On Copper Street

"Detective Inspector Tom Harper finds answers hard to come by in his latest, most challenging, investigation to date."

Nothing is more satisfying than a Chris Nickson historical police procedural, set in various time periods, in Leeds. Why Leeds? The author says "It's where I was born and raised , and that puts a place in your bones."

I think there is more than that however. Leeds, in whichever epoch we see here described, exemplifies a time and place that existed and mattered and vanished but not without a trace. Each subsequent era left it's mark upon those who follow, other regular working class men and women, who chose to make their city a good place.

Why police procedurals? Because good and bad people exemplify all places, and are a necessity to describing a society. Chris Nickson is an accomplished author who writes with a deep sociological perspective of "his" Leeds.

D.I Tom Harper, soon to be Superintendent Harper, becomes plunged into a series of murders. "Leeds, England. March, 1895. The day after his release from prison, petty criminal Henry White is found stabbed to death at his terraced home on Copper Street."

These crimes are bookended by his promotion, and the deaths of important people in his life. His touchstones are his wife, Annabelle a suffragist and political figure in her own right, and his daughter Mary. His predecessor's death is a blow to him but he leaves him a touching legacy gift.

If you like historical police novels, this one has all the elements, with a maiming by acid of two youngsters which leaves several mysteries of it's own. Several innocent or well meaning people came to untimely ends which is why I did not always read it at night.

Please join Superintendent Harper and Annabelle,newly promoted Inspector Ash and Fireman,, former copper, Billy Reed in Victorian Leeds. Start with "Gods of Gold" Book 1 ,why don't you? You will enjoy this series.

I received an ARC via Netgalley, and Severn House for an honest review.

4 and 1 / 2 stars

Responding to a murder on Copper Street in 1895, Detective Inspector Tom Harper and Sergeant Ash find the body of Henry White. He was just released from prison the day before his murder occurred. He was convicted for receiving stolen items.

Returning to the station, Harper receives a report of an acid-throwing incident at a local bakery. A young boy and girl, both just thirteen, were splashed with acid while the perpetrator ran away. The young people were well liked so the reason for the attack seems to be inexplicable. Harper has his old friend Inspector Billy Reed investigate the incident under his review.

Harper is interviewing witnesses and those who knew Henry White. He seems to be getting nowhere until he sees a copy of White’s will. He became suspicious when White’s attorney wouldn’t let him see it. Finally, he has a lead at last.

More murders, one a copper, bring the tension to a fever pitch. The clues are coming more quickly now, but what to make of them? The pace of the novel picks up.

The murderer comes as a surprise. I did not see it coming at all.

The descriptions in this book bring to life the 1895’s in England. They are colorful and evocative. You are there in the little city of Leeds, seeing what Harper sees, feeling what he does. Mr. Nickson does a remarkable job writing the “color” in this book.

This book is very well written and plotted. It all fit together beautifully. This is the first of Mr. Nickson’s books that I have read and it certainly won’t be my last. I truly enjoyed this book.

I want to send a big thank you to Netgalley and Severn House/Severn House Publishers for forwarding to me a copy of this most excellent book to read.

"Times are changing," Tollman said with regret. "And not for the better."

Yet some things never do seem to change in retrospect. Crime, greed, fabrications, and brutality still line the streets of many a city, town, and village no matter where the century's shade does fall.

The frenetic buzz inside the City Police station of Leeds, England ushers in the latest news. The body of a newly released criminal, Henry White, has been found stabbed to death in his own bed. It's March of 1895 and these "coppers" wonder why someone would want White dead after only being out of jail for 24 hours.

D.I. Tom Harper and Sergeant Ash investigate the murder that leads them on a trail of stolen goods. Henry White was fencing silver articles of the highest quality. Exactly to whom was White delivering his stash? And why was his criminality short-lived?

A frantic call comes into the station later in the day. Someone burst through the door of a local bakery and splashed acid on a young couple. The young girl was disfigured and the teenage boy was blinded. Who would have done such a dastardly deed and why to these innocent individuals?

Chris Nickson presents quite the exciting read that encompasses the Industrial Age, newly scientific police procedurals, the birth of the Independent Labour Party, and the budding Suffragist Society.

We are introduced to Annabelle Harper, Tom's wife, and his three year old daughter, Mary. Annabelle is an outgoing, demonstrative woman who is active in women's rights and, in particular, the determined movement for the women's right to vote.

Nickson transports you through the winding streets of ol' Leeds and the plight of the poor and desperate. His characters are interspersed with the honorable along with the criminally flawed. The dialogue is crisp and laced with the jargon of the time period. Nickson's storyline is multi-layered and multi-pronged. It beckons you to open the creaking doors of these rundown tenements in search of more fatalities. And are there any connections from one door to the next?

On Copper Street reads as a standalone while being part of an entertaining series. Bravo, Chris Nickson!

I received a copy of On Copper Street through NetGalley for an honest review. My thanks to Severn Books and to Chris Nickson for the opportunity.

28/2/17 On Copper Street

****

I would like to thank Netgalley and Severn House Publishers for an advance copy of On Copper Street, the fifth Victorian police procedural set in Leeds to feature DI Tom Harper.

The novel opens with the death of Henry White, a small time crook who was released from jail the day before. Harper had wanted to question him about the silver he had been caught with when he was arrested but finds him stabbed to death. Unraveling the mystery leads to more deaths and plenty of headaches. In the meantime 2 teenagers have been the victims of an acid attack in fire brigade Inspector Billy Reid's wife's bakery. Again no one knows anything.

On Copper Street is a good read. It has an ingenious plot with plenty of mystery and puzzles, not all of which are totally resolved. I know this is realistically what happens in most investigations but I find it a bit disappointing in fiction. It has a linear plotline, which I always prefer, and works in the traditional way with the detectives making progress as each meagre piece of information adds to the overall picture. There are some surprises in the plot which I didn't expect.

Tom Harper is a good protagonist. He is a man of the people so doesn't always get on with the police hierarchy but is learning how to get his own way. I think he is probably an unusual man for his times in that he supports his wife wholeheartedly in her politicking for both the Labour Party and the suffragette movement, again not causes dear to the heart of the hierarchy. He is also a smart detective and highly regarded by his peers.

The city of Leeds also has a starring role in the novel and Mr Nickson does a sterling job in describing the hard working conditions for manual labourers and the even harsher existence of those not working.

I enjoyed On Copper Street and have no hesitation in recommending it as a good read.

Love Victorian mysteries and now I have to add Chris Nickson to my list of authors that I follow.
This is the first book that I read by him. Liked the fact that it takes place not in London but in another city in England. He captures the feelings and the atmosphere of Leeds during the 1890.s so well that one could actually feel like they are living in that period of time. The reader feels the utter frustration of Harper and his police force in trying to capture the unknown killer or killers and the acid thrower's name and motive. There are a lot of should have, could have, would have moments in the lives of the police and of their wives.

Leeds 1895: DI Harper and Sergeant Ash stop in at 13 Copper Street to call on recently released Henry White who is about to reveal why he was in receipt of stolen goods.Then there is an acid attack in a bakery owned by a former police inspector. Can the two solve the crimes before another takes place.

Told over the course of a two week period, this was a realistic look into life in the 1890s. The burgeoning police force was often up against rampant crime; life was harsh; the workhouse often dominated the social landscape; the suffragette movement was in its infancy; all of which made for a nice historical context.

I hadn't read the others in the series, but will most likely go back to the beginning and start again. Having said that, it was easy to catch up and get a sense of the interaction between the main characters. The plot was teased out chapter by chapter and clues dropped like proverbial breadcrumbs. All in all, an enjoyable read.