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Sheila Deeth
, May 13, 2019
(view all comments by Sheila Deeth)
Set in Bath and echoing with the lives and machinations of history, Peter Lovesey’s Beau Death introduces readers to Beau Nash, that famous master of Ceremonies who turned Bath from a nowhere town into the arbiter of 18th century taste and behavior. But this novel’s set in the present, and Inspector Diamond is called to investigate a blend of modern and ancient murder when a very dead corpse is revealed in a very empty house. Offering fascinating details of history, investigation, pathology and more, the author takes readers on a tour of the famous city, with secrets of its past revealed just as naturally as those of the protagonist’s.
This isn’t the first Peter Diamond mystery, but readers new the series will be quickly drawn in. The blend of erudite and mundane is nicely paralleled in past and present, rich and poor, and in relationships both on and off the police force, all convincingly drawn. The result is an enjoyable mystery, with plenty of information naturally given, plus the added enticement of pleasingly amusing situations, dead ends, dead bodies, and enthralling details.
A perfect blend of modern knowledge, historical depth, and investigative process, Beau Death is classic English detective fiction with a thoroughly classical twist. A great read.
Disclosure: A friend recommended it. Now I’m hooked and eager to read more of the series.
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