Fires of London
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3.0 • 2 Ratings
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- $7.99
Publisher Description
A killer takes refuge in the blacked-out streets of wartime London, upending the world of one of Britain's greatest painters in this chilling and captivating reimagining of the life of Francis Bacon
Francis Bacon walks the streets of World War II London, employed as a warden for the ARP to keep watch for activities that might tip off the Axis powers. Before the war, Bacon had travelled to Berlin and Paris picking up snatches of culture from a succession of middle-aged men charmed by his young face. Known for his flamboyant personal life and expensive taste, Bacon has returned home to live with his former nanny—who's also his biggest collector—in a cramped bohemian apartment.
But one night, death intrudes on his after-hours paradise. When a young man is found dead in the park, his head smashed in, Bacon and the rest of London's demimonde realize that they have much more to fear than the faraway scream of war.
PUBLISHERS WEEKLY
Law (Voices) does a bangup job of recreating London during the Blitz and portraying real-life artist Francis Bacon as an unlikely sleuth. A murderer is taking advantage of blackout conditions to target gay men, starting with Damien Hiller, an acquaintance of the painter, who was bludgeoned to death. This link draws the unwelcome attention of Scotland Yard's Insp. John Mordren, whom Bacon had run into while he was performing his air raid warden duties. The claustrophobic atmosphere of the blackouts will remind many of the foggy streets of Victorian-era detective stories, while Law vividly describes the terrifying German attacks (e.g., "But though the fiery angel had passed over us, it was only a temporary reprieve... what we got was fire, infernal and spectacular, the night sky lit up like a Turner seen on opium"). Bacon's unconventional views on religion and death help round out his character.
