Dan Leno and the Limehouse Golem - Peter Ackroyd

I WILL NOT REVEAL ANYTHING WHICH WILL ILLUMINATE ANY OF THE PLOT TWISTS OR RUIN THE END OF THE BOOK! I was asked to read "Dan Leno and the Limehouse Golem" for my course at University and I am delighted to say that in three years of trawling through some of the worst texts I have ever laid eyes on, this novel made it all worth while. It is always exciting when you find a real gem of a novel that you can't put down and I ended up reading this in 2 days, pausing only for sleep and food. --> INTRODUCTION: Peter Ackroyd, whose other works include "Hawksmoor" and his biographies of T.S.Eliot and Dickens, no ...  Read the complete review

Introduction Peter Ackroyd is probably most famous for his biographies of Dickens and T S Eliot and I had no idea until recently that he also wrote crime fiction. Being fond of crime fiction set in Victorian London, particularly that of Anne Perry, I expected to enjoy the book and was not disappointed. Although it is crime fiction, the quality of the writing is far better than most crime fiction and the book would also have a place in the modern classics section. The story was so realistic that I actually checked whether it was based on a true story - it isn't, but it is incredibly believable. The author Peter Ackroyd sets the majority of his books ...  Read the complete review

A crime novel, an historical novel, a who-done-it (or perhaps that should be a who's-doing-it) and a horror novel all rolled into one. Peter Ackroyd succeeds in blending together a number of genres into a compelling and flawless novel. It's been a few years since I bought my copy at an airport. From there I took it on holiday and had finished it by the third day, so I read it again. After that I passed it around family and friends and didn't see it again for over eighteen months (and no, it wasn't because they were slow readers). Make no mistake, this is a stunning novel. I had already had a go at reading "Hawksmoor" by ...  Read the complete review