Customer Reviews

Vices of My Blood: A Detective Murdoch Mystery

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Maureen Jennings moved to Canada from Birmingham, England when she was seventeen. After studying Philosophy, Psychology, and English literature, she became an English teacher at Ryerson Polytechnic Institute. After eight years of teaching, she did an about face and set herself up as a psychotherapist. VICES OF MY BLOOD is her sixth Detective Murdoch mystery, but she has also published a non-fiction book entitled MAP OF YOUR MIND.

Detective Murdoch is called when Charles Howard, a Presbyterian minister, is found in his office stabbed and beaten. Murdoch has just made detective, and murder isn't a normal occurrence. Naturally it seems obvious to everyone, including Murdoch's boss, that the murderer is one of the "tramps" in town. But there is more to this mystery than meets the eye, and Murdoch tries to sift through various motives. Could the murderer have been a spurned spinster? Could the "Traveler" have stooped to murder? How about someone desperate for food who was refused by Howard in his role as a "Visitor?" All Murdoch has to go on is the fact that Howard's boots and watch were stolen and that the crime was one of passion:

"'You'd say a thief then, would you, detective?" asked Royce. 'That or somebody wants us to think so." Mr. Lyons indicated he had a question. "Dr. Ogden in her excellent testimony has told us that there is every indication that the assailant was in a mad fury. I wonder then, if a person in such a state would have the presence of mind to deliberately mislead the police. I beg your pardon, Mr. Murdoch, I have no wish to cast aspersions on your competence.'"

There is something about Canadian mysteries that promises a slow but steady character and plot development that culminates in a neat package. Maureen Jennings is no exception. This is a period mystery, and Jennings has evidently done her research. We are transported back into the world of Victorian Canada in this case, where women stayed at home with their bodices and meek subservience to their husbands. Jennings creates a murky scenario with stand out characters and a whodunit that is as elusive as Murdoch's killer. A big thumbs up!

Shelley Glodowski

Senior Reviewer

If you love Mysteries you will love the Detective Murdoch series. Every book is gripping until the end.