Leeds, May 1825. Thieftaker Simon Westow is hired by Sir Robert Foley to find four silver cups stolen by his servant. The cups are a family treasure, crafted by local silversmith Arthur Mangey over a century before. Meanwhile, Simon has also been invited to witness the demolition of Middle Row, where Mangey reputedly had a secret workshop for coin clipping, the very crime he was hung for in 1696. Is it a coincidence or a terrible omen? Simon’s curiosity swiftly turns to horror when he discovers Foley’s servant lying dead in the clandestine room. How can a long-dead criminal be involved in the servant’s demise? Simon needs all the help he can get from his assistant Jane and deadly protégé Sally to navigate the twisted path from history to the present amidst the growing number of dead bodies. But is the truth worth dying for?

Kirkus Reviews seems to like it, praising the “plentiful historical details, and a real feeling for Leeds in all its gritty glory.” Read the whole thing.

Booklist calls the series “a real find for historical-mystery fans” and says that the book is “brimming with
Nickson’s trademark period details, memorable characters, and realistic portrayal of life in
nineteenth-century England—but also filled with frightening twists, bloody violence, suspense,
and danger—this may just be Nickson’s best Simon Westow book yet.” The full review is here.

Promoting Crime Fiction is full of compliments, saying “all the characterisation and scene setting are excellent, and the plot is complex and cleverly crafted. This is a brilliant, fast-paced, historical novel.” Read the full thing here.

A very lovely review from the Between the Covers blog. You can read it all here. In this “excellent historical thriller,” the author “never sugar-coats history, and makes us well aware that modern Leeds, with its universities, its international sporting venues and museums, was built on the blood sweat and tears of millions of ordinary people who grew up, toiled, loved lived and died under the smoky pall of its foundry furnaces, and had the deafening percussion of industrial hammers forever ringing in their ears.”

The Historical Novel Society has some lovely words about the book they call an “excellent crime thriller, set in 1825 Leeds,” noting that “[t]his is a complex multiple-murder mystery set in smoke-filled, murky mid-industrial revolution Leeds; an atmospheric tale made even more so by Nickson’s obvious research on knife-fights, and his evident love and respect for his home town.”

Read the full review here.

A very interesting assessment in Yorkshire Bylines says “It’s both reassuring and frustrating that the main themes of the book, those of inequality and corruption in offices of power, are still problems our society is dealing with two hundred years later. But this is why these books are so clever, they’re a reminder that human nature stays the same, wherever we are in history, and we need to not become complacent.”

It’s all here.