Martin Edwards writes a truly atmospheric and fiendishly intricate piece of historical crime fiction with strong elements of horror set in 1930s London. It begins on the remote Irish island of Gaunt, with a young desperate girl, Juliet Bretano in her journal documenting her fears for herself after what she is certain is the murder of her parents, convinced it is the work of the evil Rachel Savernake, the daughter of a judge with a fearsome reputation. Years later, Rachel, now a rich heiress with her father dead, has moved and established herself in London, where many are aware that behind the scenes she is known as an amateur detective, leading the police to a murderer moving in powerful circles. Jacob Flint is a guileless young crime reporter on the Clarion, where Tom Betts, the chief crime reporter is close to death after suffering life threatening injuries after a hit and run car accident. With a number of murders, an apparent suicide of a philanthropic man in a locked room confessing to a heinous killing, and the public burning alive of a man during an illusionist performance, and more dark deeds, the constant presence of the enigmatic and composed Rachel is a link that gives rise to suspicions in Flint and the rising Scotland Yard detective, Inspector Oakes.

Flint finds himself on the scene of high profile deaths that lead to several exclusive front page stories, but his attempts to get a closer acquaintance with Rachel are rebuffed, as he wonders whether Betts accident was in fact an accident. He is a man way out of his depth but unable to stop investigating as hes find himself in mortal danger at every turn as death comes to those close to him. Is Rachel helping him or is there a more macabre motive behind her machinations? Flint encounters cryptic codes, the strange presence of chess pieces, and leads that guide him to Gallows Court and the suggestion of a rotten circle of evil at the heart of the British establishment with connections to an Oxford Orphans home. Drawn to the vulnerable and terrified actress Sarah Delamere with her traumatic history, he goes out of his way to protect her, despite the grave threats he faces. The narrative drives inexorably to a grim and blood curdling finale where it becomes transparently clear that nothing is as it seems.

Mark Edwards plotting is superb in this complex historical crime mystery, with the twists and turns ratcheting up the levels of suspense and tension. He is an illusionist in his own right as well as deploying them in this story. The characterisation is wonderful as Rachel is a woman you want to know more about, she is just so compelling as you try to figure out exactly who she is and Flint is the perfect foil of a young man, lost and rudderless in a dark sea of wickedness, in sharp contrast to her Machiavellian darkness. This is a fantastic and well constructed historical novel that I so enjoyed reading and recommend highly to other readers. Many thanks to Head of Zeus for an ARC.

Martin Edwards is a well known crime writer and has been heavily involved in the British Library Crime Classics series and with Gallows Court he has combined the two to produce a first rate crime thriller set in 1930.

Without giving away any spoilers the main character, a journalist, investigates some deaths that appear to be linked the further he digs whilst putting his life at risk.

The writing is excellent with a well plotted story line that keeps you hooked from the beginning to the end with a number of twists and turns that kept my understanding and guesswork changing throughout.

This is a first class book that is thoroughly recommended

Evil or no? That’s the question, and the main thrust of the plot in "Gallows’ Court", an unusual offering from author Martin Edwards -- who generally gives us books that are not quite the unsettling oeuvre that we see in this historical mystery. Rachel Savernake is from the start identified, in chapter headings and the body of the text, as an unscrupulous, manipulative figure who is capable and fully prepared to bring about the deaths of both seen and unseen characters. Why is she doing this? What is driving her to bring about such final, irrevocable judgments? The plot twists and turns as it reveals the reason. Readers may find themselves first on one side and then the other, as nothing is as it may seem.

Edwards “employs” a reporter, Jacob Flint, to act as Rachel’s literary factorum, using him to play an intricate game of cat and mouse, threatening and cajoling the man to achieve her ends. It will be Jacob, part and parcel of the final confrontation, who will be surprised as anyone else (including the book’s audience) to discover what is behind all of the elaborate scheming.

A criticism of the plot from my standpoint is the overuse of telling, not showing. Perhaps that was inevitable, given the intricacies of the revealed situations. It shouldn’t detract from enjoying this plot-driven thriller by a master writer firmly entrenched in crime fiction.

Thanks to the publisher and Net Galley for an advance copy of this book, in exchange for this review.

1930s London. Violent deaths. Judge's daughter Rachel Savernake has already embarrassed Scotland Yard by solving the Chorus Girl murder. and she's on the trail of another killer....

...hotly pursued by young Clarion hack Jacob Flint