Customer Reviews

The Emperor's Assassin: Memoirs of a Bow Street Runner (Dell Mystery)

5 star:		(5)
4 star:		(2)
3 star:		(2)
2 star:		(2)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

Set in the summer of 1815, this second Henry Morton murder mystery focuses on the deadly goings-on amongst the French refugees in England whilst their own personal demon (on hero, depending on which faction you were talking to), Napoleon Bonaparte, was being held (by the British) on HMS Bellerophon just off the Plymouth Sound.

The novel opens with the discovery of the body of a young woman that had (seemingly) been washed up on shore. The initial view is that she committed suicide. But when Skelton, the surgeon, examines the body, he discovers that the woman had been bound and tortured before her death. The death of this unknown woman is beginning to smell like murder to Henry Morton, one of Bow Street's most reputable Runners. And in trying to discover the identity of this unfortunate unknown, Morton discovers that she was French (Madame Angelique Desmarches) and that she was the mistress of a very important French aristocrat. Was Angelique murdered by Bonapartist agents eager to know what the Royalist were about to do with their fallen emperor? As the investigation begins to take some rather unexpected twists and the body count begins to mount, Morton cannot help but become perturbed about this pat theory and to wonder what, exactly, is going on...

"The Emperor's Assassin" proved to be quite a read. Fast paced and with quite a few clever plot-twists, I spent a very happy afternoon being totally absorbed and engrossed with this book. Having enjoyed the previous Henry Morton murder mystery novel immensely, I was happy to discover that this second installment in the series lived up to my expectations. True, you almost being to expect and suspect what will happen next, but the authours did such a good job in telling their story and in letting things unfold smoothly, that you don't actually feel shortchanged just because you can guess what will happen next. (And some of the scenes were so vividly depicted that you could almost swear you'd been watching things unfold in front of the TV, instead of having imagined what it would have been like from a book). I thoroughly enjoyed "The Emperor's Assassin" -- but I do wish that the publishers would make up their minds if a book is going to come out in hardcover or mass market first: my mystery collection is beginning to look a little strange!

...but not quite. I really enjoyed the first in the series, The Thief-Taker and was looking forward to this second book. And I was not disappointed (much). Henry Morton, the likeable Bow Street Runner, is back and is this time attempting to solve the murder of a French count's mistress. There are many interesting characters to keep the novel moving along but there were also some confusing chapters - it was sometimes difficult to keep track of who was a royalist (interested in returning the French king to the throne) and who was a Bonapartist. That aside, it is an interesting book, with great attention to period detail and the main character is possibly more interesting and likeable in this entry than the first time around. Will be on the look out for the third in the series.

I have to admit that this my introduction to the story of Henry Morton, Bow Street Runner, but I quite enjoyed it. The period is one that is frequently used in genre fiction and I would have sworn that there was very little I did not know about the time, but the authors managed to surprise me.

The center of the plot that creates the mystery is barely glimpsed at the beginning of the book, the short, stout dethroned emporer of the French. Around his head swirls plots and counter plots as the British debate exactly what to do with him. He is in legal limbo. If he should set foot on English soil he could claim the benefit of English law and the English also do not have any reason to execute him. While he caused the death of thousands, he has committed no capital crime. (Ironies of ironies, though, if he had stolen an item worth 40 pounds or more, he could have been executed as a felon.)

The action is quite brisk and vivid. The reactions of the characters are humane yet they do not display too modern a sensibility. I sincerely hope that this series continues.

Henry Morton is back! And in "The Emperor's Assassin," the sequel to "The Thief Taker," our erstwhile detective establishes himself as an officer--and a favorite character--to be reckoned with.

It's 1815 and the Napoleonic wars are over, for all intents and purposes. The Little Admiral/General/Emperor is in custody aboard a royal naval vessel at rest in Plymouth Harbor, awaiting the solution of an international legal conundrum: what to do with him. Two viable sides, heavily vested in the outcome, are competing, at all costs, to prevail: the Bonapartists and the Royalists.

And "at all costs" means murder. A young (beautiful) woman is found dead in London and the Bow Street Runners (early detectives in England) take over. This is Morton's world, of course. It's determined that she has been tortured, most brutally, and the chase is afoot. One thing leads to another as Morton and his crew begin to try to sort out the red herrings from the Dover souls, as it were.

T.E. Banks (in reality Canadians Sean Russell and Ian Dennis) appears to capture the landscape and atmosphere of Regency England, as well as to create exciting characters set in a most exciting time. Morton ably directs the chase in a book that seems to increase its pace as the pages turn. Some of Banks' characters continue from the first book, most noteably Mrs. Arabella Hildebrant of Drury Lane (famous actress and Morton's love interest) and Jimmy Presley, his chief aide.

Will Napoleon be assassinated? Will Morton find the culprits and solve the mystery? History answers the first question and Morton skillfully answers the second in a clever and intriguing period piece. Readers can hope for a third adventure. Soon. (Billyjhobbs@tyler.net)

I have enjoyed both these books and have been waiting for more. My patience is running out. Are you two still out there writing or not. Please Mr. Russell and Mr. Dennis won't you give us more?

In July 1815, having returned home from war with France, HMS Bellerophon, one of England's finest battleships, rests at anchor in Plymouth Sound transporting a very special prisoner. The water is crowded with everything from dories to schooners with passengers clamoring for a look at Napoleon who is being held on board pending the English government's decision as to whether he should be executed, exiled or held over for civil trial.

In the resulting chaos, a woman apparently drowns and washes up on shore. But when her body is examined more closely, she is revealed to be Angelique Desmarches, the mistress of a high level French aristocrat, and it is clear that she has been tortured. Henry Morton, one of Bow Street's best known Runners, smells a murder and his initial thought is that she has been interrogated for her possible knowledge of the Royalist's plans for the captured Little Emperor!

Skulduggery, corruption, intrigue and secret diplomacy all hide under the rocks that Morton turns over as he conducts his investigation from London to the shores of the English Channel. Unfortunately, despite the high hopes I had for this novel after my immense enjoyment of Banks' debut novel in the series, THE THIEF TAKER, this second entry in THE BOW STREET RUNNER series just didn't seem to click.

Whereas THE THIEF TAKER was deeply atmospheric filled with a rich cornucopia of period detail and a puzzling, well-plotted mystery peopled by well-developed characters whose lives would mean something to a reader, THE EMPEROR'S ASSASSIN was a rather muddy, meandering mystery that seemed to plod along rather interminably and lurch from one crisis to the next without really developing into anything exciting. The lack-luster plot that left me, frankly, confused as to who was royalist, who was loyalist and who was on whose side. Nor was this weakness mitigated by colourful character development or a strong descriptive portrayal of the rich, teeming ambience of the Regency period.

Only moderately enjoyable and not really recommended as a particularly good example of a Regency mystery.

Paul Weiss

The second novel in the series, The Emperor's Assassin keeps the action up. The plotting and characterizations are tight, but there were a couple of plot devices that could have been smoothed out.

All of England is astir as the great enemy, Napoleon, after twenty years of warfare, is kept off-shore, imprisoned in the HMS Bellerophon after he had escaped once before and had to be defeated at Waterloo. Sight-seers in small boats cluster around, hoping to catch a glimpse. Bow Street Runner Henry Morton is drawn into the intricate politics of the French when the mistress of a French loyalist is found dead with signs of torture. The war is ended and the Loyalists have the upper hand in France--so why all the intrigue? There is no hope of a plot to free Napoleon, is there? He is guarded far too carefully. There can be no chance of an attempt at an assassination, can there? Whatever the international issues, Morton knows that murder has occurred and it's his duty to find the killer.

The background of post-war politics and intrigue and the disposition of Napoleon is fascinating. This small pocket of time is brought to life vividly in various scenes and situations. The mystery is a good one, starting simply, but spiraling into multiple murders and treachery and multiple factions set at cross-purposes, driven by all too human motivations. There are the usual questioning of witnesses and searching out suspects, but also quite a lot of action with foot-chases and pistols and fisticuffs and racing carriages across country and smugglers in hidden coves and clambering over cliff-sides.

I thoroughly enjoyed the many aspects of this tale. I hope this series continues, since it promises to be a very good one.

The Emperor's Assassin by T.E. Banks is one of those low key mysteries. There's not a lot of emotion or suspense, but enough of both to make it an interesting read. Historians write a lot about the victorious, but little about the vanquished and this story is about the lost dreams of the defeated. Bonaparte is prisoner on a ship anchored offshore at Plymouth, while the English government tries to decide what to do with him. Henry Morton is a Bow Street Runner out to solve the murder of a young French woman. All the suspects belong to various political groups, the royalists want to kill Bonaparte before he is carried away from England, the disillusioned French republicans also want the captured emperor of France dead and the Bonapartists want to rescue him. The end of twenty years of war has also left a lot of soldiers, officers and smugglers with the loss of their livelihood and their stories add depth to the tale. It's an interesting mystery with lots of twists and turns that give the reader a feel for the times.

I enjoyed the second installment of 'Memoirs of a Bow Street Runner' The Emperor's Assassin, featuring our heroic and charismatic Henry Morton but this story left me feeling like I barely saw Morton...

He was so busy with the tangled web of plots and spies and deceit and murder we hardly heard about his love life and his upbringing.

This time the 'Runner' is investigating the murder of a beautiful Frenchwoman who also happens to be the mistress of a count.

In Plymouth Sound the English Navy has Napoleon in their custody. Some are calling for him to be exiled others for his execution, all sides are fanatical in their quest, some leaving a bloody trail in their wake.

Once again, I really enjoyed the characters that "T.F. Banks" created, especially Morton and Mrs. Arabella Malibrant. But I finished the book feeling that I didn't get enough of them alone or together.

I will read another 'Memoir' if the author will write another...
I hope we will get to see more of Morton in the next story.