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The Yard Alex Grecian 9780399149542 Books

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The Yard Alex Grecian 9780399149542 Books

*Spoilers ahead* Kept waiting for the pace to pick up, but it never did, slogging through the dialogue and the killer's interior monologue was a bit tedious. The only characters that seemed real/relatable/fun to read were Hammersmith and Blackleg, and they were supporting roles. Day and the others just felt like interchangeable suits. Did not agree at all with the killer's monologues, they gave away the one twist the story had, and he revealed himself to be a unintelligent hot mess who nearly gets caught several times over and his motivations are simply sloppy reflexes. Wish all of those italicized passages had been deleted, not sure why they were necessary since they didn't provide much insight. Or that they'd simply been distorted memories that revealed the foundation for the homicidal adult, much like the flashback of Hammersmith's childhood in the mines.

What was the whole storyline with Shaw and Penelope about? It's ominously built up that these mysterious figures are integral to a hidden agenda, but there is no payoff and the aftermath is just really strange with no purpose. Why does Day seem so uninterested when informed his wife is gravely ill after spending half the book showing how he's so in love with her? That made no sense at all, he keeps making up excuses not to go home and is overruled/forced to go by Hammersmith. The subplot of the two murderous prostitutes was superfluous and also made no sense-- that should have been the actual storyline, with Edwards [also bearded] revealed as the Ripper, his arm having been a casualty of trying to murder them and India was a cover story, hiding in plain sight all along. That he kept Day on because he thought Day would be incompetent and too green to ever solve any of it.. but no. Also felt that the author was unfamiliar with the 19th century other than tidbits gleaned from tv shows and wikipedia-- there were specific mentions of phossy jaw and the recycled tea leaves, but the lacy panties, girdle and corset being pulled on over the head were totally wrong. I could see what the storyline about the birth of forensics was trying to do, and it had potential, but ultimately didn't really work since even the story's own characters didn't care about it and found it novel yet apparently trivial and pointless, and it comes to nothing much when catching the criminal. The fact that Hammersmith's prints are on the razor and he could be on the hook as a suspect is a huge plot point for 2 seconds, then it is never mentioned again and forgotten. ? I found it pretty creepy that the coroner had his 14 year old daughter sketching/studying mutilated corpses, that's usually a recipe for creating a psychopath. Who he then hired out to care for someone's baby. Strange.

I didn't hate it, but this book needed a serious re-edit to straighten out the storyline and flesh out the characters. Some real potential there, but it meandered, the motivations didn't add up and the majority of the dialogue felt forced. I'd give this one star, except that I really liked the characters of Blackleg and Hammersmith, I wanted to see a lot more of them in the story.


Tags : The Yard [Alex Grecian] on Amazon.com. *FREE* shipping on qualifying offers. Victorian London is a cesspool of crime, and Scotland Yard has only twelve detectives€”known as ;The Murder Squad ;€”to investigate countless murders every month. Created after the Metropolitan Police’s spectacular failure to capture Jack the Ripper,Alex Grecian,The Yard,G.P. Putnam's Sons,0399149546,Detectives;England;Fiction.,Murder;Investigation;England;Fiction.,Mystery fiction.,AMERICAN FIRST NOVELISTS,AMERICAN HISTORICAL FICTION,AMERICAN MYSTERY & SUSPENSE FICTION,Detectives,England,Fiction,Fiction - Mystery Detective,Fiction Literary,Fiction Mystery & Detective Historical,Fiction-Mystery & Detective,GENERAL,General Adult,Great BritainBritish Isles,Investigation,Literary,Murder,Mystery & Detective - Historical,MysterySuspense,United States

The Yard Alex Grecian 9780399149542 Books Reviews

Terrific historical atmosphere and very engaging characters. Set in London immediately after Scotland Yard's failure to catch Jack the Ripper, the officers are facing a loss in public confidence. There is a renewed effort that gradually includes new developments in crime detection. This is not a "who done it" but rather a "will they catch him". It engages and holds the reader, particularly those interested in that period of history. I will definitely be taking a look at the remaining books in the series.
Sir Edward is the new director of the Scotland Yard office. He is putting together a murder squad to handle all the murder cases in London. They are many and he thinks he has 12 of the best men on the cases. Walter Day is the newest member and he as well as his co-workers don't think he is qualified to lead the team. Now that one of their own has been murdered and found in a trunk, he must prove himself.

This was a very good historical read. The characters were richly drawn and the life in London at the time was very much a part of the story. You felt as if you were there on the streets. Grecian did a good job with his research, making me look up something for authenticity, and found to my surprise that fingerprinting started much earlier than I thought it had. Very enjoyable and I look forward to the next one.
This book was set in the 1880's in London. Inspector Day has been put in charge of a team of detectives of Scotland yard. A body was found in an old trunk, one of his detectives. As the investigation begins another body is found, another detective. Are the police being hunted? Who will be next?

This book has a lot of twists and turns. Although it may not be historically accurate
I would recommend this entire series to anyone who enjoys Ripper era mysteries suitable for ages 12 and up. Though they are rather "PG" --- they remind me of many enjoyable PBS or BBC mystery programs I watched as a girl. My 13 year old twin sons approve of these tales as the correct balance of history and action.... but honestly wish they were a bit more steamerpunk. I am an historian and would like more detail and adult action. Nevertheless I find the characters likable if a bit unrealistic and predictable. The villains start off timid in this series... but do get better. For me, I must confess I read each book in this series cover to cover when I fly to Dublin for the summer. Ideal airplane , beach, and vacation light mysteries in my opinion. As for my hard copies.... I have yet to have a friend or one of my sons return a loaner! So obviously others find them as entertaining as I do. I have and do recommend any in the series for holiday travel reading. Nice mysteries. Compulsively readable.
I read so much that I have forgotten the voice of the book, but I do know that Grecian captures the times graphically. Reactions to novels are very individual as is mine. In the rigidly class society in the Victorian age and earlier, if captured well, can be deeply distressing and depressing. I found that I stopped reading for a day or two and turned to other novels because of his skillful narration of the story. Of course, it is silly to think that we have advanced beyond those days to a great extent. If we happen to be educated and have a decent income and good social relations, we often have no cause to confront the poor, the ignorant, and the lost. His writing is crisp and direct. The plot struck me as telling as that of Dickens.
*Spoilers ahead* Kept waiting for the pace to pick up, but it never did, slogging through the dialogue and the killer's interior monologue was a bit tedious. The only characters that seemed real/relatable/fun to read were Hammersmith and Blackleg, and they were supporting roles. Day and the others just felt like interchangeable suits. Did not agree at all with the killer's monologues, they gave away the one twist the story had, and he revealed himself to be a unintelligent hot mess who nearly gets caught several times over and his motivations are simply sloppy reflexes. Wish all of those italicized passages had been deleted, not sure why they were necessary since they didn't provide much insight. Or that they'd simply been distorted memories that revealed the foundation for the homicidal adult, much like the flashback of Hammersmith's childhood in the mines.

What was the whole storyline with Shaw and Penelope about? It's ominously built up that these mysterious figures are integral to a hidden agenda, but there is no payoff and the aftermath is just really strange with no purpose. Why does Day seem so uninterested when informed his wife is gravely ill after spending half the book showing how he's so in love with her? That made no sense at all, he keeps making up excuses not to go home and is overruled/forced to go by Hammersmith. The subplot of the two murderous prostitutes was superfluous and also made no sense-- that should have been the actual storyline, with Edwards [also bearded] revealed as the Ripper, his arm having been a casualty of trying to murder them and India was a cover story, hiding in plain sight all along. That he kept Day on because he thought Day would be incompetent and too green to ever solve any of it.. but no. Also felt that the author was unfamiliar with the 19th century other than tidbits gleaned from tv shows and wikipedia-- there were specific mentions of phossy jaw and the recycled tea leaves, but the lacy panties, girdle and corset being pulled on over the head were totally wrong. I could see what the storyline about the birth of forensics was trying to do, and it had potential, but ultimately didn't really work since even the story's own characters didn't care about it and found it novel yet apparently trivial and pointless, and it comes to nothing much when catching the criminal. The fact that Hammersmith's prints are on the razor and he could be on the hook as a suspect is a huge plot point for 2 seconds, then it is never mentioned again and forgotten. ? I found it pretty creepy that the coroner had his 14 year old daughter sketching/studying mutilated corpses, that's usually a recipe for creating a psychopath. Who he then hired out to care for someone's baby. Strange.

I didn't hate it, but this book needed a serious re-edit to straighten out the storyline and flesh out the characters. Some real potential there, but it meandered, the motivations didn't add up and the majority of the dialogue felt forced. I'd give this one star, except that I really liked the characters of Blackleg and Hammersmith, I wanted to see a lot more of them in the story.