Customer Reviews

Blind Justice (Ulverscroft Large Print Series)

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I stumbled on Bruce Alexander's series of novels concerning Sir John Fielding and his irrepressible assistant, young Jeremy Proctor, quite by accident one day as I was browsing Amazon with no clue what I wanted to read or buy. I just knew I was looking for something different and exciting, and I wanted a mystery. What I got, once I happened upon Alexander's first novel of the series, "Blind Justice", was a superior historical novel with a first-rate mystery and many-dimensional characters built in.

The plot summary of "Blind Justice" you can read here, so I won't go into it again, other than to say that young Jeremy travels to London following his father's tragic death to seek his way in the world as a printer. Mistaken for a thief and falsely accused, Jeremy is brought before Magistrate Sir John Fielding's Bow Street court, proves his innocence and is made a ward of the court by none other than Sir John himself, a character who actually existed (he was the brother of Henry Fielding - author of the famous novel "Tom Jones" - and the man responsible for the founding of the Bow Street Runners, London's very first police force.) Not long after this, the body of Lord Goodhope is found shot dead in a locked library, and thus begins a partnership that is both inspiring and highly entertaining.

I am now reading the fifth book in the series, "Jack, Knave and Fool", having finished "Blind Justice", "Murder In Grub Street", "Watery Grave" and "Person or Persons Unknown" one right behind the other. I can say with complete sincerity that each book brings a new and suspenseful plot combined with the author's superior eye for the details of the period. Mr. Alexander makes Georgian-era London as visible to the mind's eye as accurately as any photograph might have - the markets, the bawds on the street, the scamps and thieves and the high-and-low born people who pass through Sir John's court are most memorable and oftentimes quite humorous. The regular characters evolve well throughout the series and young Jeremy is a most reliable and mature narrator.

Start your trip through Georgian London with Sir John and Master Jeremy Proctor in "Blind Justice" and, once you do, you'll be picking up the second installment, "Murder In Grub Street", soon enough.

Bruce Alexander does a spectacular job bringing the streets of 18th century London alive in this, the first of the Sir John Fielding mysteries. Perhaps because the main character is blind, or because Alexander is a gifted craftsman, all of the other senses are dramatically heightened. I could *hear* Sir John speaking, questioning informants, thieves, etc. I could smell some of the dirtier aspects of London, I could hear the din of the crowd at market, see the areas of London that were visually pleasing and smell those that were not. The single most important task that any author has when writing historical fiction of any genre is to bring that period alive. And Alexander does.

He also gives us a brilliant "detective" - Sir John Fielding, the blind magistrate of Bow Street, an immensely likeable and quick thinking man who is able to "see" more than others, in some cases, because he pays attention to the other four senses that many people take leave of when their eyes are open. Relying on four out of five senses, as opposed to one out of five, Sir John finds himself better armed than most for inquiries.

The story is told through the eyes of thirteen-year-old Jeremy Proctor, who finds his way to London after the grossly unjust murder of his father - killed by spending too many days (unfairly so) in the stocks. He is brought before Sir John immediately upon his arrival to London, part of a scam of an independent thief taker - put Jeremy behind bars, and the thief taker gets a bounty. Sir John "saw" through the charade, and took Jeremy under his wing, intending to find him a trade such as his father was teaching him: printing.

But a murder gets in the way of that, and Sir John, for the moment, requires Jeremy's presence to assist him, and finds that Jeremy possesses a keen eye and a sharp mind. So Jeremy becomes Sir John's assistance into the investigation of Lord Goodhope.

It starts out so simply - the murder - that I was sure it would be solved within a matter of a few pages, and then the real mystery would come out. But Goodhope's murder was the real mystery, and (as any good murder mystery should) with each layer we peel away the circumstances surrounding the murder becoming cloudier, and more and more people seem to be implicated.

In a detective story such as this, the author needs to have a good grasp of how interrogating works, and it was delightful watching Sir John interview the cast of characters that may or may not have had anything to do with the crime. By "a good grasp", I mean that the detective, Sir John in this case, should understand that each person needs to be treated differently in order to bring out the desired answers. Alexander handles this masterfully. Indeed, the interrogations were often the most enjoyable parts of the book.

Unlike many mysteries, where the characters aren't deeply developed, Alexander spends time with all of the main characters, fleshing them out as real and believable. You begin to enjoy the time that you're spending with his characters, and indeed, when I closed the book, I did regret it (and hastily ordered the next few in the series - and I'm not even a big mystery buff).

In 1768, a recently orphaned Jeremy Proctor arrives in London and promptly finds himself in the dock facing false charges of theft under the gavel of the blind magistrate, Sir John Fielding. The justice, wisdom and perspicacity of Sir John prevails and Jeremy, cleared of all charges, finds himself, despite his youth, in the enviable position of assisting Sir John in investigating the details of the messy suicide of a member of the House of Lords, Sir Richard Goodhope.

"Blind Justice" is a mystery lover's mystery. Anybody who enjoys a classic mystery with that time-honoured formula ending that places all of the characters into a single room for the explosive climactic finish in which the canny sleuth reveals the grim details of the crime to all and sundry will howl with delight at Alexander's debut to what will prove to be an enduring, exciting series. Despite having much in common with the puzzles of Agatha Christie and her calm, gentle approach to their solution, this locked room head-scratcher will also appeal to grittier, more contemporary readers as it takes a peek under the covers of every stratum of Georgian England society - the slums, the prisons, the docks, pubs, the theater, outdoor markets, upstairs, downstairs, the courts, gaming houses, bordellos, the street walkers, the pickpockets, scamps, cut-purses and thieves.

Alexander's brilliant characterizations, his often humorous and always vivid dialogue, and atmospheric descriptions of an astonishingly wide variety of colourful settings bring Georgian England to life in an easy-reading eminently enjoyable historical mystery. Two thumbs up!

Paul Weiss

Bruce Alexander's Blind Justice is an ingenious mystery. At the center is Sir John Fielding--the blind magistrate who actually lived in 18th-century London and started the Bow Street Runners, brother to Henry Fielding--and his youthful sidekick Jeremy. Because Sir John was actually blind, it gives Alexander a marvelous opportunity to convey rich descriptions, record off-handed observations, and puzzle over inconsistencies of evidence in a remarkable way: all through the conversations Fielding had in the course of his investigations with his young protege.

Now, as far as I know the case of Sir Richard Goodhope's murder--or was it suicide?--is not a real case plucked from the 17th century courts. However, it is a case that could well have happened. Alexander steeps his story in period details like the Drury Lane theater, shopping for groceries in Convent Garden, and slipping through the filthy corridors of Newgate. Throughout the story Fielding and Jeremy are in hot pursuit through the streets of London as they close in on Goodhope's murderer.

The plot had lots of twists and turns, and it kept me engaged all the way until the end. Alexander's mysteries are thick with sub-plots but he managed to tie each one to the larger story. As an avid reader of Anne Perry, I encourage you to give these stories set in an earlier--and possibly even grimier--London a try!

The year is 1768 and 13 year old Jeremy Proctor has just been orphaned. Setting out on his own, he arrives in London and immediately falls prey to a scheme to get him arrested for theft. He is saved by the wisdom of Judge Sir John Fielding, who takes an interest in the lad. Since Jeremy knows how to set type, Sir John decides to set him up as a printing apprentice. But before that can happen, the two get involved in a murder.

Sir Richard Goodhope was found dead in his study with the door locked. Everyone is quick to dismiss it as a suicide except the widow, who insists that it is indeed murder. Only a careful observation from Jeremy convinces Sir John of this fact. Since Sir John is blind, he needs help observing things, and Jeremy's careful observations are just what he needs. The two form an unlikely team and begin gathering clues. Unfortunately, those clues make little sense. Can Sir John piece them all together?

I have had this book for simply ages but hadn't read it. That was a huge mistake. I was gripped from the very beginning and had a hard time stopping. The mystery kept me guessing until the very end. The plot slows down briefly on occasion to develop the characters. The result makes for a stronger story. The narration by an adult Jeremy remembering what happened adds an unique touch. And the historical period is brought to life without slowing things down.

I've already bought book two. You can bet I won't wait years to read it.

This 18th-century mystery, set in London, struck me as being very cautious. The author certainly broke no taboos, and kept close to traditional, even sometimes hackneyed, mystery genre conventions. Nevertheless, it was readable and introduced interesting characters.

Alexander writes well, unremarkably, in a manner which calls no stylistic attention to itself. His setting, though not exactly untrodden in fiction, comes agreeably to life.

In Blind Justice, the young orphan Jeremy Proctor comes to London after his father's tragic death in the pillory, and becomes a protege of the blind magistrate Sir John Fielding (based on a historical personage). Fielding is certainly an original and appealing character, and the author never forgets to work his blindness realistically into the story. Proctor becomes involved in helping Fielding solve the murder of one Lord Goodhope. The plot moves along pretty well, though there's a hackneyed "drawing-room" scene at the end. I like my historical fiction a little grittier than this somewhat "nice" portrayal, and Alexander has an unfortunate tendency to tell rather than show.

I found this reasonably entertaining and it's worth noting that the third in the series, Watery Grave (I haven't yet read the second installment) is an improvement.

Bruce Alexander kicks off his mystery series about 18th century London magistrate Sir John Fielding with this 1994 novel. A good start, never particularly challenging or profound, it reads like a television program. Narrated by orphan boy Jeremy Proctor who becomes sidekick and vicarious eyes for the blind Fielding as they puzzle out a murder. The structure is classic mystery genre, Alexander gives us just enough clues to figure it out a few dozen pages in advance, but keeps a few cards hidden in the form of conversations that young Proctor doesn't hear, and thus can't narrate. The denouement is the classic Agatha Christie gather-em-all-in-the-library and dissect the crime from start to finish. It's an easy read and a fun page-turner.

I don't consider myself a mystery fan per se, I read them strictly as novels. (If I know whodunnit, it was pretty darn obvious). This was excellent, just what I like - a convincing look at another time and place and characters that I enjoy being with.

I was intrigued by the negative comments from the New Zealander (August 27, 2002). I wouldn't consider those to be "terrible" or "horrendous" blunders, but I did a little research.

The curator of an exhibit of 18th - 19th century costumes told me that at this time, the term "muslin" was reserved for finely woven sheer fabrics. I wouldn't liken it to cheesecloth, which I think of as very loosely woven, but perhaps it's different in New Zealand. It was not until the 19th century that the term began expanding to cover heavier weights of fabric. Apparently, what we would now call muslin sheeting existed, it just wasn't called muslin. In the British edition of the novel, "cotton" is substituted for "muslin".

Rereading the first 30 pages, I found a reference to a thruppenny coin, not a tuppenny, but in either case, both coins were minted throughout the 18th century. The Standard Catalog of World Coins, Eighteenth Century, 1701-1800, 2d. ed., by Chester L. Krause and Clifford Mishler shows pictures of both minted during the reigns of Queen Anne and Kings George I thru III on page 567.

According to several reference books, chiefly Daily Life in 18th-Century England (The Greenwood Press Daily Life Through History Series) by Kirstin Olsen, people of "the middling sort" used both wax and tallow candles. Tallow was notorious for its smell, but wax candles were much more expensive, especially after the tax imposed on them in the early part of the century. Therefore, especially since the Fieldings, although comfortable, are not portrayed as wealthy, I think it very likely that wax candles would be reserved for special occasions and that the servants would use tallow candles. Those who couldn't afford even tallow candles used the lighting described by the reviewer; Mrs. Gredge may have been grateful that she wasn't expected to use rush lights. I did not find any information about spermacetti candles, although they did exist according to the Oxford English Dictionary, but I believe that they were very much more expensive than wax.

The reader might be more distressed to look in the Dictionary of National Biography and find that it claims that John Fielding was blind from birth. According to the websites of the National Federation for the Blind and the Central Missouri State University, Alexander is correct that he was blinded while serving in the Navy.

I was surprised at how much I enjoyed this book - not because the person who recommended it to me (like I might be wary of future recommendations from some people) but just because the plot, as summarized on the back, was just 'eh' to me. I didn't think I would become as wrapped up in the characters as I did. Indeed, the idea of them initially left me feeling flat, but the way they were written was very compelling. And I must admit the narrator character is excellent, if a bit over-done at times (mock humility and over reassurance now and then). They mystery was good and tidy, if not surprising in the end (I had guessed the ending quite from the start, actually, and the fact that I still enjoyed the book despite that is a testament to the writing - besides, there's more to enjoy than just the main storyline).

This first in the Sir John Fielding mystery series is a good one. Mr. Alexander portrays his period (1768 and onwards) very realistically, and we get a good look at the Bow Street Runners which were the earliest form of a police force in 18th century London. The narrator is an appealing 13-year old boy by the name of Jeremy Proctor. And we have Sir John, who, though blind, does not miss much when dealing with crime and those who have committed it. This is a locked-room mystery, but as we read it gets even more difficult to determine motive, opportunity, and of course suspects. I look forward to reading further books in this series. I think I've found a gem of a series.