In the UK on the 5th of November it is Guy Fawkes night. A night that represents the plot to burn down the Houses of Parliament in 1605. So I thought for November’s book club we could read a historical fiction book and see how we fare with that and what members thoughts are on this sub genre in the crime genre. We would as always love new members to join us, so if you like the look of any books on offer or the winning book, then please do join us. Our next meeting is next Wednesday 15th October where we will be reading Crossbones Yard by Kate Rhodes, so you still have a week to read that and join in next week if you want to. You can find details as usual on how the club works in the tab above. Or be taken directly there from Here.
You can vote on the below choices in the comments section, on the Facebook page or on Twitter using the hashtag #crimebookclub. Votes need to be cast by next weeks meeting. To keep up to date with books and meetings you can sign up to the newsletter Here.
The choices for November are:
Dominion by C. J. Sansom
1952. Twelve years have passed since Churchill lost to the appeasers, and Britain surrendered to Nazi Germany after Dunkirk. As the long German war against Russia rages on in the east, the British people find themselves under dark authoritarian rule: the press, radio and television are controlled; the streets patrolled by violent auxiliary police and British Jews face ever greater constraints. There are terrible rumours too about what is happening in the basement of the German Embassy at Senate House.
Defiance, though, is growing. In Britain, Winston Churchill’s Resistance organisation is increasingly a thorn in the government’s side. And in a Birmingham mental hospital an incarcerated scientist, Frank Muncaster, may hold a secret that could change the balance of the world struggle forever.
Civil Servant David Fitzgerald, secretly acting as a spy for the Resistance, is given by them the mission to rescue his old friend Frank and get him out of the country. Before long he, together with a disparate group of Resistance activists, will find themselves fugitives in the midst of London’s Great Smog; as David’s wife Sarah finds herself drawn into a world more terrifying than she ever could have imagined.
And hard on their heels is Gestapo Sturmbannfuhrer Gunther Hoth, brilliant, implacable hunter of men . . .
The Holy Thief by William Ryan
Moscow, 1936, and Stalin’s Great Terror is beginning. In a deconsecrated church, a young woman is found dead, her mutilated body displayed on the altar for all to see. Captain Alexei Korolev, finally beginning to enjoy the benefits of his success with the Criminal Investigation Division of the Moscow Militia, is asked to investigate. But when he discovers that the victim is an American citizen, the NKVD—the most feared organization in Russia—becomes involved. Soon, Korolev’s every step is under close scrutiny and one false move will mean exile to The Zone, where enemies of the Soviet State, both real and imagined, meet their fate in the frozen camps of the far north.
Committed to uncovering the truth behind the gruesome murder, Korolev enters the realm of the Thieves, rulers of Moscow’s underworld. As more bodies are discovered and pressure from above builds, Korolev begins to question who he can trust and who, in a Russia where fear, uncertainty and hunger prevail, are the real criminals. Soon, Korolev will find not only his moral and political ideals threatened, but also his life.
William Ryan’s remarkable debut will storm into ten countries in what is sure to be an international publishing event. With Captain Alexei Korolev, William Ryan has given us one of the most compelling detectives in modern literature, a man dogged and humble, a man who will lead us through a fear-choked Russia to find the only thing that can save him or any of us— the truth.
The Mangle Street Murders by M.R.C. Kasasian
Funny, fresh and sharply plotted Victorian crime starring a detective duo to rival Holmes and Watson.
Gower Street, London, 1882:
Sidney Grice, London’s most famous personal detective, is expecting a visitor. He drains his fifth pot of morning tea, and glances outside, where a young, plain woman picks her way between the piles of horse-dung towards his front door. Sidney Grice shudders. For heaven’s sake – she is wearing brown shoes.
Set between the refined buildings of Victorian Bloomsbury and the stinking streets of London’s East End, THE MANGLE STREET MURDERS is for those who like their crime original, atmospheric, and very, very funny.
Alex J. Cavanaugh says
Dominion sounds really dark.
Rebecca Bradley says
Doesn’t it! And interesting. 🙂
MarinaSofia says
I’ve had Dominion my Kindle for ages, so maybe this will give me the final nudge to tackle it.
Rebecca Bradley says
I noticed when I checked Goodreads, as I do to make sure it’s not a book that has been read by all usual attending members, that it’s on Denyse’s to-read list.
Margot Kinberg says
Rebecca – These are some interesting choices!! My vote’s for The Holy Thief, but any of them would be fine.
Alex says
I would love to join in with this but my own face to face book group meets at the same time so it wouldn’t work for me. I hope you have a good discussion about Kate Rhodes book, however. I think she is a fine writer and have just really enjoyed the third in the series.
Rebecca Bradley says
That’s a shame that the groups clash. I’m looking forward to the meeting this month. (Though I do every month!) I think it’s a series I will continue to read.
Denyse says
I want to read The Mangle Street Murders please. I am intrigued by the claim that it is funny and it would be lovely to read a crime novel that is a bit different for a change.
Rebecca Bradley says
It does sound like a different read doesn’t it. Thanks Denyse.
Steph says
I have also had a Dominion for ages but never read so will vote for that
Rebecca Bradley says
Thanks Steph.
suefortin says
It’s a tough call between Dominion and The Holy Thief … but I would like to vote for The Holy Thief.
Thanks, Sue 🙂
martinhamr says
I vote for The Holy Thief. Thanks, Marta.
Rebecca Bradley says
Thanks Marta. The deadline has already passed and we’re reading Dominion. The date of the meeting is Wednesday 19th November if you want to join us. Just let me know on Google+!