Christopher Fowler’s Peculiar Crimes Unit novels have been hailed for their originality, suspense, and unforgettable characters. Now Arthur Bryant, John May, and their team of proud eccentrics have been given only one week to hunt down a murderer they’ve already caught once—and who is now luring them down into the darkest shadows of the London Underground.The young man they seek is an enigma. His … is an enigma. His identity is false. His links to society are invisible. A search of his home yields no clues. The Peculiar Crimes Unit knows only this: Somehow Mr. Fox got out of a locked room and killed one of their best and brightest. Facing a shutdown, Bryant and May learn that their man, expertly disguised, has struck again in the world’s oldest subway system. But as their search takes them into the vast labyrinth of tunnels that tie the city together, they discover a fresh mystery as bizarre as anything they have ever faced. . . .
As the city blithely goes about its way, as tales of ghost stations and Underground legends emerge, Bryant and May, men of opposite methods, are each getting closer to what lies hidden at the heart of London’s celebrated Tube—and to the madness that is driving their man to murder.
Sophisticated, fast-paced, and confounding until its final twist, Bryant & May off the Rails is Christopher Fowler dead on track and at the height of his power to beguile, bewitch, and entertain.
BONUS: This edition contains an excerpt from Christopher Fowler’s The Memory of Blood.
Praise for Bryant & May off the Rails
“Life always seems livelier whenever Arthur Bryant and John May are on a case.”—The New York Times Book Review
“Fowler, like his crime-solvers, is deadpan, sly, and always unexpectedly inventive.”—Entertainment Weekly
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The senior detectives of the unique Peculiar Crimes Unit” are the imaginative characters of Christopher Fowler’s British Bryant and May series. This group is unlike any other group of characters in British crime novels.
I recommend that you read this series in order so that you understand the quirky workings of this unique unit and its two senior members.
While there is always humor in these books, over the years as they struggle to keep the unit from being disbanded, the crimes can be horrific and the plots are imaginative. I read dozens of British police procedurals and these are my favorites.
Bryant & May Off the Rails ( and the rest of this series) is a pleasure to read. The language is erudite and descriptive, evoking London past and present. I love the element of fantasy that runs through the series, as well as the determination and creativity of the two stalwart main characters, who are ever out to save the world (while growing a marijuana pot plant under the desk).
Supposed to be wacky. I wasn’t caught up in it and I didn’t finish it.
I love the Bryant and May series. Can’t get enough of the doings of the whole PCU crew. I hope the author never retires these cast of characters.
These books are always fun and well written.
a bit more ponderous than i had expected
All of the Bryant & May books are well worth reading, and in most cases rereading. The author fills these books with characters that are genuine in their humanity and in many cases banal in their evil. Also filled with interesting offbeat facts about London and its history new and old, esp old that for me makes me go out and do further reading.
The title characters are 2 Senior detectives, who are senior in every way. Age, experience, craftines in getting around superiors and arcane knowledge. May is suave and in control, Bryant is the older, messier in life and thinking, always going off on tangents, but he is the heart and soul of this slighly offbeat group.
These books are magical thinking, sometimes horor, always anenjoyable good read.
I love these hilarious stories and I can’t wait for the next one to be released!
I love the Bryant and May books. A great duo.
I liked it but found it a little dated, and not in a good way. I could not get into the special relationship between the main characters. However, there is enough there for me to give it a second chance somewhere down the line.
Enjoyable
Love Bryant & May stories. They are original, full of quirky characters, Fully entertaining stories.
All of Mr Fowler’s PCU books are thoroughly delightful. They are, indeed, whimsical and the characters are perfect for their roles. I appreciate the clean language, the twisty plots and the fact that, while the scenes are sometimes gruesome, he manages to lighten them with humor so one never comes away with the scenes of some grisly murder embedded in the brain! Excellent books.
I have read several Bryant and May mysteries. I have enjoyed all of them. The characters are fun and apart from the murder mystery itself, the author gives a lot of information about London and its history. However this was not my favorite.
Always enjoyable
I thought this book was wonderful. Interesting characters. Great story. I am looking for more books by this author.
The characters are a hoot! They are so unconventional and unexpected. The plots are always interesting.
Not the type of book I read. I didn’t finish it
I love this series. I have read them all. The characters are so amusing that I find myself laughing out loud.
The mysteries are some of the best ever written.