About the novel... "Thomas De Quincey, infamous for his memoir Confessions of an English Opium-Eater, is the major suspect in a series of ferocious mass murders identical to ones that terrorized London forty-three years earlier.
The blueprint for the killings seems to be De Quincey’s essay “On Murder Considered as One of the Fine Arts.” Desperate to clear his name but crippled by opium addiction, De Quincey is aided by his devoted daughter Emily and a pair of determined Scotland Yard detectives.
In Murder as a Fine Art, David Morrell plucks De Quincey, Victorian London, and the Ratcliffe Highway murders from history. Fogbound streets become a battleground between a literary star and a brilliant murderer, whose lives are linked by secrets long buried but never forgotten."
About the author, from his website... "David Morrell is the critically acclaimed author of First Blood, the novel in which Rambo was created. He holds a Ph. D. in American literature from Penn State and was a professor in the English department at the University of Iowa. His numerous New York Times bestsellers include the classic spy trilogy The Brotherhood of the Rose (the basis for the only television mini-series to premier after a Super Bowl), The Fraternity of the Stone, and The League of Night and Fog. An Edgar, Anthony, and Macavity nominee, Morrell is the recipient of three Bram Stoker awards from the Horror Writers Association as well as the prestigious lifetime Thriller Master Award from the International Thriller Writers’ organization. His writing book,The Successful Novelist, discusses what he has learned in his four decades as an author. He lives in Santa Fe, New Mexico."
My favorite genre is mysteries... specifically historical... specifically British... specifically "gaslight" era. Murder as a Fine Art specifically fits that bill. I loved everything about it. However, the most interesting part was that Thomas DeQuincey was a real person.
There was a discussion in one of my book clubs about the merit of including historical figures in historical fiction. I love it! I think it takes a very skilled novelist to realistically include someone who is known to the world. The ease, I believe, of fiction is making it all up. Throw in a "real" person and the author has to walk a fine line between the known and the unknown. Mr. Morrell, in my opinion, has woven Thomas DeQuincey and this mystery so well that the known and the unknown blend seamlessly.
I saw Mr. Morrell speak at The Tattered Cover about Murder as a Fine Art. He told the audience about his academic background and how it made sense for him to be intrigued about Thomas DeQuincey after he was mentioned in a movie he watched. After doing a lot of research, he realized that DeQuincey would be a perfect character in a mystery novel. Mr. Morrell based the book on a series of mass murders in gaslight London that, some believe, ushered in "tabloid" journalism... "if it bleeds, it leads".
Because of his research background, specifically having been a college professor, the writing is literate and lyrical. I was drawn into the book without question. The characters and the setting are flawlessly written but, the mystery is what makes this novel shine. It is palpable and jarring. I felt like I could not read this novel quickly enough! Because I knew it was based on a factual event, I, purposely, did not "google" anything about it until I had finished the book. I wanted to "live" it just as DeQuincey et al were.
As much as I love beginning a novel, I dread turning the final page. I have invested in characters and their quest and to see that end, can be a little disconcerting. With Murder as a Fine Art, though, Mr. Morrell intimated, no... pretty much said outright, that there will be sequel. YAY! While I will entertain myself with other mystery novels until then, I so look forward to reading the next Thomas Dequincey mystery.
~~Although I am reviewing Murder as a Fine Art by David Morrell as part of his Historical Fiction book Tour, I purchased this wonderfully written novel with my own funds.~~
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