Customer Reviews

Long Spoon Lane

5 star:		(9)
4 star:		(8)
3 star:		(6)
2 star:		(1)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

This was another one of those books which I couldn't put down- to use the cliche. But I admit that this latest Charlotte and Thomas Pitt mystery had me hooked.

Like the other books in this series, the plot centers on the historical and political climate of 1893. The city of London, from the highest people in society, are brought to life here, and often, unexpectedly, rub shoulders (for instance, grand dame Lady Vespasia Cumming-Gould eating in the kitchen at the Pitt house). What I found truly amazing was the way in which Perry, yet again, was able to make these interactions seem ordinary.

The action of this story begins in Myrdle Street, where a row of houses is blown up. The police, including Special Branch and Thmas Pitt, follow a group of men to a house in Long Spoon Lane, where a shoot out commences- ending with one dead body and an injured constable. The dead man, the son of a figure in society, appears to have been deeply involved in an anarchy plot.

However, as Perry constantly proves to her readers, nothing is ever as it seems, and soon it becomes apparent that the bomb was intended for a police officer who had been involved in some localized police corruption. Pitt investigates and finds that this corruption stretches to all levels of the police force- all the way up to Commander Wetron of the Bow Street Police Force, where Pitt worked for a time. Wetron is angling to make himself the most powerful man in England by passing several reform bills in parliament which will give police the right to search people's houses and questions their servants- with their permission. If this bill is passed, it will mean the end of personal freedom.

Added into the mix is Charles Voisey, member of Parliament and former head of the Inner Circle, of which Wetron is rumored to currently be head. Unexpectedly, Voisey approaches Pitt to help him get rid of Wetron. "The enemy of my enemy is my friend," Voisey repeats, and this statement is true of everything that happens in this excellent novel. Could Voisey be using Pitt, and then get rid of Pitt after they have vanquished Wetron?

Charlotte Pitt, her sister Emily, Gracie, and Lady Vespasia Cumming-Gould become involved once again in the policework- though they are constantly reminded that this is a case that is way too dangerous for them to be involved in. But the three women add wonderful perspective to the novel, and give us an excellent picture of the lives of women at varying positions in society. I thoroughly enhoyed this novel, as well as the Thomas and Charlotte Pitt series, and can't wait for more from Anne Perry!

By the summer of 1893, the English have become concerned with the bombing activities of the Anarchists who set explosions recently in London and Paris. A tip has come into the Special Branch, whose mission is to stop terrorists, claiming a bomb is set to go off in East London. Special Branch Chief Victor Narraway and Agent Thomas Pitt rush to the area; they capture two of the bombers. A third, a parliament member's son, is killed.

Pitt investigates the crime in an effort to learn who murdered the third prisoner. As he conducts an internal investigationt of the affairs of his office and the police as a whole, Pitt uncovers vast corruption with Bow Street Inspector Wetron of Bow Street seemingly as the untouchable chieftain protected by the highest levels of government. Meanwhile the media goes on a feeding frenzy demanding the arming of Bobbies and invoking patriotism insisting more power granted to law enforcement to intimidate suspected terrorists. Only a devil's deal with his enemy Sir Charles Voisey might stop Wetron from taking advantage of the public fervor, which seems to make this mastermind even more potent and deadly.

Highly regarded for her terrific historical mysteries, Anne Perry may have written her most relevant late nineteenth century police procedural in LONG SPOON LANE. The story line is action-packed from the moment the two Special Branch cops race to Myrdle Street to prevent a bombing and never slows down as the hero learns how deep corruption and greed extend in the force. Charlotte, Pitt's wife, plays a lesser role than she did in SEVEN DIALS, but no one will mind as the parallels of 1893 England to modern America is uncanny.

Harriet Klausner

Inspector Pitt returns for an exciting adventure in Victorian England. I won't rehash the plot others have covered. This story benefits from the strengthened relationship of Pitt with his two principal colleagues, Sergeant Tellman and Superintendent Narraway. Pitt and Tellman finally become a real team founded on mutual respect. And the rough edged Narraway softens a bit, avoiding the hackneyed nasty boss syndrome of so many police procedurals.
The underlying theme of the conflict between domestic terrorism and homeland security excesses is credible, timely, and well handled here. It is also based on fact, as Anarchy was a major threat in late 19th Century Europe.

Anne Perry must have had some lofty goals when she began writing LONG SPOON LANE. This book deals with a Parliament thinking about giving its police force unparalleled powers to invade the privacy of its citizens, including interviewing servants without their masters' knowledge.

A group of anarchists bomb a building and Thomas Pitt's Special Branch tracks them to Long Spoon Lane, where a gun battle ensues. One of the anarchists is killed in the process, apparently from inside the building. When another blast occurs, the Patriot Act of the 1890s seems to be a foregone conclusion.

Thomas Pitt enlists the age of an old adversary, Sir Charles Voisey, to argue against the bill in Parliament. Voisey's enemy, Inspector Wetron of Bow Street, is the head of the Inner Circle, a group of corrupt policemen, politicians, and businessman who work together to achieve political power. Voisey was formerly the head of the Inner Circle and wants revenge against Wetron. Charlotte doesn't trust Voisey, but Pitt has no choice than to work with him.

Charlotte's great Aunt Vespacia is also involved as the dead anarchist was the son of a former romantic interest, Lord Landsborough. She had helped to thwart Voisey in a precious episode.

What hurts the book is the constant repetition. With Charlotte; Aunt Vespacia; Narraway, the head of Pitt's Special Brance; Voisey; and Pitt's old colleague from Bow Street Tellman involved, Perry is constantly having one character explain things to another character. The reader already knows and the pace is slowed considerably. Thomas Pitt also seems to have more lives than the proverbial cat; he avoids life-threatening situations with improbable regularity.

It's been awhile since I've read one of the Thomas Pitt/Charlotte series, but Gracie, the Pitt's maid still lights up the stage whenever she appears. Tellman is courting her, so that gives Perry a reason to bring her on. She has a heavy Cockney accent, but she adds comic relief.

LONG SPOON LANE is twenty-fourth in the series, getting a bit long in the tooth. Perhaps an episode with Gracie as the central character would add a bit of spice.

This particular series of Anne Perry's is a long-running one and a very good one, and this particular book surpasses some of the later ones even though those were good as well. It is easy to see after reading this book why Ms. Perry is a master of her particular genre. Her books are faultless, and the suspense that she creates in her world is unrelenting. This book has enough espionage, anarchy, murder and bluffs and double bluffs to keep even the most jaded reader's interest. I cannot stress enough how good this series is, and Ms. Perry continues to get better and better. In this book we see Pitt partnered with one of his sworn enemies in order to stop full-scale police corruption. He knows all along the danger that he is in by playing this double hand, but the alternative is one that Pitt cannot let happen, so he teams up with Voisey, who he so neatly check-mated in the last book. Voisey is a very dangerous enemy to have, but Pitt adheres to the adage "Keep your friends close, but your enemies closer". Pitt is still working with Narraway in Special Branch, and this special group is trying to stop the deadly bombings that are occurring in London. At first glance it appears that known anarchists are responsible for these bombings, but as Narraway, Pitt and Tellman continue in their investigation, they uncover secrets and corruption that go deep into the highest echelons of the police service. But this anarachy plotline is only one of the plotlines or balls that Ms. Perry so expertly juggles. She tosses out a lot of plotlines as well as some red herrings, and then carefully brings them all in to a final, satisfactory conclusion at the end book. And she does this without dropping one ball.

One early summer night in 1893, Victor Narraway, the head of Special Branch, awakens Thomas Pitt with an urgent message: There is a bomb threat from unknown anarchists. Racing to the scene, they find people being evacuated and explosions tearing buildings apart.

Narraway and Pitt chase after fleeing suspects and end up in the tenements at Long Spoon Lane. Pitt, new to the Special Branch, feels clumsy. He finds himself in a huge gunfight and shooting at a fellow human for the very first time.

Inside the building they find two live anarchists and one dead man, Lord Landsborough's only son, Magnus. It's obvious to Pitt that because of the dead man's position, the police couldn't have shot Magnus Landsborough. Did his fellow anarchists kill him? Or was it an escaping murderer who was neither a policeman nor an anarchist?

When Pitt questions one of the imprisoned anarchists about the motive for the bombing, he exclaims --- with great passion and terror --- that it was in protest over the corrupt police force. His accusations of evil, vicious, greedy policemen encompass the region covered by Pitt's old station. Surely things have not gone so wrong in the year since he left? The anarchist's claim eats away at Pitt. The morality of the organization he has spent his adult life serving is at stake.

While the anarchists accuse a policeman of shooting Landsborough, the police believe that a fellow anarchist was the murderer. Pitt puts himself in mortal danger in order to delve into this mystery as well as the distressing question of the corrupt police.

Pitt, his wife Charlotte, and their aunt Vespasia are horrified when Lady Landsborough, the mother of the slain man, supports the move to arm policemen, allow them to question servants in secret, and permit them to search people and their homes without just cause. The proposed measures would make the police too powerful, Pitt and his family believe, and destroy the privacy of law-abiding citizens.

Pitt's previous co-worker and friend, Samuel Tellman, steadfastly lays his job and life on the line to assist Pitt while Pitt's old despised enemy, Charles Voisey, appears to be his ally. However, Pitt knows that Voisey is untrustworthy and full of revenge toward Pitt. Is Voisey setting him up?

There is much to love in LONG SPOON LANE. The characters are subtly many-layered. Fans of this series, with its amazingly well-drawn historical details, know the delight of time traveling back to Victorian England, while the question of police power against terrorist activity continues to be a timely theme. Unexpected plot points and well-crafted motivations enliven a plot that plods a bit at times, challenging readers as the characters engage in a few too many conversations that sometimes cover previously covered ground.

Although I felt that more action would have balanced the slow parts of the story, I found LONG SPOON LANE to be an altogether intriguing and enjoyable mystery.

--- Reviewed by Terry Miller Shannon

Having caught a second wind, Perry continues what she started in Seven Dials by taking familiar characters to new and exciting places (psychologically speaking.) She's really revitalized the series. However, I wonder if she's switched editors with this one, and for the worse. I noticed a large number of typos and either clunky or downright erroneous wordings that never existed in the previous Pitt novels. It was distracting enough for me to knock one star off my review.

I'm not sure how she does it, but Anne Perry always seems to be able to deliver a Thomas & Charlotte Pitt installment that's absorbing, riveting and simply brimming with historical detail and ambiance. Certainly very few can write so intelligently and capably and also imbue the characters they create (whether they are the chief protagonists or not) with so much depth, strengths and frailties so that it is not only easy for one to empathise with them, but they often feel almost lifelike. And the wonderful simplicity with which the often intricate plot always comes together! Need I gush on?

In "Long Spoon Alley" Pitt once again finds himself coming up against the Inner Circle (a secret organisation that thirsts for complete and absolute power). When his work with the Special Branch brings him face to face with police corruption. And even though he's no longer part of the Metropolitan Police Force, the charge of corruption to the institution still cuts him to the quick. So that in spite of the danger to him and his family, Pitt is determined to bring down these corrupt policemen -- never mind that they're part of the Inner Circle! Fortunately for Pitt he has the able help of his one time assistant, Sergeant Tellman and his superior at the Special Branch to rely on -- and of course the unofficial assistance of wife, Charlotte and Lady Vespasia. It's the ultimate battle between good and evil, and Pitt is determined to win...

It's been a while since I've read an "unputdownable" and "Long Spoon Alley" definitely was one. From the very first page, when the bomb goes off through the succeeding chapters where Pitt realises that he's battling powerful and ruthless men with an agenda to the very last page where Pitt prevails almost against all odds, you could feel the tension and the suspense. I'll readily admit that I was totally impressed with the manner in which Anne Perry was able to maintain the tension and suspense without once losing ground. Surely that must be one of the trademarks of an excellent storyteller. I was also impressed with the fact that "Long Spoon Alley" dealt with some of the same issues that we're coming face to face with today: the loss of privacy and the call for increased powers to law enforcement, and thought that the author dealt with these issues in an intelligent and sensitive manner. I thoroughly enjoyed this book and can recommend it as a completely riveting and terrifically suspenseful read.

The first comment that I must make on this book is that one of the lines on the back cover by "Booklist" review, is the most spot on that I've ever seen. It says " Like reading Thackeray edited by Elmore Leonard" and that statement is exactly right...wish I'd thought of it! In Victorian London, former Superintendent Thomas Pitt has now been seconded to the Special Branch, to deal with the growing threat of anarchy. It's a sideways move for him as he has run foul of the corrupt Inspector Wetron of Bow Street. For the most part, the anarchists are well meaning but misguided young men who are convinced that all authority is corrupt, especially that of the police. They are encouraged in these beliefs by unscrupulous officials who are seeking to feather their own nests and to follow their own agendas by urging these poor, deluded young men to acts of violence and public terror. Pitt and his old adversary, Sir Charles Voisey, call a temporary truce to get to the centre of the ring of corrupt police, who are financing their terrorist attacks. The story bears a frightening similarity to todays' state of alarm (not with any polce connection), and is a grippeing and absorbing read.

I've been annoyed for some time -- for the past dozen volumes in this generally first-rate series set in London of the 1880s and `90s -- that the author had served her readers so poorly by inventing the Inner Circle, a secret society trying to take control of Great Britain. The conspiracy became a deus ex machina upon which Perry could blame anything, which removed the necessity of proper plot construction, and Pitt stopped being a cop and became a secret agent, a sort of ur-Bond, in the employ of Special Branch. Sir Charles Voisey, the head of the Inner Circle, especially, was presented as the personification of melodramatic evil -- Snidely Whiplash with a nice house, servants, and a carriage. Pitt (and his boss, Narraway) orchestrated Voisey's fall from power, in any case, and in this somewhat wild-eyed volume, Voisey's rival, Superintendent Wetron, spins his own conspiracy: A group of anarchists (read "terrorists") are accused (justly) of blowing up houses and (unjustly) callously killing civilians. Wetron's motive is to ensure passage of an Act of Parliament giving the police greatly increased firepower, as well as enormous stop-and-search powers and the authority to enter private homes and ask any questions they like. "Snatched from the headlines," as they say. (I imagine Perry is no fan of the present U.S. neocon administration.) The immediate result is to push Pitt and Voisey into a grudging and very suspicious partnership in order to defeat the bill, each for his own reasons. That part of the story is quite well done in its depiction of the very opposite characters of the two men -- and Perry makes up for the unbelievability of much of the rest of the plot by rather decisively killing off the entire Inner Circle conspiracy at the end. Ya-hoo!