The Blackpool Highflyer
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3.5 • 6 Ratings
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- $12.99
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- $12.99
Publisher Description
"A compelling thriller" set against the historical backdrop of Edwardian England's railway system (Daily Mail).
Assigned to drive holidaymakers to the seaside resort of Blackpool in the hot summer of 1905, Jim Stringer is happy to have left behind the grime and danger of life in London. But his dreams of beer and pretty women are soon shattered when his high-speed train meets a huge millstone on the line, leading to a passenger's death . . .
This is an atmospheric mystery of sabotage and suspicion, from an author who "does a stunning job of bringing to life the era when steam locomotives chugged from London through the British countryside" (Booklist).
"A clear winner in literary crime writing . . . Dazzling attention to detail and quality writing." —Daily Express
"A steamy whodunnit . . . This may well be the best fiction about the railways since Dickens." —The Independent on Sunday
PUBLISHERS WEEKLY
Set in 1905, Martin's second Jim Stringer mystery (after 2004's The Necropolis Railway) starts slowly but builds a head of steam like the monster locomotive Jim stokes for "Lanky," the Lancashire and Yorkshire Railway. A passenger dies when a huge grindstone on the tracks derails a train carrying the owner of Hind's Mill on an excursion to seaside Blackpool. Jim begins to suspect class warfare when a young socialist distributes tracts in Jim's hometown of Halifax, urging workers to shun holidays organized by mill owners. A fallen tree on another rail line further suggests conspiracy, as does the disappearance of smartly dressed Clive, the engine driver on Jim's next run. Lanky management's paltry 5 reward hardly seems likely to garner much information, so newlywed Jim turns to comely Lydia, a mill clerk he simply calls "the wife," for much needed help. Getting used to Jim's chatty Cockney narration takes time, but as the suspense rises, readers will be captivated.
