Arrowood
Sherlock Holmes Has Met His Match
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4.2 • 26 Ratings
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- $11.99
Publisher Description
1895
London is scared. A killer haunts the city’s streets; the poor are hungry; crime bosses are taking control; the police force is stretched to the breaking point.
The rich turn to Sherlock Holmes, but the celebrated private detective rarely visits the densely populated streets of South London, where the crimes are sleazier and the people are poorer.
In the dark corner of Southwark, victims turn to a man who despises Holmes, his wealthy clientele and his showy forensic approach to crime: Arrowood—self-taught psychologist, occasional drunkard and private investigator.
When a man mysteriously disappears and Arrowood’s best lead is viciously stabbed before his eyes, he and his sidekick Barnett face their toughest quest yet: to capture the head of the most notorious gang in London…
In the bestselling tradition of Anthony Horowitz and Andrew Taylor, this gloriously dark crime debut will haunt readers long after the final page has been turned.
PUBLISHERS WEEKLY
Finlay does a good job of creating a plausible alternative to Sherlock Holmes in his first novel and series debut. In London in 1895, photographer Caroline Cousture, a French woman, turns to Arrowood because she can't afford Holmes's fees. Her brother, Thierry, has vanished after being accused of stealing from the bakery where he worked. Though Arrowood suspects her of lying, he accepts the case, only to find that it reawakens some painful and dangerous memories. Arrowood was once a successful reporter before he lost his job to a relative of the new owner of his paper. His reputation for muckraking led to a career as a detective and an eventual partnership with former law clerk Norman Barnett. Their first joint inquiry, into a suspected bigamy, ended disastrously, with an innocent man losing his life. Arrowood took to the bottle, causing his wife to leave him. Finlay's characterizations are better developed than in some similar series, such as Will Thomas's Barker and Llewelyn mysteries (Hell Bay, etc.).
Customer Reviews
Wow
If your looking for mystery and adventure and tired of snooty Sherlock this is for you. Loads of twists and turns. Wonderful characters and a Victorian London that rings true.