Pink Dog

Abracadaver by Peter Lovesey: not quite so magical

Abracadaver book cover - Peter LoveseyIt’s been a while since I’ve been really disappointed with a book, but unfortunately Peter Lovesey’s Abracadaver has broken that run.

I have really enjoyed other books of his (notably The False Inspector Dew) and this one starts off promisingly with setting that fits the golden age of Victorian crime novels. Bizarre accidents in theatres around London set the scene but the plot is then mostly fairly straightforward, with few twists and not many red herrings along the way to the eventual unmasking of the criminal.

Some of the Victorian settings are done well, though at times characters seem to tip over into caricature and that (for me at least) wasn’t helped by the audio version I listened to not being one of the best.

Really good audio books add something special extra, as in the way that Christopher Fowler’s Bryant and May series has fantastic audio versions that bring out the best of his characters. In this case a slightly staid audio version brings out the worst in the characters.

All in all, it’s a light Victorian criminal amble. It has its moments but if this sort of story is your thing there are plenty of other better books to go for first.

Abracadaver by Peter Lovesey is available from Amazon.

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