Everand Logo

Welcome to Everand!

  • Discover millions of ebooks, audiobooks, and so much more with a free trial

    Only $11.99/month after trial. Cancel anytime.

    Blood on the Water
    Blood on the Water
    Blood on the Water
    Audiobook11 hours

    Blood on the Water

    Written by Anne Perry

    Narrated by David Colacci

    4/5

    ()

    About this audiobook

    As Anne Perry's New York Times bestselling novels always remind us, she is a matchless guide to both the splendor and the shame of the British Empire at the height of its influence. In her twentieth William Monk mystery, she brings us to London's grand Mayfair mansions, where the arrogant masters of the Western world hold sway-and to the teeming Thames waterfront, where one summer afternoon, Monk witnesses the horrifying explosion of the pleasure boat Princess Mary, which takes nearly two hundred of the merrymakers on board to their deaths. The tragedy is no accident. As commander of the River Police, Monk should handle the case, but the investigation is turned over to the commissioner of the Metropolitan Police. An Egyptian man is swiftly caught, tried, and sentenced to die. But almost as quickly, Monk presents evidence that Habib Beshara, though a nasty piece of work, was elsewhere at the time of the blast. The investigation, now in complete disarray, is hastily turned over to Monk. Is the crime connected with the soon-to-be-opened Suez Canal, which will enormously benefit wealthy British shipping companies? Or did all of those innocent people drown to ensure the murder of only one of them? How did the bomber board the ship, and how did he manage to escape? Is he an anarchist or a madman? Backed up by his astute wife, Hester, and his old reliable friend Oliver Rathbone, Monk vows to find answers-but instead finds himself treading the dangerous waters of international intrigue, his questions politely turned aside by a formidable array of the powerful and privileged. Events twist and turn like the Thames itself, leading to the shattering moment when Monk realizes, perhaps too late, that he is the next target. Praise for Anne Perry and her William Monk novels Blind Justice "Ranks among the best . . . Perry has written. Her courtroom scenes have the realism of Scott Turow."-Huntington News A Sunless Sea "Anne Perry's Victorian mysteries are marvels."-The New York Times Book Review Acceptable Loss "Masterful storytelling and moving dialogue."-The Star-Ledger Execution Dock "[An] engrossing page-turner . . . There's no one better at using words to paint a scene and then fill it with sounds and smells than Anne Perry."-The Boston Globe Dark Assassin "Brilliant . . . a page-turning thriller . . . blending compelling plotting with superbly realized human emotion and exquisite period detail."-Jeffery Deaver, author of Edge The Shifting Tide "The mysterious and dangerous waterfront world of London's 'longest street,' the Thames, comes to life."-South Florida Sun-Sentinel
    LanguageEnglish
    PublisherRecorded Books, Inc.
    Release dateSep 9, 2014
    ISBN9781490624037
    Blood on the Water
    Author

    Anne Perry

    With twenty million books in print, ANNE PERRY's was selected by The Times as one of the twentieth century's '100 Masters of Crime', for more information about Anne and her books, visit: www.anneperry.co.uk

    More audiobooks from Anne Perry

    Related to Blood on the Water

    Titles in the series (13)

    View More
    View More

    Related audiobooks

    Historical Mystery For You

    View More
    View More

    Related podcast episodes

    Related articles

    • Article

      Drifting Into Antiquity

      Aug 20, 2019

      Drifting Into Antiquity
      11 min read

    • Article

      More Things In Heaven

      Dec 10, 2021

      It’s the deep mid-winter, when sailors check their warps, settle down in lamp-lit saloons, top up their bogey stoves and pour themselves a dram. If they’re in tune with the outside world, they’ll also shut off the flickering screens, kill the music m

      5 min read

    • Article

      Siren Song

      Aug 27, 2021

      Siren Song
      10 min read

    • Article

      Sometimes The Gods Can Be Cruel

      Oct 27, 2023

      Sometimes The Gods Can Be Cruel
      7 min read

    • Article

      OFF THE Mangrove Coast

      Feb 22, 2019

      OFF THE Mangrove Coast
      4 min read

    • Article

      Volcanoes Of The Med

      Oct 16, 2019

      Volcanoes Of The Med
      10 min read

    • Article

      Tempting Fate

      May 11, 2023

      Read about sailing all your life and you won’t find another book quite like Bound for Cape Horn, with its interesting subtitle Skills for Expedition Cruising. Any suggestion this might be yet another text book on how to do it is dissipated in the ope

      7 min read

    • Article

      A Driftwood's Tale

      Jul 1, 2019

      A Driftwood's Tale
      6 min read

    • Article

      The Boatman And The Bear

      May 27, 2022

      The Boatman And The Bear
      9 min read

    • Article

      Tom Cunliffe

      Nov 6, 2020

      Tom Cunliffe
      5 min read

    • Article

      Tom Cunliffe

      Nov 6, 2020

      Tom Cunliffe
      5 min read

    • Article

      The Ashes

      Sep 9, 2022

      It’s almost 50 years since my wife Roz and I moved aboard our first serious cruising boat. While paying off our overdraft, we lived in a mud berth on a rickety pier attached to what was then Moody’s yard at the top of the Hamble River. It was univers

      5 min read

    • Article

      Stop Hating on Adjectives!

      Jun 12, 2019

      A common admonition in creative writing pedagogy is, “Cut as many adjectives as possible.” I propose that this rule springs from mere prejudice. The post Stop Hating on Adjectives! appeared first on The Millions.

      7 min read

    • Article

      The Casco Bay Death Ship

      Mar 31, 2020

      The Casco Bay Death Ship
      4 min read

    • Article

      Crossing The Bar

      Mar 11, 2021

      The Edwardian period of English yachting is best remembered for the great cutters and schooners of the racing scene. From Cowes to the Clyde professionally crewed yachts competed for big-money prizes while fortunes changed hands by way of wagers on r

      7 min read

    • Article

      Amazon Delta

      Jul 14, 2022

      Amazon Delta
      7 min read

    • Article

      Left Behind

      Mar 1, 2019

      Left Behind
      6 min read

    • Article

      A Sense Of Home

      Jun 22, 2023

      A Sense Of Home
      3 min read

    • Article

      Mountain Time

      Jan 1, 2021

      In the air you don’t know who you are or where My own self feels it is in wind being born These are currents a man made one eighth of smokeless fire fears but chooses A path south from Anchorage to a Mountain House Ungovern the northern land to pass

      10 min read

    • Article

      A Watery Graveyard Revisited

      Apr 27, 2023

      A Watery Graveyard Revisited
      2 min read

    • Article

      Following The Flow

      Aug 31, 2019

      Following The Flow
      11 min read

    • Article

      Holding Power

      Sep 11, 2020

      Holding Power
      5 min read

    • Article

      Time Out

      May 1, 2020

      Time Out
      6 min read

    • Article

      Time Out

      May 1, 2020

      Hemingway: a real man’s man; red wine, bulls and wrestling with fish were all central themes of a life of unremitting machismo. Having read a bit of Ernest in my time, I generally find that he spends a good deal of time droning on about death, impote

      6 min read

    Related categories

    Reviews for Blood on the Water

    4/5

    118 ratings26 reviews

    What did you think?

    Tap to rate

    Review must be at least 10 words

    • 4/5
      Inspector William Monk, head of the Thames River police witnesses an explosion which sinks the Princess Mary and try as they can nearly 200 passengers and crew drown. The investigation into the explosion, strangely, is taken away from the River Police. The Metropolitan Police quickly arrest and convict an Egyptian but further undercover work by Monk detects that the conviction may be an error. The characters are old friends by now and yet they still hold a few surprises for this reader.
    • 5/5
      Very exciting and so very well read. Hester is fascinating

    • 4/5
      Blood on the Water is a great follow up (and far better than) to Anne Perry's last book, Blind Justice, taking us back to our main plots and characters, but not abandoning Oliver Rathbone's storyline.

      The book starts with Monk witnessing a horrible boating accident and as usual, Perry does terror on the Thames very well, keeping it enthralling and shocking but not gory or over the top. The case is quickly taken over by the 'land police', much to Monk's dismay and of course, is badly handled. You know who's about to help solve the crime! We get more insight into the mind of Scuff, who is now almost an adult and still eager to help his adopted family and his previous 'family': the people of the river. As the story continues we get to see more of returning characters from Blind Justice, including Brancaster, who is shaping up nicely to be another recurring character (I hope).

      Anne Perry keeps us involved in the family dynamics of Monk, Hester and Scuff and in the work dynamics of both Monk and Hester, while balancing it with details of the world at the time and issues that still plague us: corruption, questions of loyalty, law and love and what we owe to society as a whole, if anything.

      There are some parts of Blood on the Water that seem a bit repetitive, not just for clarification purposes, but the story is solid and engaging.
    • 4/5
      William Monk is out on the Thames River with one of his men, Orme, when they witness the shocking explosion and sinking of the pleasure cruise ship Princess Mary. Almost two hundred people die, and this was no accident. The explosion happened in the bow of the ship, not the boiler room.

      Monk has his River Police already investigating the crime when, the next morning, the commissioner of the Metropolitan Police, arrives to explain, in some embarrassment, that the case has been taken from the Thames River Police and given to him.

      Monk and his men may be frustrated by how the Metropolitan Police, who don't know the river and its people, are running the investigation, but there's nothing they can do. A suspect, an Egyptian man name Habib Beshara, is arrested, tried, and convicted.

      And then Monk discovers in the course of another investigation a critical piece of information that reveals that a critical eyewitness in the Beshara case can't have been where he said he was. He realize that not only is the guilty verdict against Beshara very weak, but the investigation was sloppy in ways that can't be entirely explained by the Metropolitans not knowing the river well.

      And that's when things get very, very dangerous, for Monk, Hester, Oliver Rathbone, and their friends.

      This is another solid entry in the long-running William Monk series. All our old friends are back. Monk is comfortable and confident in his role as head of the Thames River Police, Hester in hers as head of her clinic, and they have a solid partnership that they've worked hard for over the course of the series. This is one of the added benefits of a good mystery series, the long-term character development.

      We see all our regulars struggling with the balance between the ideals they believe in, and the often much messier reality of human fallibility and corruption.

      Not the place to start, but well worth the read if you're a follower of the series.

      I received a free electronic galley of this book from the publisher via NetGalley.
    • 3/5
      When a pleasure boat blows up on the Thames right in front of Monk, he expects to investigate the murder of about 200 people. But the case is taken away from him and given to the regular police force. When Monk uncovers evidence that the man they arrested for the crime is innocent, Monk suddenly gets the investigation back. It's a mess having to do with the Suez Canal which is currently being built, but Monk and Hester persevere anyway.Ms. Perry does her usual excellent job in portraying Victorian England, yet integrating it with events happening today in our own world. The view toward immigrants, the patriotism and suspicion that all lay behind the crime and subsequent cover-up are relevant and interesting.I had two issues with the book. I don't understand what is going on with Oliver Rathbone. He seems obsessed with a woman who he's met once at a dinner and seen in court once to the point that he's creating fantasies about her life and possible future with himself. It seems just a bit stalkerish and just odd, especially after his failed marriage and view of Margaret.My other problem was the ending. It was too abrupt with a lot of loose ends that weren't wrapped up. How was Beshara involved with the blowing up of the Princess Mary? Who else was involved and why did the ultimate criminal hire the people he did (shouldn't they have hated him and wanted to kill him?) If these questions are answered in the next book, perhaps I'll come back and upgrade my rating, but meanwhile, I feel left hanging.
    • 4/5
      Isn't Anne Perry amazing?! She is one of the few authors with numerous titles to her credit that continually crank out a satisfying story. Bravo!
    • 3/5
      Not the best Anne Perry book I've read. I found myself skimming many parts, such as the court room scenes. I give it three stars for the description of London's waterfront and the life there.
    • 3/5
      This book begins with a bang, or rather, an explosion which sinks a pleasure boat on the Thames and kills nearly 200 hundred people. Monk happens to witness the sinking, but he is soon relieved of the case and it turned over on to the commissioner of the Metropolitan Police. Not as well versed in the river goings-on or the people who navigate it, mistakes are made. Eventually, Monk again becomes involved with the case. Because this is part of a series, many of the characters are continuing ones, and the author assumes the reader knows their back-story. If you don’t, some of the intrigue of the story may fall flat for you. Much of the story also takes place in the court room, and is not as interesting as Monk’s detective work. Still, it is a good story, just not one of Perry’s best.
    • 3/5
      I know Anne Perry has lots of fans. Normally I would be among them since I really like historical fiction and especially historical fiction mysteries. Anne Perry writes two series set in Victorian London so that should be right up my alley. I have read books from both series and the series this book is from, the William Monk series, are my preference. However, I gave up reading any of them some time ago. My husband gave me this book and, of course, I had to give it a try. I can report that I have at last pinpointed my problem with the books. I’ll talk about that later after I have given a synopsis.William Monk is a policeman who is in charge of the Thames River Police, a special force which deals with any crimes committed on or near the river. He and his second-in-charge, Orme, were rowing across the river just at sunset in early summer when a pleasure boat on the river exploded in the bow and quickly capsized. Just before the explosion Monk saw a man jump overboard from the pleasure boat. As one of the boats closest to the wreck Monk and Orme picked up survivors as quickly as they could. However, many lives were lost that night. People on the lower deck had no chance to escape and even those on upper decks had a fight to escape the boat and survive in the water until they could be rescued. Women especially were drowned due to their heavy skirts which absorbed water and dragged them down. Monk and Orme worked almost all night. The next morning Monk donned a diving suit and went down to examine the wreck. After all that he and the river police were removed from the investigation and the regular Metropolitan Police took over. The public was incensed that almost 200 lives were lost and there was a lot of pressure to quickly find the person or persons responsible. When an Egyptian was charged, based on exclusively eye-witness testimony, it was thought that the act was in reprisal for the Suez Canal being built across Egyptian territory. To no-one’s surprise the man was found guilty and sentenced to hang. In the course of another investigation Monk discovers that at least one of the eye-witnesses was wrong and he takes this information to the officer in charge of the investigation. Soon Monk and his policemen, with the help of his wife, Hester, and their adopted son, Scuff, are re-opening the case. This time they find physical evidence that leads them to another Egyptian. The new case goes to trial but the investigators, while sure they have the correct man, still have no idea of his motive. At almost the end of the trial Hester finds a new witness who sheds light on that. Can anyone say Perry Mason?And that is part of my problem with this book. Court cases don’t go ahead without major parts, like motive, being established. I’m sure it makes a better story to have a non-professional pull a rabbit out of the hat in the midst of a trial but it just isn’t how criminal justice trials really work. My other problem with the book is sloppy editing. I lost track of the spelling errors but there were two syntax flaws that still grate. There is this sentence on page 99:It [new evidence] would not be morally unacceptable to ignore it, even if we could.Two negatives in this sentence mean it would be morally acceptable to ignore the new evidence and I’m pretty sure that is not what is meant. Then on page 206 a lawyer friend of the Monks (Rathbone) offers his advice to the barrister prosecuting the case (Brancaster)If Brancaster wished, he was welcome to come to Rathbone’s apartment for dinner, and speak at leisure, neither unobserved nor commented on by others.I am pretty sure that what Perry meant was that Brancaster would not be seen or discussed by others if he came to Rathbone’s apartment which means the correct usage would be “neither observed nor commented on by others”. To me these kinds of errors show inattention and haste on the part of the author. You would never find mistakes like this in Louise Penny’s Inspector Gamache books or Ian Rankin’s Rebus series.
    • 1/5
      This is the first Anne Perry I haven't been able to finish.

      I was interrupted for couple of days while reading it and realized I truly didn't care who committed the murder and if I had to read another sentence about the courtroom prosecution, I'd scream.

      I found the book slow, tedious and surprisingly dull. Until now, I've found Anne Perry's books to be compelling and hard to put down.
    • 4/5
      Another entry in the William and Hester Monk series, and one of the better ones of late. I've always enjoyed how the pressure of political and societal realities are brought into the cases, without quite going to the somewhat more impersonal "government conspiracy" levels of the Pitt novels--the Monks do better at depicting the deep emotional toll of crime on the families of victims and the investigators. Another round with familiar characters and seeing them continue to grow and evolve, which is half the fun. I wouldn't recommend it as a jumping-in place for a newbie to the series: go all the way back to "The Face Of a Stranger" and discover the world and characters right from the beginning. It's worth it.
    • 4/5
      Although I missed a couple of the latest books in the William Monk series by Anne Perry, I was sent this one in exchange for an honest review and was excited to get back on the horse, so to speak.As usual, Perry takes us deep into the lives of William and Hester Monk in 1856 London. A large pleasure boat explodes on the Thames, right in front of William and his deputy. Many people are killed or injured, and the city is outraged. The resulting investigation is taken away from the River Police, which seems either a very foolish or very political decision... or both.Of course, William doesn't let that stop him. He begins an undercover investigation of his own. As is usual in the Monk series, the questioning and research seem to drag a bit, but the story itself was interesting enough to keep my interest. It all leads up to last-minute denouements and a seat-of-your-pants revelation in the courtroom.Favorite characters are back, including the adopted son, the shamed barrister, and the staff at the woman's shelter, all of whom help to add color to the story.Overall, I enjoyed the book and know that long-time readers of this series won't be disappointed.
    • 4/5
      In the twentieth William Monk mystery, Monk witnesses the spectacular explosion of the Princess Mary, a pleasure boat. With pieces of debris and bodies everywhere, Monk and the River Police rush into action. Soon it’s clear that this was no accident. Before Monk can begin his investigation, the case is handed over to the Metropolitan Police. Although a man is quickly caught, tried, and sentenced, Monk discovers that the defendant was somewhere else at the time of the blast. Now with the case back in his hands, Monk must sift through the twists and turns of the investigation before he or others end up dead.The Bottom Line: With international intrigue and lots of courtroom scenes, this complicated mystery is a page-turner. Having not read the previous books in the series, I was missing some of the back story of the characters; however, this did not deter from my enjoyment of the novel. Recommended for fans of mysteries and historical fiction.
    • 4/5
      Stunning start, sluggish in the courtroom scenes with enough introspection for several books. Fast finish with military nursing days flashback dart thrown by Mrs Monk hitting a bulls-eye.. Villain finally exposed and rapidly disposed.
    • 4/5
      William Monk, commander of the River Police, witnesses a pleasure ship explode and sink on the river Thames. Even though he was a witness to the explosion, helped rescue survivors and dived down to view the ship before it was brought back to the surface, the case is taken away from him and given to the police for political reasons. Even though the police bring a suspect to court, Monk determines that the person on trial is not the person responsible. Monk, with the help of his wife and nurse, Hester, Scruff, and disbarred lawyer Oliver Rathborne, must correct the mistakes made in the original investigation and determine the motive for the explosion. As always Perry delights. When I first started reading Anne Perry books, this was not my favorite series but as the characters developed and relationships grew, this series has become a favorite. I look forward to reading a new book in the series.
    • 4/5
      I am a long time fan of Anne Perry having read both her Monk and Pitt series since the 1990s. So it is no big surprise that I enjoyed Blood on the Water. Monk, who is now in charge of the Thames River police witnesses the bombing of a pleasure boat on the Thames which takes the lives of two hundred people. The case is found to be too sensitive politically for the river poice and is badly handled by the regular police who "rush to judgement" arresting and convicting the wrong man. Then after the bungling is revealed the case is sent back to Monk and the river police who must now work with corrupted evidence and witnesses to find who is responsible for the bombing and why and who is responsible for causing the cae to be corrupted. A good period police procedural with terrific trial scenes.
    • 4/5
      Exciting beginning -- Monk and Orm are on duty when a pleasure boat explodes in Thames and people are jumping overboard while the boat is sinking. The next day Monk is informed that he and the river police will no longer be in charge of the case and that it is being turned over to the capital police because of the dignitaries and wealthy people onboard who died. The wrong man is arrested, charged and sentenced. Monk, Hester, Scuff and Squeak with the help of their old friend, Oliver Rathbone start investigating to make sure that the right people are punished.
    • 5/5
      This is the latest volume in the William Monk series, a series that never disappoints. He is commander of the River Police and happens to be out on the Thames with one of his detectives when a party boat ahead of them suddenly explodes. It is a night of horror as the pleasure boat was crowded and the only people with any hope of survival are out on the deck. Even if they manage to escape, the water is enough to kill them. In Victorian England the Thames was a swill of sewage, bodies both human and animal, and God knows what else. Most people who had the misfortune of being dunked in the river died of disease or infection very soon. The wealthy party goers below had no chance whatsoever.He and his detective do their best to rescue people. In the morning after cleaning up, they begin to work on the case. This was no accident. However, that very morning the case is taken away from them and given to a sort of special prosecutor who, how ever well meaning, knows nothing of the river. Monk, his men, and his wife Heather keep trying to solve the case, and it becomes obvious to them that corruption in high places, perhaps involving the newly opened Suez Canal, is behind this awful crime.Meanwhile, an Egyptian man is tried and convicted, sentenced to be executed, but then that is changed to life. Since he is dying of disease anyway, why bother? Monk is certain that this is the wrong man. When he uncovers evidence of his claim, the case is reassigned to him. What in the world is going on with the powers that be? The answer is quite interesting.Monk is in danger, both physical and professional, throughout. That kept me turning pages, although I was sorry when I finished the book. I like Anne Perry's England, a time of hints of change shining through Victorian mores. Hester Monk is a brave, intelligent woman, generous to the teenage orphan they've taken in and a loving wife to Monk.If you like historical mysteries, you would do well to try this series. You'll be so glad you did.Highly recommendedSource: LibraryThing win
    • 4/5
      the story line and twists are very creative and entertaining. However, there are a few slow, wordy parts. I enjoyed the mystery very much, just wished it went a little quicker.
    • 4/5
      Monk and Orme are patrolling the Thames when a few feet from them a pleasure boat suddenly explodes. They immediately go into a search and rescue mode, but still nearly 200 lives are lost as a result of the explosion. Although Monk is commanding the Thames River police, the investigation is turned over to the Metropolitan Police, supposedly because it is believed to be connected with the Suez Canal construction. They arrest a suspect whom Monk discovered had an alibi. The investigation is turned back over to Monk. There is a lot at stake in this one, and I don't want to give away too much of the plot. I will say that Oliver Rathbone does appear in this installment even though he can no longer participate as a prosecutor in trials. This installment held my attention better than some of the recent installments in the series have. There is a lot of action, and the plot works well. I received this book through LibraryThing Early Reviewers for review purposes.
    • 5/5
      This is the 20th, and perhaps the best, book in the Monk series. Here, Monk is witness to the explosion of sinking of a pleasure boat on the Thames and the loss of over 200 people. The investigation should fall to Monk and the River Police, but it is handed over to the Metropolitan Police and the reason given is that it is 'politically sensitive'. Monk watches as a man is quickly arrested, brought to trial and convicted of the crime, but flashes of memory of what he saw that night leads him to believe the wrong man has been found guilty. When evidence turns up that the convicted man could not have been the guilty party the case is handed back to the River Police.They find and arrest another man, but it will be impossible to find him guilty in court as long as another person has been convicted of the crime. In order to prosecute, the first case must be overturned. Monk finds there is a lot of political ambition, and other motives at work to prevent this from happening, and they can't find a motive. As in the other Monk books, questions must be asked and answered about personal honor and integrity, the purpose of law, and how far can a person bend in order to protect the people they love without losing their moral compass.The characters from former books in the series are here, as real as ever, but one could fully enjoy the book without having read any of the earlier books. The case has a good sense of reality about it. In our ideal worlds there is no corruption, no cover-ups, but in the actual world we know differently. The way the case evolves seems only too possible and the ending proves that truth, even painful truth, revealed at the beginning could never be as damaging as truth revealed after attempts to cover up the facts and corrupt justice. (A fact that people in power, and those that crave power, never seem to grasp.)
    • 3/5
      This is a story of doing the right thing, the usual for Anne Perry. When he senses that high officials are sabotaging justice, Monk worries about what he might do in a situation where his family's safety conflicted with the honorable, just course of action. He is witness to a ferry explosion on the Thames but the investigation is immediately given to another agency to handle and they quickly try and are set to execute a man Monk believes might be innocent. The scenes in the courtroom are interesting and a good reminder that judicial proceedings were different in England at the time -- all-male juries, for example. In the end, Monk prevails, of course, with a great deal of help from Hester. This novel was not Perry's best. Although it started with a bang -- the explosion and sinking of the ferry and the horrific loss of lives (Perry spends a great deal of time repeating how terrible it was as if I needed to be reminded) -- not a whole lot happens beyond that incident. The first suspect is a shadow we never really know and the ending comes out of the blue.I prefer the Charlotte and Thomas Pitt series.
    • 4/5
      I received this book through the Early Reviewers group, although it did not arrive until after I had already read our local library's copy.William Monk is on the Thames River, doing his job as head of the River Police, when someone blows up a pleasure boat a short distance away. Along with a variety of other people on the river, he works frantically to rescue survivors; when that task is over, he gets ready to investigate the cause of the explosion and motive behind it. Much to his surprise, the River Police are removed from the investigation and it is handed over to the Metropolitan Police even though they have no experience or knowledge of the river. After a brief investigation, the Metropolitan Police settle on a perpetrator, who is quickly convicted. As the execution deadline draws near, Monk uncovers evidence showing that the man could not have committed the crime. The investigation is then turned back over to the River Police and Monk, his wife Hester, and the rest of the River Police set out to determine who is really the guilty party. While I enjoyed the book, I felt there were some extraneous scenes in it which could have been eliminated. My impression was that Ms. Perry wanted to satisfy fans who like particular characters so she wrote some lengthy scenes with them which, in the end, proved to have been irrelevant. While these could have been intended as red herrings, they left me thinking "What was the point of that?" when I finished the book. I do recommend the book for fans of the Monk series, but I do not recommend it as a first encounter for someone who hasn't read any of these books before.
    • 5/5
      It is very obvious to me after reading this book why the William and Hester Monk series remains my favourite mystery series. This book is another winner in this long-running series. In it we see a Victorian act of terrorism when a pleasure boat with 200 souls aboard is blown up while it is sailing in the Thames. Monk and his right-hand man Orme happen to have a front-row seat to this horrific disaster as they are also on the Thames that night and not far from the Princess Mary when she goes down. It is a crime that shocks a nation. Nothing this large in scale has ever happened in England, and right in their own backyard. And all of England wants the perpetrator found and brought to immediate justice. Monk wants this too as he is haunted by the sight of the tragedy and by the survivors that he and Orme managed to save on that fateful night. But to what lengths will the people of England, and in particular, the Justice system go to solve this crime? Monk and Hester along with the help of their young ward Scuff, Monk's River Police and their old friend Oliver Rathbone band together to see that justice is done, especially when it becomes apparent that the swift ending to the tragedy brought about by the justice system may be an equally tragic failure to that justice system. An innocent man may have been tried and convicted of the crime and Monk and Hester can't stand for that. This book was a page-turner as all the books in this truly wonderful series are. I love the characters and I love the setting (Victorian London), and I always love the mysteries!
    • 4/5
      I finished this novel yesterday, but wish I had more to read. The story twisted and turned, but as in all the Monk series, the combined efforts of Hester, Monk, and Rathbone find the means to save the day. This story floats on the sinking of a pleasure boat on the Thames in England. The police catch and convict a suspect, but a motive never surfaces. Anne Perry does a wonderful job with the description of the setting and the characters and the language used by each class of people. The nuances of class bob in the muddy waters of deceit and greed. The ending gushes to the discovery of the killer and the motive. Touché.
    • 5/5
      an Encore performance!Wow! I was spellbound to the very end, and swimming in the dark along with most of the cast until then too!When our story opens Monk and Orme are one minute enjoying skimming along the Thames, the next they are thrust into disaster as a pleasure boat explodes, leaving in its wake the dead and drowning. An horrific scene that I could barely take in, along with Monk and Orme and others on the river that night.200 people are dead. The whys and wherefores are mired in political bungling and intrigue alongside heightened public tensions and rage. The River police inquiry is taken over by the Metropolitan police. Political or convenience?A scapegoat has been found! Guilty or innocent? Someone has to pay.The posturing in the courtroom reaches new heights.Hester, Scruff and Rathbone? All are players, and a delightful new urchin Worm makes a brief appearance. I do hope he stays!So we left with resolution but a bit of a cliffhanger on at least one personal relationship.Once more the River Thames and it's denizens come to life. Thought provoking, intense and enthralling!A NetGalley ARC