REVIEW
Deryn Lake - Death at the Devil's Tavern
Hodder £15.99
The cover , with The Devil’s Tavern , an eerie light in the upstairs window , and the ships banked on the mud waiting for the tide promises an atmospheric murder mystery inside the covers and this is what you get. Deryn Lake’s writing is strongly evocative and in this, her third book set in Georgian London, a lot of the action takes place on and around the Thames. The picture she creates of the river at that time is one I would not have missed.
London Bridge dating back to the 12th Century, standing on eighteen arches with a double row of shops and houses perched higgledy-piggledy upon its stone back, a test of nerve and skill to journey under it and brave the roaring cataracts formed by the arches - the tenter grounds on the south bank where cloth is stretched and held down with tenterhooks, the wharves with names like Lime, Dung and Timber.
John Rawlings, the young apothecary, makes a very attractive hero. The opening sentences have him chasing his hat lifted off by the strong March wind and blown towards the riverside then clamping it down firmly on to his new wig bought specially for his attendance at the Apothecaries Hall in order to receive his freedom of the Company. For today he has been made a Yeoman of the Worshipful Society of Apothecaries., a sedate and stately title which does not sit easily with his bubbling, youthful vigour.
He enjoys life with his friend Samuel Swann, goldsmith, nurses a continuing passion for Coralie Clive, an actress who puts her occupation above any romantic association but still looks at the (married) Countess Serafina de Vignolles with adoration on occasion and in this book shares tender moments with a young fisher girl who frequents the Devils Tavern where she sells her oysters. The Blind Beak John Fielding, brother of Henry Fielding the writer, finds John an invaluable aide and has now arranged an apprentice for John , a character who promises to be an interesting addition to the cast. John now has someone to mind his shop in Shug Lane and is free to pursue investigations for The Blind Beak more frequently without putting his trade in jeopardy.
Then of course there’s the murder mystery itself. The dead body which John Rawlings comes across in a room overlooking the Thames while celebrating his newly gained status and title at the Devils Tavern turns out to be the missing groom from a wedding which John had happened upon in a church near to the river while on his way to the tavern. The grooms family had all been dressed in black, not quite the appropriate attire for such a happy occasion . Such openly registered disapproval of the event provides a clear pointer that all is not well in family relationships and members of the family are a good place to start seeking motives for murder. There are plenty of suspects. The murder enquiry puts certain people in danger and causes some heartache for our hero.
Readers of the two previous John Rawlings books will be delighted with this one. New readers have a treat in store.
(P.E.D.)