HomeGroupsTalkMoreZeitgeist
Search Site
This site uses cookies to deliver our services, improve performance, for analytics, and (if not signed in) for advertising. By using LibraryThing you acknowledge that you have read and understand our Terms of Service and Privacy Policy. Your use of the site and services is subject to these policies and terms.

Results from Google Books

Click on a thumbnail to go to Google Books.

Murder as a Fine Art (Thomas and Emily De…
Loading...

Murder as a Fine Art (Thomas and Emily De Quincey) (edition 2013)

by David Morrell (Author)

Series: Thomas De Quincey (1)

MembersReviewsPopularityAverage ratingMentions
6825233,369 (3.93)54
"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...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." --inside front cover.… (more)
Member:MHanover10
Title:Murder as a Fine Art (Thomas and Emily De Quincey)
Authors:David Morrell (Author)
Info:Mulholland Books (2013), Edition: First Edition, 368 pages
Collections:Your library, Currently reading, Wishlist, To read, Read but unowned, Favorites
Rating:
Tags:to-read

Work Information

Murder as a Fine Art by David Morrell

Loading...

Sign up for LibraryThing to find out whether you'll like this book.

No current Talk conversations about this book.

» See also 54 mentions

Showing 1-5 of 52 (next | show all)
generally a good read, will try the next one. characters ( )
  cspiwak | Mar 6, 2024 |
This is a well-researched piece of historical fiction, filled with details of life in the London of 1854, and some times prior. In that regard, it is a definite success. As a mystery novel, though, it relies on a few too many contrived coincidences that weaken it as a believable narrative. With that caveat, I can nonetheless recommend it as a engrossing trip into the past.
[Audiobook note: The reader, Matthew Wolf, does well enough with pacing and voices. But even at 125% speed, his pauses between speakers are distractingly long.] ( )
  Treebeard_404 | Jan 23, 2024 |
It's 1850s London and a mysterious murderer is committing murders that parallel the infamous (and bloody) Ratcliffe Highway Murders that occurred ~40 years earlier. Enter Thomas de Quincey, author of "Murder as a Fine Art" (also the better known "Confessions of an Opium-Eater"), which the murderer seems to be using as source material for his crimes. de Quincey finds himself pitted not only against a murderer who seems intent on destroying him, but also his own demons: his opium addiction, his checkered past. He's assisted in his investigations by a Scotland Yard inspector, an ambitious constable, and his precociously spunky daughter Emily.

What I enjoyed about the novel: Morrell's in-depth research about Victorian London, de Quincey's career, and especially the complicated, generally abhorrent role that the East India Company played in global politics of the 19th century. Most historical novels of this genre (the "famous person solving a mystery" genre) get the surface details right but stop there. Appreciate that Morrell has obviously spent the time to develop an intimate understanding of the period. Also, Morrell has de Quincey solving the crime using theories of human subconscious that are drawn from de Quincey's actual writings and that predate Freud by decades, which is clever.

However, there were other elements that distracted from my overall enjoyment. Morrell's writing is brusque and business-like, his characters unconvincing (his detectives display little cunning, his street people are a bit too lovably quirky, and Emily is way too perfect), his plotting is over-complicated and over-contrived, and his use of 3rd person omniscient occasionally took me out of the story. Mostly, however, I was irked by his Lord Palmerston subplot, which promises all sorts of intrigue that it never delivers.

In summary, I'd call this a step above the average historical mystery, and well worth reading for the history alone, but not without flaws that keep it from being as good as it might have been. ( )
  Dorritt | Nov 27, 2023 |
The author combined real-life events by inserting Thomas de Quincey, a sensational novelist known as the Opium Eater, into a reproduction of the Ratcliffe Highway murders that took place in 1811. The story takes place around the time of the Crimean War in Victorian England. Mr. Morrell has done a fine job of detailing the history and weaving a believable murder mystery. I was immersed in how he wrote about Victorian society and learned a lot, not only about the poverty-stricken residents of the East End of London but the hypocritical morals of the upper classes.
The characters are diverse, but the best parts of the story for me are told as journal entries by De Quincey's daughter, Emily. She is a much more forthright female for that era, and her observations are a delight.
It's a very enjoyable read, with an engaging story and setting. ( )
  N.W.Moors | Feb 20, 2023 |
1854 and London is again hit with a spate of murders that seem to be a copycat of the Ratcliffe Highway murders of 1811. Thomas De Quincey, famed for his 'Confessions of an English Opium-Eater', is decreed to be the main suspect. Can the De Quinceys with the help of D.I. Ryan and Constable Becker find the murderer and determine his motives.
Really enjoyed this story, like the characters and got involved in the telling. I look forward to reading the next in the series. ( )
  Vesper1931 | Jul 29, 2021 |
Showing 1-5 of 52 (next | show all)
This novel has touches of an historical police procedural, a bit of Sherlock Holmesian-detecting, plenty of gore, and literary style. It’s hard to believe it’s the same author who gave us Rambo, although after reading this delightful mystery it’s only natural to assume that the book is better than the movie.
added by KelMunger | editLit/Rant, Kel Munger (Jul 19, 2013)
 

» Add other authors (10 possible)

Author nameRoleType of authorWork?Status
David Morrellprimary authorall editionscalculated
Anderson, Peggy LeithProofreadersecondary authorall editionsconfirmed
Drennan, WilliamCopy editorsecondary authorall editionsconfirmed
Tanner, MattCover designersecondary authorsome editionsconfirmed
Wellman, IlonaCover photographsecondary authorsome editionsconfirmed
Wolf, MatthewNarratorsecondary authorsome editionsconfirmed
Yankus, MarcCover photo-illustrationsecondary authorsome editionsconfirmed
You must log in to edit Common Knowledge data.
For more help see the Common Knowledge help page.
Canonical title
Original title
Alternative titles
Original publication date
People/Characters
Important places
Important events
Related movies
Epigraph
It is long since we read Thomas De Quincey, but his bloody horrors are still fresh and, to this day, terrible in their power. For long after we read him, every night brought a renewal of the most real shuddering, the palsying dread, and the nightmares with which our first reading of him cursed us.
British Quarterly Review, 1863
Dedication
To Robert Morrison and Grevel Lindop

For guiding my journey into all things Thomas De Quincey
First words
Titian, Reubens, and Van Dyke, it is said, always practiced their art in full dress.
Quotations
Last words
(Click to show. Warning: May contain spoilers.)
Disambiguation notice
Publisher's editors
Blurbers
Original language
Information from the German Common Knowledge. Edit to localize it to your language.
Canonical DDC/MDS
Canonical LCC

References to this work on external resources.

Wikipedia in English (1)

"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...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." --inside front cover.

No library descriptions found.

Book description
Thomas De Quincey, best known for his memoir Confessions of an Opium Eater, is the prime suspect in a series of ferocious London murders. The blueprint for the crimes seems to be De Quincey's satire "On Murder Considered to be One of the Fine Arts." Desperate to clear his name but crippled by opium addiction, De Quincey is aided by his brilliant and devoted daughter Emily and a pair of tenacious Scotland Yard detectives.
Haiku summary

Current Discussions

None

Popular covers

Quick Links

Rating

Average: (3.93)
0.5
1
1.5
2 7
2.5 2
3 33
3.5 20
4 79
4.5 14
5 40

Is this you?

Become a LibraryThing Author.

 

About | Contact | Privacy/Terms | Help/FAQs | Blog | Store | APIs | TinyCat | Legacy Libraries | Early Reviewers | Common Knowledge | 202,646,375 books! | Top bar: Always visible