I was looking forward to reading this book as a sequel to The Ashes of London which I have already read and enjoyed very much. The plot of The Fire Court takes place after the great fire of London and revolves around the special court which was set up to fairly deal with the complicated property problems in the aftermath of the fire. I thoroughly enjoyed this book although I found it to be not as fast paced as The Ashes of London. It is more of a who-done-it but although it lacks the action I enjoyed the plot because the backdrop paints a more vivid picture of the people, circumstances and hardships that the population of London faced after the destruction of the fire. It can be read as a stand alone but I would recommend reading The Ashes of London first to get the background of the main characters. I have no hesitation in recommending this book.

The Fire Court by Andrew Taylor
I was really keen to read this book, having already read his previous book, ‘The Ashes of London’ featuring some of the same characters. Taylor writes fantastic historical crime novels, these two are set in the Restoration period just after the Great fire of London, and ‘The Fire Court is a sequel.
Brilliantly plotted, the Great Fire of London looms large in the story, you can almost be there in the wonderful descriptions, with interesting facts about the social life of this time, helping the story along. Corruption and courtrooms, secrets and murder all contribute to a great read, history brought to life and I highly recommend it.

After reading Andrew Taylor's 'The Ashes of London' I was interested to see how the story progressed. I was not disappointed. The chaos of London after the Fire of London was still was palpable throughout the story. The two main characters are beginning to develop. A well researched book with an historical murder mystery theme.

Dnfed at 30%

I just couldn’t put myself through this anymore. I found the first book hard going, and this one was just the same. When you’re finding yourself struggling to read a single page without hating it and falling asleep, you know it’s time to move on. The sad thing is, I’m sure this will have a fantastic ending, as the first book certainly did. I’m just no longer willing to keep forcing myself through it.

4.5 stars. I felt when I read Ashes of London, that plot and pacing were patchy and yet I really enjoyed it for its historical detail. Having read The Fire Court, I see that the first book was largely setting the scene for this one. Here we become much more invested in the characters. James Marwood is coming into his own and gathering his friends and supporters around him. Cat Lovett / Jane Hakesby also plays a larger part. The story line was a good murder mystery with a last minute twist. The pace was good throughout and I really appreciate that Marwood and Lovett have not been shoved together as a team. A great piece of historical fiction!

An excellent tale set in Restoration London
I haven't read the first book in this series so the characters were all new to me. The lack of their back story didn't hinder my enjoyment of this book which is very well written with some very atmospheric descriptions of post-fire London and its various classes of inhabitants. An absorbing story about murder, and the conflicts that could have arisen during the planning and rebuilding of London after the Great Fire of 1666. The tale unfolds slowly until the twisty finale. I received a free digital copy of this very good read from the publishers in exchange for an honest review.

In this excellent sequel to The Ashes of London, we meet James Marwood and Cat Lovett again, and this time they are caught up in the proceedings of the Fire Court, convened by Charles II to resolve landlord and leasehold disputes resulting from the Great Fire of London, so that the capital can be rebuilt swiftly. That might sound dry, but it isn’t, and it forms an unusual backdrop to politicking, murder and danger. The Fire Court is another page-turner, full of historical atmosphere and action in a gentle, slightly old-fashioned way, and very enjoyable it is too.

This book is as good as the first. London is being rebuilt. The historical detail is brilliant. This book has obviously been well researched. The descriptions are so good I could imagine the surroundings and the characters. I hope there are more books in this series.
Thank you to Netgalley for my copy,

London is trying to rebuild itself following the fire and "The Fire Court" was set up to ensure the property leaseholders are treated fairly but the landlords also get a good deal. A large area of property known as Dragon Yard is due before the court with a battle between two developers interested in rebuilding. When the body of a young lady is found in the ruins, James Marwood is instructed to discreetly find out who she is, why she was killed and by whom. James bumps into old friends Mr Hakesby and Catherine Lovett who now goes by the name of Jane Hakesby and they get drawn into the mystery and their lives put in danger as more bodies are found - all who are connected to Celia Hampney.

This is the sequel to "The Ashes of London" and it may help to read that first as it explains the relationship between Marwood, Hakesby and Catherine/Jane which is referred to a few times. A great, gentle paced thriller with a few twists that send you in a different direction.

The sequel to The Ashes of London, The Fire Court is set amidst the aftermath of The Great Fire of London and the rebuilding. While you don't have to read Ashes first, it helps and the story of James Marwood and Catherine Lovett continues and it is nice to have the background and 'relationship' with the main characters.

James doesn't believe his father when he tells him of the murdered woman, but when he dies in suspicious circumstances, James is forced to rethink. The more James investigates, the further up the conspiracy seems to go. The Fire Court follows James and Cat as they unravel the mystery of his fathers death and the murder he told of.

I enjoyed the historical backdrop and politics of the story and the character and plot development. It was a rare sequel that, I felt, was even better than it's first instalment. Hopefully there are more to come.

I enjoyed this book because the descriptions of London after the Great Fire and the characters were so real. I found the story plot okay but not enthralling. It was interesting to note some historical facts that are perhaps little known e.g the buildings on the bridge and the structure of the Law Court buildings and people. I liked Cat but felt that she was not the type of character that would have fitted into that period or role. There is lots of activity throughout the book which starts nicely with a death and a murder witnessed by the main character Marwood's father, however I felt that it was drawn out and at times bordering on being turgid. I have read all of Sansom's books and I suppose I expected a similar read but I felt disappointed. It is obvious that a lot of research has gone into this book describing the difficulties in life then, especially not knowing who was a friend and who a foe. I gave this 4 stars as I do appreciate that it is a well written book that just did not hit it off totally with me.

This is the second in the series of John Marwood an£ equally as enjoyable as the first. It is atmospheric , with an underlying feeling of malice and the dangers of impending poverty. A gritty ,complex story ,great writing
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I thoroughly enjoyed this book which I read straight after The Ashes of London.
Once again it is very well written and interesting about a period of history of which I know very little.
The characters developed nicely in a complex plot and I look forward to reading further books in the series.

I read the first installment in this historical mystery series - The Ashes of London - right before moving onto this book. And while I'm sure you could read and enjoy The Fire Court without having to read book 1 - it is a new mystery which introduces a group of new characters - I would recommend seeking out The Ashes of London first. A lot of my enjoyment in reading book 2 came from seeing how established characters and their relationships developed under the pressures of this plot, and in this regard there certainly is a great deal going on. I can only praise the author for giving us high stakes: he isn't afraid to put his main characters in true peril and let them get hurt. I lost count of the number of times Cat had call to use or threaten to use her knife in self-defence!

The details of London and life in the aftermath of the Great Fire continue to be fascinating. I had a nice chuckle at a reference to the dissolute Earl of Rochester (who wrote some poetry as scandalous as his behaviour) and realised that I did learn something about the period at university after all! I particularly enjoyed the reminder that London Bridge once had buildings on it, similar to the Ponte Vecchio in Florence - a featured which is important to the story's climatic action.

I would repeat the warning I made in my review of book 1: if you're looking for a past-faced murder mystery, this isn't it. To give you an idea: a woman is murdered in chapter 1, but we don't find out who she is until a third of the way through the book. If you prefer your stories to shift along in higher gear, this probably isn't the series for you.

While I enjoyed the character development and setting, I wasn't overwhelmingly intrigued or gripped by the mystery itself which is basically a legal thriller with all the suspicious deaths tracing back to a post-fire property case. Perhaps fans of legal dramas and court-case thrillers should give this a try?

Overall: if you enjoyed book 1 then I recommend you let Taylor take you back to 1667 for some more intrigue in the smoldering ruins of the capital.

I thoroughly enjoyed this book. I think it works better if you have read The Ashes of London first, to know more about the background stories of the main characters: Cat and Marwood. Part of the story involves investigating a murder, but I also learned a lot about life in 17th century after the great fire of London; the constant fear, the inequalities, injustices and squalid conditions. The horrors of fire and injuries from fire are horrifically (but not gratuitously) described. Andrew Taylor tells the tale very well.

I enjoyed Ashes of London even though I don’t usually read this genre so I was looking forward to reading this. I wasn’t disappointed and enjoyed it as much as the first book. It had some twists and turns that you thought you knew what was going on only to find out you were wrong. I couldn’t wait to finish it just to find out the ending and I will certainly look to read more by this author.

I loved Andrew Taylor’s The Ashes of London so I was eagerly looking forward to the next book, The Fire Court set in 1667, eight months after the Great Fire had swept through London. And once again I was immediately transported back in to the 17th century as Londoners set about rebuilding the city.

It continues the story of James Marwood, working for Master Williamson, under-secretary to the Secretary of State, and of Cat (Catherine) Lovett, whose father, Thomas Lovett, was one of the Regicides of Charles I. It is a standalone novel – you don’t have to have read The Ashes of London to enjoy this book, but I think it helps to understand the background if you do.

James’s father, Nathaniel who was a Fifth Monarchist, an extreme Puritan sect, suffers from dementia. The book begins as Nathaniel follows a women he believes is his dead wife and finds a murdered woman. James thinks it is just a product of his deluded mind but when Nathaniel is killed in an accident, run over by a wagon he feels guilty for not believing him. And then a witness to his father’s death tells him that he had seen Nathaniel coming out of an alley leading into Clifford’s Court where the Fire Court was sitting. And the more James thinks about this and makes inquiries, particularly into the work of the Fire Court, he becomes convinced that his father had been telling him the truth

The Fire Court was set up to settle disputes between landowners and tenants as the work of rebuilding and developing London gets underway. Cat, now going under the name of Jane Hakesby works for Simon Hakesby, a surveyor and architect and both are involved in the work of the Fire Court. As you would expect these disputes are complicated and open to intrigue and dishonesty at all levels. James renews his acquaintance with Cat, a spirited independent young woman, and they work together as James tries to get to the bottom of the mystery surrounding his father’s death and the identity of the murdered woman.

In fact this is one of the most satisfyingly complicated books I’ve read recently, equally as absorbing as The Ashes of London, once again weaving fact and fiction into a complete whole. I love it. Taylor’s research is impressive, bringing to life the complexities of Restoration England, drawing in all levels of society from Charles II, the aristocracy, politicians, to the ordinary people and those living in poverty. I particularly liked all the details of the work of the Fire Court and how London was rebuilt – and once again there is a fire – not as widespread geographically as the Great Fire, but dramatic and with devastating results for James.

Many thanks to Harper Collins for a review copy via NetGalley.

I couldn't put this book down, and wondered how I'd managed to miss this author up until now. I shall be looking out for his other books, and recommending widely.

I had loved ‘Ashes of London ‘ and could not wait to start the sequel. It isn’t necessary to read the prequel but I would highly recommend reading it since it gives us a little more depth to Cat’s character. An interesting sequel indeed.

The second book following the fortunes of Cat Lovett and James Marwood, this one is more of a classic murder mystery, set against the fabulously vivid backdrop of the aftermath of the Great Fire of London.

I recommend reading 'The Ashes of London' first, but this is a rattling good story in its own right, within a meticulously detailed portrait of 17th-century society and life in the devastated ruins of London, where everyone is struggling to survive and rebuild. The Fire Court of the title has been established to settle disputes over freeholders' and leaseholders' responsibilities during the rebuilding, and becomes the focus of political machinations, underhand dealings and murder as opposing interests clash.

The book delivers a shocking twist that even I didn't see coming (and I'm usually quite good at spotting them!)
and I sincerely hope this is not the last we'll see of Lovett and Marwood.