Rating: 4/5
Review:
A readable book, but not Taylor's best
This is a decent, very readable book from Andrew Taylor, but
it's not one of his best, I think.
Ashes Of London is a thriller set during and after the Fire
Of London, between September and Christmas 1666. It involves murder, financial skulduggery and
political intrigue and introduces us to James Marwood, a clerk in Whitehall
who becomes an investigator on behalf of the King's fixer. We also meet Cat Lovett, the intelligent but
oppressed young woman with both the desire and skill to become an architect,
who becomes embroiled in the whole business.
Both are well painted and sympathetic characters who are being set up
for a "massive series."
There is actually little mystery here as the perpetrators of
the crimes become known to us pretty early on, but there is plenty of tension
and pursuit, and I found the book an enjoyable read overall. Andrew Taylor's knowledge and research is, as
always, extensive and deep. (Unusually,
it's not flawless this time; the errors are wholly insignificant - like Wren
already already being a Commissioner for the Rebuilding of London while the
Fire was still at its height, which is a bit previous, for example – but Taylor
is normally so accurate that I was surprised.)
He creates a good picture of London
at the time of the Fire and of the political and religious intrigues and
tensions which still remained after the Restoration.
In previous books, most notably the excellent Anatomy of
Ghosts, Taylor strikes an excellent balance between the speech of the time and
modern English in the mouths of his characters, making the dialogue both
readable and seemingly natural to the time.
Here, he is not nearly so sure-footed; for example, modern contractions
are used almost invariably, so we get "We'll see," or "You don't
need to know" rather than "We shall see" or "You need not
know." I found this shift of
balance to the modern vernacular rather spoiled the period feel for me, and
this and the somewhat workaday plot and the now apparently obligatory cliché of
the Modern Feminist Woman In A Historical Novel did tarnish my enjoyment
rather. I know Taylor
is making valid and important points about the historical (and modern)
treatment of women, but it's becoming a tired device through which to do it.
These reservations aside, I enjoyed the book and it kept me
involved until the (slightly predictable, convenient and somewhat silly)
resolution. This may not be Andrew
Taylor's best work, but it's a very readable book and I can recommend it.
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