The Dead Will Rise (A Simon Westow mystery)

by Chris Nickson

[annieb123]

Originally posted on my blog Nonstop Reader.

The Dead Will Rise is the fifth Simon Westow historical mystery by Chris Nickson. Released 7th March 2023 by Severn House, it's 291 pages and is available in hardcover and ebook formats. It's worth noting that the ebook format has a handy interactive table of contents as well as interactive links and references throughout. I've really become enamored of ebooks with interactive formats lately. 

This is such a skillfully written series. Protagonist thief-takers (bounty hunters/ private investigators) Simon and his partner Jane are employed by a wealthy businessman and tasked with finding the resurrectionists who have stolen the body of his employee's daughter. They're outclassed in terms of power and deceitfulness by influential men in Leeds and are in danger of losing their freedom and lives throughout the book. There's a real and palpable sense of the setting and narrative menace throughout much of the book and the writing is very high quality and engaging. It is redolent of the time period (1820's) and setting (Leeds and environs) without sacrificing readability.

It's written around a framework of actual events so skillfully that it's difficult to tell when fact shades over into fiction. The author is technically competent and (happily) quite prolific. There are now 4 books extant in the series, making this a good candidate for a long weekend binge or buddy read. 

The books -are- quite realistic and this one is no exception. The author has a very realistic writing style and describes the less salubrious facts of life in the early 19th century unflinchingly. This book deals with the stark, brutal, and all-too-often short lives of the inhabitants, even relatively financially well-to-do. 

One of the main characters, Jane, has a very sad back-story, and much of the plot of the book revolves around her past, her present, and her (scarily competent) redemptive development. I love her character, but she's often quite frightening. I was impressed by the author's ability to write a young female character and do it very well. There are emphatically no perky anythings here, no bodice ripping, and absolutely zero flirty eyelashes to be found. 

Four and a half stars. Definitely one for lovers of well-crafted mysteries. I would heartily recommend it to fans of Hambly's Benjamin January and Peters' Cadfael (although different time periods and settings, obviously). 

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