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One of my favorite series of books when I was in grade school was what I called the
"We Were There" series. The concept behind these works of juvenile historical
fiction was to feature children usually between the ages of 10-17 (by no small
coincidence, the age group at which the series was aimed) at a moment of historical
impact. I unfortunately can't remember any of the titles, but they were along the lines of
"We Were There with Lee and Grant at Appomatox," "We Were There At the
Boston Tea Party," and so on. These volumes helped to foster my love of historical
fiction, and when such fiction is wedded with the mystery genre, I'm a guaranteed mark.
Barbara Hambly's underrated series of books featuring Benjamin January is probably the
best example of historical mysteries that you will find on this shore, while Anne Perry
holds sway if you take a swim to the opposite side of the pond. Perry has two series
going, one featuring Thomas and Charlotte Pitt and the other involving an intriguing
ex-policeman turned private investigator (before such an occupation had a proper name)
named William Monk and his wife Hester. FUNERAL IN BLUE, Perry's latest novel, is of the
Monk series and is possibly her most ambitious to date.
I've one quibble with FUNERAL IN BLUE, which I'll get out of the way at the beginning.
It's Perry's 11th book to feature William Monk, so there's a lot of backstory going on. If
you're jumping on board the series now, it's like riding on a running board --- you're
going to be a bit unbalanced here and there and frequently think that you're going to fall
off; but if you keep moving, you'll be okay. FUNERAL IN BLUE is like that, and Perry's
ability to lend a steadying hand to new readers, to bring what has gone before while
keeping the story moving, is somewhat wanting. It can be done; Hambly, for one, does an
excellent job of it with each new January volume. It is somewhat of a distraction in
FUNERAL IN BLUE --- a minor one, but a distraction nonetheless. Ultimately, however, the
reader, like the running board passenger, will get where they are going if they just hang
on.
Monk is an interesting character, an amnesiac who has no memory and little knowledge of
what his life was like five years prior to the events of FUNERAL IN BLUE. Hester, Monk's
wife, is a nurse at a London hospital. The immediate tale is set in mid-19th Century
London; the streets are awash with news of the "War Between the States" in
America, and the connection between physical and psychological conditions is just
beginning to be fully explored. The city is rocked by the murders of two women in the
studio of a famous artist. One of the women is referred to, with a slightly raised eyebrow
and a wink, as a "model." The other is the wife of Dr. Kristian Beck, a surgeon
who is a colleague of Hester Monk and Lady Callandra Daviot, a wealthy widow who has
discrete, unrequited designs upon Beck. Beck is quickly suspected to be the murderer of
the women and is summarily arrested, and Daviot entreats William Monk to undertake an
investigation to demonstrate Beck's innocence and to find the true murderer.
Monk's investigation, unlike those of modern investigators, is carried out with the
police. The Beck investigation is carried out by Inspector Runcorn, an individual with
whom Beck shares a mutual dislike and a grudging respect. Monk gradually discovers that
Elissa Beck had secrets the likes of which were bringing ruin and the potential for shame
upon her husband, and which also gave him ample motive for murdering her. Monk soon finds,
with each new discovery he makes concerning both the past and present of the victim and
the accused, that he is actually and unintentionally proving the case of the People vs.
Beck. Monk's integrity is such, however, that he must pursue the truth, wherever it may
lead, even if it goes against the man he is ostensibly trying to save.
Perry's narrative weaves through the somewhat complicated storyline of FUNERAL IN BLUE
quite nicely. She is never hurried, yet her pacing is such that the story never drags.
Perry tosses in bits and pieces about life in London and the social customs under which it
functioned, and does it in the manner of the best of historical fiction, slipping factoids
in as secondary points so smoothly that one barely notices that they are there. Yet, taken
together, they form a wonderful and important foundation for the novel itself. One can see
where we were, how we arrived at where we are, and in some cases, where we may be going.
FUNERAL IN BLUE does not resolve any issues raised in the previous volumes of the Monk
series and raises a couple of new scenarios, which, no doubt, will be addressed in future
novels. Newer readers will be tempted to visit the previous Monk books and should do so in
order to enhance their enjoyment of FUNERAL IN BLUE and the chronicles yet to come.
--- Reviewed by Joe Hartlaub
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