Rennie Airth: River of Darkness

Genre:
Mystery - British, historical fiction

Escape Experience:
You're a romantic, melancholy soul--a noble, heroic figure scarred by past experiences, struggling to rebuild your life in picturesque, rural England in the shadowy aftermath of World War I.

Read this if you're into...
Wearing Liberty of London dresseswith a vintage WWI trench watch that you inherited from your great-grandfather.

Plot:

Someone's prowling the storybook villages of Surrey, shattering the quiet sanctuary of homes and butchering unsuspecting inhabitants. (Far from being a "cozy," the violence is depicted in full graphic detail, not tucked away behind the scenes.)

Pace: Reading this is like walking in a pair of...
Wellington boots, while hunting for wild morel mushrooms in the woods.

Cast of Characters:

• John Madden - "A grave and good man," scarred by the horrors of trench warfare and the loss of his wife and daughter in the great flu pandemic of 1918, Detective Inspector Madden struggles to repair and rebuild his life in post-World War I England.




• Dr. Helen Blackwell - Beautiful and charming, beloved by all creatures great and small, a physician and woman ahead of her time, the paragon that is Helen Blackwell gives John Madden a reason for living.





• Angus Sinclair - Madden's mentor, supervisor and friend, benevolent and supportive Chief Inspector Sinclair plays second-fiddle to Madden in work and in love--with nary a trace of a competitive edge.




• Billy Styles - Refreshingly human, young Billy displays all the insecurities of a newly appointed Scotland Yard constable. He makes mistakes and harbors feelings we can all relate to. 

Books in the Madden Series:

1. River of Darkness - Set in the immediate aftermath of World War I.
2. The Blood-Dimmed Tide - Set at the start of World War II.
3. The Dead of Winter - Set at the conclusion of World War II.

Other authors you might like:

• P.D. James - Meet Adam Dalgliesh in Cover Her Face, the first book in the series.
• Martha Grimes - The Man With a Load of Mischief kicks off the Richard Jury series; Melrose Plant nicely counterbalances Jury's melancholy and moodiness.
• Anne Perry - No Graves As Yet launches her World War I series featuring Joseph, Matthew and Judith Reavely.

Links:

• About the author - Official site; Wiki site
• History of New Scotland Yard
• On location in Country Surrey, England - Municipal site; Wiki site; tourism (www.VisitSurrey.com)
• Post-World War I era - Aftermath of WWI; Roaring Twenties; British culture; fashion reform; music
• Flu pandemic of 1918