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Murder As A Fine Art (2013)

by David Morrell(Favorite Author)

3.85 of 5 Votes: 2

ISBN

0316216798 (ISBN13: 9780316216791)

languge

English

genre

Fiction

publisher

Mulholland Books

review 1: After the first gory scene I was beginning to think I was reading a novel from a the killer's perspective and that we'd get much more gore in later chapters. While the book didn't quite turn out to be much like I assumed, I did very much enjoy it. Following around De Quincey and his daughter is what kept me turning the pages. The dialogue they shared with other characters is incredibly entertaining and the "who done it?" aspect of the story ended up falling into the background. That's not to say the supporting characters in the book aren't well written. It's just that the De Quinceys captivate you so fast and in such a way that I'd gladly read a series based on the father/daughter duo going around England or the globe getting into more trouble.
review 2: This i... mores an audacious novel--a murder mystery set in 1854 London that gradually blossoms into a political thriller and a discourse on human psychology as understood in pre-Freudian terms and terminology. It largely succeeds in transporting the reader wholly into the milieu of the time and avoids, as Morrell puts it, being the type of historical fiction that "is often little more than costume drama, with modern dialogue and attitudes" put into the mouths of people who never would have dreamed or uttered such things. However, he does so by putting us into the company of real but avant-guarde movements & historical figures--most especially Thomas de Quincey and his daughter, Emily--that prove many things we take for granted as modern--demands for social equity, the liberation of women, romanticizing of drug addiction, corporate collusion with government to promote the good of the wealthy and well-connected over the needs of the many, mass media's culpability in spreading panic to drive sales--have much deeper roots than we generally bear in mind. The historical De Quincey's ground-breaking contributions to psychology and the understanding--even the "discovery"--of the subconscious is particularly central to the solution of the mystery at the heart of this novel. From the Revolutions of 1848 to the Opium Wars to the British East India Company's hold over Britain to PTSD to Robert Peel's vision for a professional police force deriving its moral authority from protecting the public rather than oppressing it--Morrell brings all the dichotomies of the early Victorian age into play, giving us a history lesson without bogging down the action or the shocking power of a very evil villain. less

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