Abracadaver
A
Sergeant Cribb Investigation
Peter
Lovesey
Soho
Constable (Trade Paperback)
ISBN-10: 1-56947-561-X (156947561X)
ISBN-13: 978-1-56947-561-4 (9781569475614)
Publication Date: June 2009
List Price: $14.00
Synopsis (from
the publisher): A sadistic practical joker is haunting the popular
music halls of London, interfering with the actors and interrupting
their acts by orchestrating humiliating disasters that take place in
view of the audience. A trapeze artist misses her timing when the
trapeze ropes are shortened. A comedian who invites the audience to
sing along with him finds the words of his song
“shamefully” altered. Mustard has been applied to a
sword swallower’s blade. A singer’s costume has
been rigged. The girl in a magician’s box is trapped. Then
the mischief escalates to murder. Or was murder intended all along?
That indomitable detective team, Sergeant Cribb and Constable Thackeray
of Scotland Yard, must track down the elusive criminal.
Review:
Sergeant Cribb is assigned to look into mischief taking place at
entertainment halls in Victorian London in Abracadaver,
the third mystery in this series by Peter Lovesey. This novel was
originally published in 1972, and now available in a new trade
paperback edition by Soho Press.
Sergeant Cribb fears the incidents, all relatively minor in nature so
far, will escalate into something more serious when he receives a
playbill with the following words circled: "Sensational" Hatchet
Thrower, Jason Buckmaster "Tragedy" Actor and Rhetorician, Grampian in
Blackfriars Road "Tonight" -- Sensational Tragedy Tonight. Cribb and
his partner Constable Thackery believe they have the answer but then
another crime is committed, this time murder. Together, the detectives
set a trap that they hope will ensnare the killer before another death
occurs.
The relatively short books in this series are all about crime and
resolution. There isn't a lot of action, nor are they brimming with
"edge of your seat" thrills, and they are largely free of the
cumbersome backstories that typically weigh down modern murder
mysteries. Rather, they include cleverly devised plots that often rely
on deduction and reasoning to expose the culprit. True, the situations
in which the detectives, especially Thackery, find themselves are
somewhat amusing, but never at the expense of a story well told. Abracadaver
is a terrific example of the series, and one worth seeking out.
Special thanks to Soho Press for providing a copy of Abracadaver for this review.
Review Copyright © 2009 — Hidden Staircase Mystery Books — All Rights Reserved
Have you read Abracadaver? How would you rate it?
Mysteries in this series ...
Wobble to Death
Dodd Mead (Hardcover), February 1970
ISBN-10: 0-396-06233-4 (0396062334)
ISBN-13: 978-0-396-06233-2 (9780396062332)
The Detective Wore Silk Drawers
Dodd Mead (Hardcover), January 1971
ISBN-10: 0-396-06377-2 (0396063772)
ISBN-13: 978-0-396-06377-3 (9780396063773)
Abracadaver
Dodd Mead (Hardcover), September 1972
ISBN-10: 0-396-06627-5 (0396066275)
ISBN-13: 978-0-396-06627-9 (9780396066279)
Mad Hatter's Holiday
Dodd Mead (Hardcover), March 1973
ISBN-10: 0-396-06835-9 (0396068359)
ISBN-13: 978-0-396-06835-8 (9780396068358)
The
Tick
of Death
Dodd Mead (Hardcover), July 1974
ISBN-10: 0-396-06972-X (039606972X)
ISBN-13: 978-0-396-06972-0 (9780396069720)
A
Case of
Spirits
Dodd Mead (Hardcover), January 1975
ISBN-10: 0-396-07218-6 (0396072186)
ISBN-13: 978-0-396-07218-8 (9780396072188)
Swing,
Swing
Together
Dodd Mead (Hardcover), January 1976
ISBN-10: 0-396-07327-1 (0396073271)
ISBN-13: 978-0-396-07327-7 (9780396073277)
Waxwork
Random House (Hardcover), April 1978
ISBN-10: 0-394-50066-0 (0394500660)
ISBN-13: 978-0-394-50066-9 (9780394500669)
Omnimystery
keywords for Abracadaver
...
Location(s) referenced: London, England.
