Fugitive from the Grave

June 11, 2018
Set in 1817, Marston’s rollicking fourth Bow Street Rivals mystery (after 2017’s Date with the Executioner) pits bounty hunter twin brothers Peter and Paul Skillen against the Bow Street Runners, London’s first official police force. Three straightforward story lines keep the action moving. One follows the mainly failed attempts of the official police to beat the brothers in their quest to apprehend wily and rather likable thief Harry Scattergood. Another involves Peter’s efforts on the behalf of Clemency van Emden, a well-to-do woman who has come to London in search of her estranged father. In the third, Paul hunts for the dastardly highwaymen who robbed the coach carrying his attractive companion, Hannah Granville, the “finest actress of her generation.” Kidnapping, grave robbing, stalking, theatrical peccadilloes, and miraculous inventions keep the reader entertained, as do visits to inns, pubs, restaurants, and brothels, not to mention some daring gallops along the road between London and Bath. Marston skillfully creates a lively sense of derring-do.

July 15, 2018
A pair of identical twin brothers in Regency London work on three different mysteries, together and separately.Peter and Paul Skillen, who've put their special bond to good professional use, have apprehended clever thief Harry Scattergood and handed him over to the magistrate. But Harry escapes once more from the hapless Bow Street Runners, who, jealous of the Skillens, are determined to recapture him. Meanwhile, Peter and his wife, Charlotte, are caught up in a search for the missing George Parry, the father of Clemency van Emden, who's received an anonymous letter telling her that her estranged father is dead and buried. Parry, a brilliant engineer, was devastated when Clemency married a Dutchman, and it's rumored that he died in abject poverty. Also, Paul Skillen, whose lover is respected actress Hannah Granville, races off to Bath after highwaymen rob her stage and steal her most precious possessions despite the presence of a guard hired to protect her. Peter and his helpers find that what's supposed to be Parry's body has been stolen from his grave, but after seeing a sketch made by the undertaker's daughter, Clemency proclaims that the man was not her father, and Peter suspects that he may still be alive. In Bath, Hannah's furious to learn that an actress she hates will join her onstage since Hannah's contract does not allow her to get the other actress fired. At the same time, she fears that she's being stalked by a gentlemanly highwayman who sends her a gift stolen from another passenger. Back in London, the Bow Street Runners are tasked with finding Scattergood and discovering who's robbing multiple graves. Each case presents problems to solve and dangers to face.The Bow Street Rivals are the least well-known of the prolific Marston's many franchises (The Circus Train Conspiracy,2017, etc.). Despite the charismatic characters, there are a few too many strings to this particular bow.

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