Sidney Chambers and The Perils of the Night
Grantchester Mysteries 2
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4.0 • 1 Rating
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- $15.99
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- $15.99
Publisher Description
'Grantchester's answer to Alexander McCall Smith. The book brings a dollop of Midsomer Murders to the Church of England, together with a literate charm of its own' - Spectator
'A perfect accompaniment to a sunny afternoon, a hammock and a glass of Pimms' - Guardian
'Totally English, beautifully written, perfectly in period and wryly funny. More, please!' - Leslie Geddes Brown,
Country Life
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1955. Canon Sidney Chambers, loveable priest and part-time detective, is back. Accompanied by his faithful Labrador, Dickens, and the increasingly exasperated Inspector Geordie Keating, Sidney is called to investigate the unexpected fall of a Cambridge don from the roof of King's College Chapel, a case of arson at a glamour photographer's studio and the poisoning of Zafar Ali, Grantchester's finest spin bowler.
Alongside his sleuthing, Sidney has other problems. Can he decide between his dear friend, the glamorous socialite Amanda Kendall and Hildegard Staunton, the beguiling German widow? To make up his mind Sidney takes a trip abroad, only to find himself trapped in a web of international espionage just as the Berlin Wall is going up.
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'The series has a charming quaintness and deftly turning plot twists but what renders it unique as detective fiction is its overtly Christian content' - Arifa Akbar, Independent
'It takes a first-class writer to put together a convincing storyline for such unlikely circumstances. James Runcie does it admirably … He is a good man in an imperfect world and we should welcome him to the ranks of classic detectives' - Daily Mail
PUBLISHERS WEEKLY
Runcie's richly atmospheric second collection of Grantchester mysteries improves on its predecessor, 2012's Sidney Chambers and the Shadow of Death. Over six stories, Sidney Chambers, an Anglican minister, wrestles with his impulse to solve crimes rather than tend to the aspects of his religious duties that he finds less engaging. In the especially fine title tale, Chambers witnesses three college fellows attempt a dangerous prank by climbing an octagonal turret. One man falls to his death, one vanishes without trace, and the third is left badly shaken. In other episodes, a building rented to a photographer burns down, a bursar is found dead in his bath, and food poisoning claims the life of an Indian cricketer. Runcie's intimate view of post-WWII English society will appeal to admirers of Barbara Pym. His clerical sleuth would be welcome in a novel-length puzzle one day.
