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    Death on Blackheath
    Death on Blackheath
    Death on Blackheath
    Audiobook11 hours

    Death on Blackheath

    Written by Anne Perry

    Narrated by Davina Porter

    4/5

    ()

    About this audiobook

    Anne Perry's superb New York Times bestselling novels set in the glorious reign of Victoria are loved by readers far and wide. Now, with this new Charlotte and Thomas Pitt mystery, Perry returns us to that charmed era, when wealth and power rule-but where, alas, poisonous corruption lies coiled in the heart of the empire. As commander of the powerful Special Branch, Thomas Pitt has the job of keeping Britain safe from spies and traitors. So there's no obvious reason why he is suddenly ordered to investigate two minor incidents: the blood, hair, and shards of glass discovered outside the home of naval weapons expert Dudley Kynaston, and the simultaneous disappearance of Mrs. Kynaston's beautiful lady's maid. But weeks later, when the mutilated body of an unidentified young woman is found near Kynaston's home, Pitt realizes that this is no ordinary police investigation. Far from it. Is Kynaston-one of Britain's most valuable scientists-leading a double life? Is Pitt saddled with a conspiracy so devilishly clever that it will ruin him? A baffled Pitt has never needed his friends more desperately, including his indomitable wife, Charlotte; his canny old colleague Victor Narraway; and his personal drawing-room spy, Lady Vespasia Cumming-Gould. But even these allies may not be able to save Pitt-or Britain. Only Anne Perry could have created the tense unfolding of plot and counterplot, love and betrayal, scandal and murder that follows. Death on Blackheath is rich with fascinating characters, authentic period flavor, knife's-edge suspense, and a haunting, unforgettable denouement.
    LanguageEnglish
    PublisherRecorded Books, Inc.
    Release dateMar 25, 2014
    ISBN9781490603728
    Death on Blackheath
    Author

    Anne Perry

    With twenty million books in print, ANNE PERRY's was selected by The Times as one of the twentieth century's '100 Masters of Crime', for more information about Anne and her books, visit: www.anneperry.co.uk

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    Reviews for Death on Blackheath

    4/5

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    • 4/5
      historical fiction (mystery).... charlotte and thomas pitt (#29)..."cozy"...British....19th century...Victorian era
    • 4/5
      Thomas Pitt, now Commander of Special Branch, is called out to look into a matter that at first blush hardly seems like a Special Branch concern: the disappearance of a maid from a wealthy home on Shooters' Hill. The owner of the home, though, is Dudley Kynaston, a critically important naval weapons specialist. Britain can't afford any scandal around him. But it seems that Kitty Ryder has likely run off with her suitor, an itinerant carpenter, and there's little risk of scandal. Pitt is happy to turn the matter back to the local police.

      A few weeks later, a woman's mutilated body is found in a gravel pit not far from the Kynaston home. Although she can't be positively identified, she fits the general description of Kitty Ryder, the missing lady's maid. Now there's a dangerous hint of potential scandal.

      It gets worse when Somerset Carlisle, a sometime friend and ally of Pitt's, starts asking questions in Parliament about the matter, making sure it's a cause célèbre Special Branch--Thomas--can't ignore.

      In this latest Pitt adventure, Charlotte and her sister Emily aren't able to participate as they used to when Pitt was with the Metropolitan Police, but they don't want to be mere spectators, and Emily in particular is feeling bored, frustrated, and insecure. In counterpoint to Pitt's pursuit of a dangerous mystery that threatens national security, Charlotte, Emily, and Great-Aunt Vespasia grapple with what at first seem far more personal and private issues.

      Most of our old friends are here again, and after twenty-nine volumes, the characters and their relationships continue to grow deeper, richer, and more interesting. I honestly felt the series hit a rough patch and nearly collapsed when Pitt was first forced out of the regular police and transferred to Special Branch, and I thought it might peter out. Happily, it hasn't. Perry and her characters found their footing again, and the series has remained a real pleasure.

      Recommended.

      I borrowed this book from the library.
    • 5/5
      Great! Twists and turns and the ending was meticulous. Loved her writing as always. She has such a way with words and phrases.

      "Please do not steal any more corpses and put them in dramatic and important places," she said wryly. "There are other ways of attracting people's attention."
      He gave a very little smile. "You must admit, there are very few that work as well!"

      Loved Aunt Vespasia as always and love (!) the new turn there. Enjoy watching the Pitt children grow up and looking forward to seeing if anything happens with Stoker and Kitty.
    • 3/5
      This audiobook was fast-moving but the attraction is not in the action as much as the character studies author Ann Perry provides. Thomas and Charlotte Pitt are acquainted with many people in local law enforcement and government. When a crime is committed it is often involving one of their many acquaintances. The dilemmas they face often involve those people with government positions or people of high society. Perry is a master at holding the reader's interest as she digs deeper into the behavior of potential suspects. She also captures the essence of the times in which they live
    • 4/5
      Rather than restate the storyline I would rather tell you why I read the Anne Perry books. I enjoy the Thomas and Charlotte Pitt series because of the ongoing characters. With each book the reoccurring characters develop a little more and relationships grow and or change. New characters add dimension to the overall book/story line. Ms. Perry's mysteries are for me enjoyable and stand alone. I need to end this because I have begun to ramble. I hope anyone that reads this and then one of her books will enjoy them half as much as I do.
    • 4/5
      I received this ARC from NetGalley. I'm a big Anne Perry fan. A friends suggestion to read The Cader Street Hangman, almost 20 years ago, engulfed me in Perry and led to a love for historical series. With Death on Blackheath -- I've enjoyed 29 books in her Charlotte & Thomas Pitt mystery series. Some of the novels have been better than others but I'm hooked and will be until Perry ends the series. I still find the stories compelling and all the characters are beloved old friends -- especially Lady Vespasia. With Death on Blackheath, it's obvious that Perry promoting Thomas Pitt to head of Special Branch has refreshed the series, opened up character potential and added a deeper level of intrigue into the stories. I'm really looking forward to #30!
    • 4/5
      Now the head of the Special Branch, Pitt has moved from regular detective work to cases concerning national security. A missing maid and woman's body found in a gravel pit throw suspicion on a naval engineer engaged in top secret government work. Something seems to be amiss in his house. It is up to Pitt to keep the government out of trouble. This books harkens back to earlier books in the series. The dead bodies and some of the characters from Resurrection Row make an appearance. I thought the dead bodies device was bizarre in that one, and it is in this one too. That said, the question of potential treason was interesting. By this point in the series I don't think that Perry has to remind us of period manners quite as often as she does. We know by now that Charlotte doesn't have access to the type of society she did before her marriage. We know that when Emily tries to gather information from society wives it is a delicate operation. This is book 28, we don't need all these reminders, they take up way too much of the book. The mystery was in and of itself interesting, but there was far too much explanation that is, at this point in the series, repetitive.
    • 2/5
      What a disappointment! I love this series of mysteries set in late Victorian London and couldn't wait to grab this book as soon as it came out. However, this installment was truly sub-par. (And there will be spoilers here, so if they bother you, quit reading)Thomas Pitt, late the head of Special Branch is called out to investigate what seems to be a minor incident - blood, hair and shards of glass discovered outside the house of Dudley Kymaston (an expert in naval weaponry) and the disappearance of Mrs. Kynaston's maid. At first it seems as though the maid has run off with her young man and that the blood and hair is the consequence of an ordinary mugging. But several weeks later a mutilated body is found in a gravel pit near Kynaston's house and a member of Parliament, Somerset Carlisle starts asking questions and one Edom Talbot on the Prime Minister's staff starts questioning Pitt's ability to solve the case.Pitt, of course seeks advice from his old boss, Victor Narroway, and his wife's aunt, Lady Vespacia Cumming-Gold. They, along iwth his wife, Charlotte, seem to follow one blind alley after another until finally, after a second mutilated body appears, the deus ex machina literary convention is employed and we find out that the bodies have been stolen from a morgue by Somerset Carlisle to smoke out Edom Talbot who is passing British naval secrets to the Swedes as part of a plot to avenge the death of a young Swedish girls years before. Sound like a mess? Well it is. By the end of 302 pages, I really didn't care who had done what. Please Ms. Perry, do a better job next time.
    • 3/5
      A ladies maid is missing and there is blood on the back steps of her employer, a government engineer working on submarines. Special Branch is investigating to make sure it's not treason or blackmail or any other offense that would embarass the government. Stoker, Thomas' assistant, doggedly pursues Kitty wanting her to be alive, reminding me of the old movie, Laura, with the detective slowly falling in love with the victim. With the help of Charlotte, Emily, Jack, Victor and Lady Vaspacia Thomas and Stoker find Kitty and discover the reason for her disappearance.
    • 5/5
      I have yet to read an Anne Perry book that I didn't enjoy and I am a picky voracious reader! Good, solid plots, fully-fleshed-out characters, somehow always " the same, but different", which is what devoted readers of series ask for of their favorite authors and the authors who manage to offer up the same beloved characters in different settings and new challenges in each successive book in a series are delivering the goods! Long may Ms. Perry wave (and write!)
    • 5/5
      Excellent in an outstanding series. Pitt crosses over and commits to political solutions to state problems.
    • 4/5
      Anne Perry's Death on Blackheath is yet another great Charlotte and Thomas Pitt novel. The story moves along at a comfortable pace, and has a great and unexpected twist to the plot that is truly entertaining.
    • 5/5
      Another wonderful Charlotte and Thomas Pitt story. Thomas who is Commander of the Special Branch that oversees the safety of Britain, is called to a gravel pit to examine a body found dead and mutilated to investigate because a high ranking official lives close by and there was hair and broken glass in front of his house and they have a maid missing. They find another body at the pit and Thomas helps the police investigate that murder.This story is well written as usual and the characters are just as wonderful as ever. Fans of Anne Perry and the Pitts this is a must read.Thanks to Net Galley and Ballantine Books for allowing me to read this book in return for a honest review.
    • 4/5
      Death on Blackheath is another strong entry in the long-running Thomas and Charlotte Pitt series. I think there are a number of reasons why this series is so loved by historical mystery readers like me. The main reason, I think, are the realistic characters that appear in every single book. Thomas and Charlotte Pitt and their friends and family are as real to me as any historical figures could be. Ms. Perry does a wonderful job of putting her readers right into the time frame of her books, which is turn-of-the century England. This book is a little different than most of the previous books as it is vague as to what crimes have been committed. It leaves the reader guessing as to what the true crime is almost until the very end of the book. But there is lots of tension and suspense. Pitt faces some rather unusual moral dilemmas. As usual, the plot is intricate and detailed. The denouement is haunting and tragic and I am left wanting more. I can't wait for the next book in this series.
    • 4/5
      Perry come through again!Blood and hair and broken glass on stone steps, a disappeared lady's maid in a household near Greenwich. Special Branch Commander Pitt is called in because Owner Dudley Kynaston is 'deeply involved in matters of naval defense.'Rosalind Kynaston is puzzled, but all Ailsa, Mrs. Bennett Kynaston, the Dudley's widowed sister-in-law, and uncharitable piece of work can say is, how dare maid, Kitty Ryder, meet someone unsuitable so close to the house and if she does return she should be dismissed.Was the hair and blood evident of an argument, or something more dire?That's what Pitt and the stalwart Stoker have to ascertain. We learn more about who Stoker is in this volume. One's heart warms to this man!There are other high up persons and offices interested in what's going on. Edam Talbot for one. Things spiral out in concentric rings from here to a surprising end.I sympathized with what Charlotte is undergoing. Her sadness that sharing in Pitt's cases as she used to is less possible with his new position. Not that that slows her down too much.A NetGalley ARC
    • 5/5
      Thomas Pitt, as commander of Special Branch, is charged with protecting Britain from spies and traitors. So it is odd that he is called out to investigate what looks to be an ordinary crime – a bit of hair, glass and blood on the stairs as well as the disappearance of a maid – at the home of Dudley Kynaston. However, Kynaston is playing an important role in the development of new naval technology so it is now up to Thomas to keep him safe.However, when the badly mutilated body of a woman who might be the missing maid is dumped near Kynaston’s house, Thomas begins to suspect that there is more going on here than a simple abduction or crime of passion especially when it becomes clear that Kynaston is lying about something, When the murder is brought up in Parliament, Thomas is convinced that what he is looking at is the worst possible crime imaginable - an act of treason. Pitt must now walk a very thin and careful line – if he is wrong, it could cost him his job as well as his and Kynaston’s reputations. But, if he is right, the cost to Britain could be catastrophic. It will take all his considerable skills as well as those of friends and, of course, his wife, Charlotte to solve this, the most important case of his care.Anne Perry is, without a doubt, one of the best writers of historical mysteries today and Death on Blackheath is an excellent example of why. She never fails to create tension and atmosphere while never straying far from the manners, the class strictures, and the mores of the times she is writing about. Despite the fact that this is the 29th book in the Thomas and Charlotte Pitt series, it’s still as fresh, as compelling, as the first and I can’t recommend it highly enough both for fans and for newcomers to the series.