Customer Reviews

A Twist at The End

5 star:		(7)
4 star:		(7)
3 star:		(8)
2 star:		(5)
1 star:		(5)

 

 

Based on what I have read from majority of the prior reviewers, I have discovered a trend. All of the reviewers were fans of the Roma Sub Rosa series, and obviously were looking for more. I had not heard of Steven Saylor (as I am not a "Roman Reader") until an interview on this very book on NPR. The next day I carried a hard cover out of Book People and had finished it within 24 hours, happy to have found a great new author to enjoy. Saylor's has a great ability to bring fact and fiction together, both with his characters and the environment in which he surrounds them, he completely emerges the reader in the events of the time. Afterwards I proceeded to purchase the Roma Sub Rosa series, as I wanted more of Saylor, and I enjoyed each one as much as this book, and also hope there will be more, but I will always be glad my first Saylor novel was "A Twist at the End". I believe every author needs to branch out and try new interests, but it shows here how loyal fans can easily turn on a great writer.

His research in the Sub Rosa Series paints a very believable picture of life at the end of the Republic. Likewise, his excavation of late 19th Century Central Texas is both accurate and verifiable. Lady liberty of the State Capitol building is every bit as ugly faced as he describes and no Texas City would have survived without a tenderloin district like "Guy Town." ( In Waco, we called it " The Reservation" and it lasted right up until Prohibition and other such noble experiments did so much to unravel the moral fiber of the nation).

William Sydney Porter really did live in Austin and San Antonio in the time frame of the novel and no doubt traveled the region on the extensive rail system that then extended all over the fifty-year-old fifedom of Stephen F. Austin and Sam Houston.
By 1888, The Texas Capitol plaza was lighted by electric arc lights
The actions and nature of Saylor's characters are real- or real enough to let the reader suspend disbelief and he unravels a true century-old mystery in a most believable and satisfactory manner.
The title " A Twist at the End" is more of a bow to the trademark of the main character than a synopsis of the book. That the reader is able to sort out the mystery well before Mr. Porter learns the whole truth, in no way detracts from the satisfing nature of this story.

Steven Saylor is perhaps, barring the great Caleb Carr, the best historical novelist around today. Known for his Roma Sub Rosa series and his wonderful Gordianus the Finder, Saylor travels forward in time and regales the reader with a murder mystery that is based on real life and a "detective" who is a fellow writer- O. Henry.

In terms of plotting and chracterization, Saylor cannot entertain the reader in A TWIST AT THE END as Caleb Carr did in THE ALIENIST. The latter book, a hefty 500+ page tome, gave us an indelible and fascinating look at late 19th century New York city with the kind of perspective that only a gifted historian can give to a lively period in a great metropolis's history. Here, Saylor excels when he confines his novels to ancient Rome.

1884-5 Austin is rocked and caught unawares with what is falsely credited as the nation's first serial murders. The police are of course baffled and William Sydney Porter, the so-called detective in this novel, is more concerned with slacking off and warbling love ditties under the windows of Austin's young ladies than in solving the case. Even after his beloved Eula Philips is brutally murdered, Porter does not do much to advance the investigation. Nor should he. It was a classic case of the wrong protagonist being at the right time, as O. Henry was indeed present in Austin during the murders. Imagine Oscar Wilde being made the hero of a Jack the Ripper novel and you'll see my meaning.

A large reason why THE ALIENIST and its sequel worked is because we got a sense that an investigation was being made, that, if not the police someone was doing their best to apprehend the killer. As Saylor rightly posits, the Austin police dragged their heels during this real-life investigation. However, there's no talented and well-characterized task force to pick up the slack and the only thrill of the novel is the cheap one of waiting for the next murder, one that we already know will be committed.

Porter makes for a weak, unsatisfying protagonist and the bland characterization is only enlivened by the love between himself and Eula Philips, a real-life victim of "the servant girl annihilators". The recreation of a long-lost Austin is something that I imagine would be fully appreciated only by a native of that city (as Saylor is), since it lacks the recognition and universality of Carr's 19th century NYC. Still, the pacing is even, although dragged out, and the characterization adequate. The lack of reknown for this unsolved series of murders baffles me as it did the author and I believe that the story deserved to be told.

Unlike Carr, who does not shy away from the horror of the murders and allows the reader to look over his detectives' shoulders in his two brilliant period pieces, Saylor affects the sensibilities of his genteel characters and gives us virtually no details of the servant girl murders, thereby depriving himself of the chance to more fully immerse the reader as a novel of this length must do. It's also quite obvious from the first half of the book who the killers are. No twist at the end, there.

And, aside from the identity of Porter's blackmailer in 1906 New York, which alone doesn't justify the title and the buildup, there *is* no twist at the end. All in all, a journey in which the train ride is more memorable than the destination.

In 1906, someone tries to blackmail William Sidney Porter for his role in the brutal murders of female servants of color two decades ago in Austin, Texas. Better known as O'Henry, the renowned author suffers nightmares while he sleeps and flashbacks to the vicious events of 1885 Austin.

Back than, the indifferent Austin authorities blamed a Negro, but the incarceration of the "culprit" failed to end the bloody murders. William, working at the General Land Office, dubs the murderer as the "Servant Girl Annihilator." William wonders who the real killer is even as he debates with his office peers the merits of the Female Clerks Bill and dreams of spending time with the married Eula, though Porter too is married.

A TWIST AT THE END is an interesting historical mystery based on a real but never identified serial killer stalking 1880's Austin. The story line is filled with intriguing subplots and many interesting tidbits about the era. However, these never fully intertwine with the prime story line, leaving non-historians to ask why their inclusion is in the tale. The motives of the characters never fully develops as talented Steven Saylor's novel is two togas short of his ancient Rome series and several pecks beneath the Mark Twain mysteries.

I was fascinated by this book. Every so often, the Austin papers would throw out tantalizing tidbits of information about these 1880's murders. There were never many details given,probably because of the lurid nature of the crimes. They were so heinous, especially since that was considered a "gentler" time. They terrorized Austin and like the Ripper killings, suddenly stopped with no solution.

I am not a reader of Saylor's Roman series, so I can't make a comparison with his other works. His research was thorough, and I found the book hard to put down. I loved that he used many characters from that era, including my great-great uncle John Ireland. A previous reviewer criticized this book for showing off too much research and not fleshing out O. Henry more. I am a fan of Mr. Porter's, and I disagree. I liked the inclusion of Elisabet Ney, whose castle-like studio, Formosa, can be visited to this day.

Since the crimes were never solved, Saylor had to be a bit cagey with his ending. It would be nice if he tied up everything neatly with a bow, but that would not have been believable, given the amount of fact he included.

Sure, you all know `The Gift of the Magi' and know that O. Henry is renowned for stories with `A Twist at the End.' But William Sydney Porter (O. Henry's real name) lived a life as intriguing and filled with twists as many of the characters in his hundreds of classic stories. Steven Saylor's historical mystery is an attempt to fill in some of the blanks, involving Porter in an actual serial murder mystery that took place in Austin, Texas in the mid-1880s. Saylor, best known for his ancient Rome historical mysteries, does a credible job: the Austin historical color brings life into the plot, although too often Porter is secondary to the events and other characters circling around him. Although many other reviewers have compared this to Caleb Carr's excellent period mysteries, I was reminded more of mystery novels starring real historical figures (Eleanor Roosevelt, Jane Austen, Groucho Marx) tackling fictional mysteries, or already-established fictional detectives (Sherlock Holmes or Ellery Queen solving the Jack the Ripper murder, Columbo cracking the JFK assassination). Saylor's attempt to mix a real historical person with a true unsolved crime is fresh, although his denouement is weak: the solution comes as no surprise to any of us, and `the twist at the end' was foreshadowed chapters before. Still, it's an enjoyable, well-written mystery with solid characterization, and I'd love to see Saylor tackle a similar book again--but I hope that he doesn't turn this into a series of `O. Henry' mysteries! The very best thing that can be said about this novel? I came away from it with a desire to re-read all the old O. Henry stories that I enjoyed in college but haven't picked up since. Although Saylor's a deft hand at setting scene and presenting rogues, he takes a definite back seat to the master himself. If only the *complete* O. Henry were in print! (The complete stories would make an excellent Library of America two-volume set!)

As one who loved Saylor's Roman mysteries, I purchased this book with great anticipation. The plot, concerning O. Henry and a true series of murders in 1884 and 1885 Austin, Texas, seemed intriguing. The beginning was great. Unfortunately, the story itself seemed to wander and, without giving too much away of the plot, the murders seemed curiously remote form the main character. In addition, the indentity of the murderer (or murderers?) becomes clear all to early in the book. I awaited the twist promised by the title, but found it predictable. Still, the book is worth reading.

ISBN 0684856816 - When I picked up a copy of this book, it was with the hope of selling it for a reasonable price. Usually, I curse the (insert bad word)s who ruin book prices by selling for a penny. In this case, I thank them! Unable to sell it, I thought I'd read it and am glad I did.

Will Porter was living in Texas when one of America's earliest serial killers started killing. At first, the murders were of blacks, and the city seemed to care little about the loss of life. Porter's interest is at least in part because he is close friends with Dave Shoemaker, who covers the story for the papers. When the killings eventually take two white women in one night - including Porter's one love - the manhunt becomes more serious.

At the same time, the author tells the story of O. Henry - the name under which Will Porter writes, years later, in New York. He is being blackmailed, although who and why are not revealed; he is being hounded by editors that he's promised articles to, and he hasn't got them written. When he is approached by a man who claims to be a friend of a friend, when the man claims that their mutual friend has the answer to who the Servant Girl Annihilator was... Porter sheds O. Henry to go back to Texas for the answer.

While I'm glad I read this book, it's not because it's a great book. It's a good book, with an interesting fictional story that twines together two true stories. That twining together simply muddies up the line between fiction and reality and I think it did a disservice to both stories. Still, the book is well-written, manages to present some possible answers to unanswered questions and gives Porter a nice, clean reason for his embezzlement (which isn't a newly suggested reason, it's just more fleshed-out). I can't help but wonder how the descendants of Grooms Lee, a buffoon in both history and historical fiction, and Eula Phillips, painted a whore here at least, feel about the book. I found myself annoyed that Saylor had Elisabet Ney speaking like Yoda, but that's a small thing. I'd read something else from Saylor, if it was either fiction or non-fiction, but there's something in his style with historical fiction that I won't be seeking out again any time soon.

- AnnaLovesBooks

"Servant Girl Annihilators"
This is the first Steven Saylor book that I have read. And, I actually enjoyed it even though it is apparent early in the book who the killer or killers are, so go figure where the title came from. It is also apparent that Saylor has done extensive research to write this book. From an historical point of view I was enlightened on race relations as well as the rights of women and their place in late 1800's society. Also, how would you like to be a lawman trying to solve these heinous crimes without the use of fingerprints, DNA, etc.? Enjoyed it.

I've long been a fan of Steven Saylor's Roman series, but I wasn't sure what a 19th Century novel would be like (especially since I'm not particularly interested in the setting). I needn't have worried. Mr. Saylor is an exceptionally good writer, and the story is engrossing, touching and facsinating. The more so because it's based on actual events. It's got everything: Romance, murder, tragedy, heroism, and a twist at the end... I couldn't put it down. I highly recommend this book to anyone who enjoys historical fiction.