cut-throat-sharp eye, every page dripping with brilliant period authenticity' Peter James

'A ripping tale of retribution and rough justice, set against a finely realised 1930s London. It reads as if Ruth Rendell were channelling Edgar Wallace' Mick Herron

'Liberally spiced with mystery, suspense and action ... A thoroughly gripping read' Peter Robinson

Originally published on my blog: Nonstop Reader.

Gallows Court is a new standalone mystery by mystery mavin Martin Edwards. Released 6th Sept 2018 by Head of Zeus, it's available in hardcover, paperback, and ebook formats. Mr. Edwards will be known to most classic mystery fans as a consultant for the British Library Crime Classics series as well as for his authorship of the modern Lake District series published by Poisoned Pen Press.

Despite being set in the interwar London period of classic mysteries, this book had a lot more of a noir thriller vibe for me than a classic golden age 'Christie' feel. The bad guys are archetypal, the plot devices rather devious. It was unclear for much of the book whether the female lead character, Rachel, was evil, manipulative, devious, crazy or a combination of the above. The male protagonist, and indeed the supporting characters are well written and follow an internal logic. The dialogue is very well written and never clunky or distracting.

This is an intricate and very well plotted mystery which follows the rules of detective fiction for readers who enjoy racing against the fictional detective. The pacing is incredibly finely tuned and there are twists and turns aplenty. This is a solidly well written entertaining book from a gifted author. It's not a classic golden age country house mystery, but it's a perfect edgy read nonetheless.

Possibly worth noting for kindle unlimited subscribers. This book is available to loan in the KU subscription. It's definitely good enough for a reread though, which is my benchmark for buying my own copy (and I intend to do so).

Five stars

Disclosure: I received an ARC at no cost from the author/publisher for review purposes.

Gallows Court

by Martin Edwards

Reviewed by annieb123 on Jan 7, 2019

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