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This title in other formats:The Fiend in Humanby John MacLachlan Gray
Synopses & ReviewsPublisher Comments:It's 1852, and the ranks of the London poor have doubled. In the swollen shadow of the great St. Giles Rookery, fallen women attract the perfumed dandies of the West End into a vicious circle of venality, vanity, and vice.
Edmund Whitty, correspondent for The Falcon, the city's second-best sensational tabloid, writes whatever will stimulate the reader, delay his (increasingly physical) creditors, and supply him with the alcohol and opiates required to see him through the day. His most recent triumph was to supply a name for the fiend in human form who has murdered an uncertain number of prostitutes with a white silk scarf: Chokee Bill. Chokee Bill incited a garroting panic that paralyzed the business of London---until the arrest of one William Ryan. Normality has returned. The hangman, Mr. Calcraft, as dusty and dreary as death itself, awaits. Broke again and in search of crisp copy, Whitty makes a shocking but not altogether surprising discovery: the white-scarf slayings have continued. When he endeavors to find the real Chokee Bill, he is greeted with emphatic hostility on all sides. This thrilling Dickensian tale offers galvanizing suspense and an evocative and witty vision of life in Victorian London. Review:"Gray portrays...1852 London with a skill worthy of Dickens, but handles the mystery elements of this uneven debut with less success....[Gray's] considerable gifts bode well for future forays into crime fiction." Publishers Weekly
Review:"If you were one of those who made Caleb Carr's The Alienist a bestseller, you'll enjoy The Fiend in Human." The Charlotte Observer
Review:"Gray's Victorian thriller is noteworthy for the lovingly detailed (if sordid and unappealing) scenes of London and the period style in which Gray writes. However, the proceedings themselves are sadly lacking in spunk." Library Journal
Review:"A wonderfully atmospheric thriller....It is a splendidly dark Victorian world and a novel which is hard to put down." Publishing News
Review:"Canadian composer, performer, and now first-novelist MacLachlan attempts a penetrating look at man's vile desires in a same-old serial killer tale....Smart, but echoing too familiarly." Kirkus Reviews
Review:"Great fiction — a perfect place, a perfect time, a perfectly intriguing cast of characters, and a perfectly diabolical villain." Keith Ablow, author of Compulsion
Review:"Vivid characters, dead-on dialogue, and a galloping good plot make The Fiend in Human a tale irresistible." Giles Blunt, author of Forty Words for Sorrow
Synopsis:In 1852 London, William Ryan is accused of killing prostitutes and awaits execution, yet the murders continue. A team of tabloid journalists try to free Ryan, attracting the murderous attention of the real killer. About the AuthorJohn MacLachlan Gray is a writer-composer-performer for the stage, film, television, radio, and print. He is the recipient of many awards, including the Los Angeles Critics Circle Award for playwriting, a Silver Hugo, and a gold at the New York Film and Television Festival. His musical play Billy Bishop Goes to War appeared on Broadway and subsequently became one of the most produced shows in North America. He lives in Vancouver with his personal demons. What Our Readers Are SayingAdd a comment for a chance to win!
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