Lloyd Shepherd

One of the more intriguing elements of The Poisoned Island is the glimpse of life along the Thames that it provides. The various districts, docks, classes, and social rules create an amalgamation of life unique to that location and time period. Its vibrancy as well as its extremes are outstandingly portrayed by Mr. Shepherd, evoking all five senses and immersing the reader into the story.

The Poisoned Island is the Thames River Police’s beginning uses of modern investigative techniques. The show more doubt, suspicion, and mockery Horton and his team face at each stage of the investigation are an opportunity to learn about the evolution of police investigation. The more things change, however, the more things stay the same. The territorial battles Horton and his department face are very familiar to modern readers and help cross that bridge across time which can be so difficult in historical fiction.

Exotic locales, nautical history, investigative history, Victorian London, the haves versus the have-nots, and a hint of magic all combine to create an explosive story about revenge and the dangers of empire-building. The scenes occurring in Tahiti are as lush and erotic with a hint of danger as one would expect, while the scenes in London are the perfect opposite – harsh, grimy, tough, cold, restrained, and bleak. The juxtaposition between the two settings propels the narrative and heightens tension. Police Chief Horton is the perfect combination of logic and patience, and the entire story is a fascinating and suspenseful whodunit that will get the blood flowing and the heart pumping. show less

The Poisoned Island is Otaheite, or Tahiti as we know it better, in the year 1769, but the story moves quickly on to the River Thames in 1812 where the ship “Solander” returns from the paradise of Otaheite, with hundreds of plants preserved carefully by Captain Hopkins for delivery to Sir Joseph Banks the famous botanist at Kew Gardens.

It has been a successful trip and the sailors in particular had found their time in Otaheite very rewarding. The new plant specimens are welcomed by Banks show more and his learned librarian, Scottish botanist, Robert Brown. But some of the sailors carry a lethal secret whose repercussions will effect Banks, Brown and even king George III.

Lloyd Shepherd describes the streets, grand houses and hovels of Georgian London vividly. We walk from place to place or cross the river alongside his characters.

The book is primarily a murder mystery which is investigated by John Harriott the resident magistrate of the River Police, based in Wapping, aided by his skilful constable Charles Horton. One after another, sailors from the “Solander” are found dead in mysterious circumstances with no apparent motive. Meanwhile, Banks and Brown are astounded by the rapid growth of a breadfruit tree which had been brought back in the ship, after they planted it in warm conditions at Kew.

The murder scenes are gruesome and the extra knowledge given to the reader does not make the identity of the killer any easier to spot. Abigail, independently minded wife of Charles Horton, becomes entangled in danger and a strange mixed race clergyman from the “Solander”, Peter Nott is the first suspect.
This is not a fast moving, action packed mystery but the story of a determined, meticulous detective in an era when such murders were easily dismissed and when the wrong culprit could so easily be incarcerated in a corrupt prison such as Coldbath Fields. The historical details add so much to our involvement in the narrative.

Lloyd Shepherd has chosen to mix real facts about the historical figures with a story he has created which could possibly have happened to them, which I found delightful. Some may find it a little long-winded but I relished the background knowledge which he incorporated into his novel. This is the second of three books about the River Police although it works perfectly as a stand alone novel. show less

First Line: The ancient road began at the Tower and ran east to west along a terrace of gravel.

It's 1811, and from the ancient Ratcliffe Highway to the London Dock, the district of Wapping is the throbbing heart of the British Empire's meteoric rise in trade and the accumulation of wealth. Wapping is also the scene of the gruesome murders of two families, and John Harriott, creator of the newly established Thames River Police soon realizes two important facts.

The first fact is that petty show more jurisdictional squabbles are getting them nowhere. The second fact is that, after close observation of his waterman-constable, Charles Horton, Harriott believes that the old methods of policing aren't going to find the killers either; it's Horton's style of "detection" that Harriott believes will bring the murderers to justice.

The English Monster isn't just a story about the hunt for the killers of two families; however, there's another story told in alternating chapters that is intertwined with the investigation throughout. It is the story of William Ablass, a young Oxfordshire man who goes to Plymouth in 1564 to board a ship and make his fortune so he can come home and buy a farm for his beloved young wife and himself. He becomes a member of Jack Hawkins' crew, sanctioned by the Queen to raid Spanish shipping. "Long Billy" (as he's often called) changes in ways he never would have foreseen.

Shepherd's tale of the quest for trade and fortune is well-told, atmospheric, and often quite chilling. The growth of Wapping and the entire area of the Docklands in London sets a perfect stage for Long Billy, John Harriott and Charles Horton-- a man with his own secrets that come back to haunt him:

Death and beer always hang heavy in the air in Wapping.... And hulking over the whole area, visible through gaps in the buildings like a canvas on which Wapping has been painted, the walls of the new dock and its surrounding warehouses.... But even Harriott must admit that there is something massively dark about the dock, something of the gaol about its walls and the warehouses between it and the river, buildings which now glower over the High Street , each of them a good storey or more higher than the older buildings which cluster around the walls like supplicants at a cathedral.

Under the observant eye of Shepherd, Wapping and its docks become just as important a character as Long Billy, Harriott, Horton, and the other people who live there.

As much as I wanted Harriott and Horton to find the killers, I have to admit that the story of William Ablass was the one I found to be engrossing... and creepy. There are things about Long Billy that I'd love to share with you all, but that would ruin the book for you. Shepherd's tale is Dickensian in its detail and atmosphere, and the only real weakness in his story is that, when he shifts the focus to the 1811 investigation of the murders in the book's later stages, I missed the gaps in William Ablass's story. In many ways, Long Billy reminded me of a great white shark, and it didn't feel natural for me to turn my back on him.

Yes, William Ablass is the the English monster of the title, but as I read, I learned that there is more than one monster in this tale, and that is what money and greed have done to us all throughout the centuries. I still feel uneasy after reading The English Monster. It is a book that stays with the reader long after the last page is read. I've since learned that Shepherd has another book, The Poisoned Island, due out next year. I definitely want to read it! show less

Once again Lloyd Shepherd has written a deftly plotted and richly detailed book that will bring all your senses to life. Part murder mystery, part social commentary, The Poisoned Island is filled with creepy atmosphere, intriguing characters, and one very puzzling mystery. Although Harriott and Horton appear in Shepherd's previous book, The English Monster, both books can easily be read as standalones.

In The Poisoned Island, there are several flashbacks to past voyages to Tahiti, especially show more in 1769. The island, the weather, the native people, the plant life... everything has combined to form a paradise that lives on in the minds of those who have been there-- and once they've been there, they want to go back. Unfortunately the fabric of Tahitian life is ripped apart as European customs and behaviors spread like poison. But Tahiti isn't the only island that has been poisoned.

Constable Charles Horton is a marvelous character who feels tainted by his past, but he's found the perfect wife to love and support him-- and she isn't the frail flower that Horton likes to think she is. Horton has also fallen on his feet with his employment. Magistrate John Harriott has had the foresight to see that policing is changing; it's no longer a matter of merely having a police presence to deter villains, men who are capable of investigating crimes are the people who are needed now. Charles Horton is the perfect man for Harriott's needs, even though almost every other magistrate in London would heartily disagree.

It's a pleasure to watch these characters walk the streets and dockyards of a London that seems straight out of Dickens. Sights, smells, sounds-- Shepherd knows how to immerse readers in them all. He also knows how to put together a fascinating mystery. At first, none of crime scenes make sense. It appears that all the victims were killed in their sleep. They have huge smiles on their faces, their throats have been slashed, and their sea chests have been gone through. But how can the killer have gotten into or out of their lodgings without being seen-- and why were none of their wages taken? Horton's investigation takes him from boarding houses to pubs, from the Solander to Kew Gardens, and many other places besides, and as he begins to piece things together, he realizes that the seeds of murder were sown in faraway Tahiti.

If I have anything negative to say about this book amidst its rich language, atmosphere, plot and characterization, it's that the pace bogs down repeatedly. As it is, I can recommend The Poisoned Island wholeheartedly. If it had been trimmed and tightened a few degrees, I'd be singing and dancing and thrusting copies of it in your hands. Ah, do it anyway-- I can still feel those Tahitian breezes caressing my skin and feel the chills running down my spine as I walk the London docks at night. show less