It is 1889 in London and the terror that Jack the Ripper has inflicted upon the city hangs as heavy and dank as the legendary fog. “Saucy Jack” has not been apprehended and the London citizenry now regards the detectives and beat cops of Scotland Yard with little trust and less respect.
Behind the walls of the famous police department, Detective Inspector Walter Day has just joined the “Murder Squad” – a group of detectives charged with solving the growing number of murder cases whose files pile high on their desks. And the latest victim is one of their own, a detective from the squad whose body has been found mutilated and stuffed in a trunk left at the train station. His lips have been sewn shut by a neat and steady hand.
Author Grecian’s characters are rich in depth, and among the best is Dr. Bernard Kingsley, a coroner who is a pioneer in a science that is now referred to as crime scene investigation. His focus is on the yet unacknowledged study of fingerprint identification and the scant clues that the perpetrators unwittingly leave behind. Writes Grecian of Kingsley’s interchange with Officer Hammersmith, a beat cop, in his lab as they examine the body of the deceased detective:
Kingsley signed and frowned at Hammersmith.
A teacher addressing a slow student.
“The weapon used here was shaped like a spade, sharp at its pointed end, but widening as it neared the handle. And it had no blade. Or, if it did have a blade, that sharp edge was covered or otherwise protected, which is why we find no slashes on the detective’s body, only stab wounds.”
“So he was killed with a spade? No, he was killed with a pair of shears, wasn’t he? That’s what you’re getting at.”
Kingsley beamed at him. “Exactly.”
As every policeman is made available for the investigation, Hammersmith happens upon the scene of another crime – a young boy, dead, shoved up into a chimney in a small flat. A climber, used as chimney cleaners for spaces too small for a grown man, the child has suffocated and been left with no regard. Instructed to dismiss the case, Hammersmith dedicates himself, in his own time, to pursuing the heartless killer, his personal experiences as a child not allowing him to walk away.
Meanwhile, Detective Inspector Day is working endless hours in pursuit of his colleague’s killer. His wife, alone in their new apartment, receives a visitor who introduces himself as a fellow detective of her husband’s, inquires into his investigation, then begs for her confidence. Concerned by the request she quickly goes in search of her husband to alert him to the visit.
As Day and Hammersmith each work tirelessly to solve the cases, another detective becomes victim to the slashing killer – this time Hammersmith’s flat mate. The Yard appears to be a target but the reasoning is unclear, and the initial clues are leading nowhere. Only the most dedicated and perceptive will be able to piece the clues together, and time is of the essence.
Alex Grecian’s first novel is set in Victorian London and the period detail he provides wraps the story in a Sherlock Holmes type of setting. The social classes are distinct, as are the the underlying moralities. Grecian’s language is rich with the particulars of the time and the burgeoning science of crime scene investigation is an intriguing spark. The many characters are clear in their individuality, and their stories wind around each other into a terrifying period tale that is a promise of future novels for the author.