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Title details for Instruments of Darkness by Imogen Robertson - Available

Instruments of Darkness

A Novel

by Imogen Robertson
Wanda McCaddon
Audiobook
1 of 1 copy available
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1 of 1 copy available
In the year 1780, Harriet Westerman, the willful mistress of a country manor in Sussex, finds a dead man on her grounds with a ring bearing the crest of Thornleigh Hall in his pocket. Not one to be bound by convention or to shy away from adventure, she recruits a reclusive local anatomist named Gabriel Crowther to help her find the murderer, and historical suspense's newest investigative duo is born.


For years, Mrs. Westerman has sensed the menace of neighboring Thornleigh Hall, seat of the Earl of Sussex. It is the home of a once-great family that has been reduced to an ailing invalid, his whorish wife, and his alcoholic second son, a man haunted by his years spent as a redcoat in the Revolutionary War. The same day, Alexander Adams is slain by an unknown killer in his London music shop, leaving his children orphaned. His death will lead back to Sussex and to an explosive secret that has already destroyed one family and threatens many others.


Instruments of Darkness combines the brooding atmosphere of Anne Perry with the complex, compelling detail of Tess Gerritsen, moving from drawing room to dissecting room, from coffee house to country inn. Mrs. Westerman and Mr. Crowther are both razor-sharp minds, and their personalities breathe spirit into this gripping historical mystery.

  • Creators

  • Publisher

  • Release date

    March 9, 2011

  • Formats

    • OverDrive Listen audiobook

      • ISBN: 9781452620466
      • File size: 327882 KB
      • Duration: 11:23:05

  • Languages

    • English

  • Reviews

    • AudioFile Magazine
      Wanda McCaddon's elegant narration is the perfect complement to this refined historical mystery. The story takes us to 1780s England, where the formidable Mrs. Harriet Westerman has found a dead body on her estate. Her first act is to summon Gabriel Crowther, a reclusive anatomist who has recently taken up residence locally. The two discover that a mystery is at hand and hasten to solve it, only to uncover a deeply tangled web of deceit and murder. McCaddon does a superior job depicting characters from every social strata--man, woman, or child--and her skillful pacing maintains the natural tension of the plot while helping listeners discern the myriad elements of this divinely intricate story. K.O. © AudioFile 2012, Portland, Maine
    • Publisher's Weekly

      December 13, 2010
      Set in West Sussex in 1780, Robertson's auspicious debut introduces the unlikely sleuthing team of anatomist Gabriel Crowther and independent-minded Harriet Westerman, mistress of Caveley Park. When Westerman happens on the stabbed body of a man, eventually identified as Carter Brook, on her land on the track to Thornleigh Hall, Crowther agrees to help her catch the murderer. The secretive Crowther, who's maintained a reclusive existence since moving to the area, finds that Brook's death may be connected to the search for a long-lost heir to the Thornleigh estate. Meanwhile in London, someone knifes to death Alexander Adams, who bears the same first name as the lost heir, in Adams's music shop. While the killer's identity will surprise few, the book works splendidly as a period thriller, with complicated leads and informative details that illuminate 18th-century England for modern readers. Dry humor leavens what otherwise would be a grim story line.

Formats

  • OverDrive Listen audiobook

subjects

Languages

  • English

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