The paranormal answer to Sherlock Holmes and Dr. Watson, Jesperson and Lane are turning the Victorian era upside down in this bewitching series from John W. Campbell Award winner Lisa Tuttle. “A lively, entertaining blend of murder mystery and supernatural adventure . . . Arthur Conan Doyle would have approved.”—George R. R. Martin, on The Curious Affair of the Somnambulist & the Psychic Thief Somnambulist & the Psychic Thief
“Witch!” cries the young man after stumbling unexpectedly into the London address of the consulting-detective partnership of Mr. Jasper Jesperson and Miss Lane. He makes the startling accusation while pointing toward Miss Lane . . . then he drops dead. Thus begins the strangest case yet to land—quite literally—on the doorstep of Jesperson and Lane.
According to the coroner, Charles Manning died of a heart attack—despite being in perfect health. Could he have been struck down by a witch’s spell? The late Mr. Manning’s address book leads Jesperson and Lane to the shrieking pits of Aylmerton, an ancient archaeological site reputed to be haunted by a vengeful ghost. There they sift through the local characters, each more suspicious than the last: Manning’s associate, Felix Ott, an English folklore enthusiast; Reverend Ringer, a fierce opponent of superstition; and the Bulstrode sisters, a trio of beauties with a reputation for witchcraft.
But when an innocent child goes missing, suddenly Jesperson and Lane aren’t merely trying to solve one murder—they’re racing to prevent another.
Don’t miss any of Lisa Tuttle’s enchanting Jesperson and Lane novels:
THE CURIOUS AFFAIR OF THE SOMNAMBULIST AND THE PSYCHIC THIEF | THE WITCH AT WAYSIDE CROSS
Praise for Lisa Tuttle
“A stylish, distinctive storyteller.”—The Washington Post Book World
“This John W. Campbell Award–winning author remains one of fantasy’s best.”—Publishers Weekly
“Sleepwalkers, psychics, and the spirits of the dead (or are they?) make for a heady stew in Lisa Tuttle’s latest, The Curious Affair of the Somnambulist & the Psychic Thief, the first full-length novel about Jasper Jesperson and Miss Lane, a dauntless duo of Victorian detectives first introduced in her stories for Down These Strange Streets and Rogues. They’re an entertaining pair, and it’s great to see them back in action in a longer work. Here’s hoping this is only the first in a long series of Lane and Jesperson adventures. Tuttle does a lovely job of putting us back in the foggy streets of Victorian London in this lively, entertaining blend of murder mystery and supernatural adventure. Arthur Conan Doyle would have approved.”—George R. R. Martin, on The Curious Affair of the Somnambulist & the Psychic Thief
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quick read, cute book!
Too boring and irritating for me to finish
This is the first book by Lisa Tuttle that I have attempted to read, and I now I know that I am not a fan of this author. This is the second book in this series about a pair of Victorian paranormal detectives who live in London who remind me of Holmes and Watson. I thought that the book started off well with an interesting murder and good Victorian-era setting details. I also liked how the mystery involved really cool English folklore, including something like a banshee.
However, I had a few problems with the book. First, I really wish that the author had told us in a couple of paragraphs about the nature of Miss Lane’s and Mr. Jesperson’s relationship and how they met. It really bothered me trying to figure it out. Secondly, Miss Lane lives in the same house as her male work partner. If you set your book in Victorian England, you should depict realistic culture. The book does not address the fact that Miss Lane would not be able to mingle with or get any work done among polite society once they know that she, an unmarried woman, lives with a single man. Lastly, the writing style is too dry and boring for me. I was so bored that I gave up after reading only 27% of the book. Other mystery readers might love this book, but I do not.
I received a free advanced reading copy via Netgalley, and I voluntarily wrote this honest review.
The premise was promising, but, just didn’t quite live up to the possibility.
I received a free copy from NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.
If I had to describe this book in one word, I’d have to say quaint. It is a charming mystery with a Victorian setting.
A private investigation agency run by Mr. Jesperson and Miss Lane. The two are thrown into a case when a man, Charles Manning, shows up on their doorstep asking for help, collapses and dies. Although, his death was ruled a natural cause, Jesperson is suspicious. The dead man’s brother enlists Jesperson and Lane’s help.
As Jesperson and Lane retrace Mannings footsteps, they learn of other strange deaths. They are told about the shrieking pits where rumors abound about fairies and ghosts. Then one evening, a baby goes missing, and Jesperson and Lane have another mystery on their hands to solve.
This is compared to Sherlock and Watson, but with a paranormal aspect, that I enjoyed.
This is the second book in the Curious Affairs series for the main characters Jesperson & Lane. I have not read the first book but I was still able to enjoy this one. The characters were already developed when I started. This caused the story to jump into action in the first sentence. I enjoyed that. And as I read the story I was able to gather what I didn’t know about the characters. This is a great mystery story. A man enters their house and drops dead after accusing Miss Lane of being a witch. Now they must figure out who this man was and what caused his aggressive accusation. The adventure begins. The deeper they dig the more shocks them. This was such a fun journey. I really enjoyed this detective partnership. I am going to definitely check out the first book. I highly recommend this book to mystery fans of all types. This is written in a British vocabulary style. I did have to look up a few words but to me that was fun. And once I got the hang of the writing style the story took over for me. I found myself having a hard time putting it down. There was surprise after surprise. I hope there will be more from this duo!
This second book was a delightful surprise – while I enjoyed the first in the series, I felt that there were some shortcomings and that it would have benefited from a more thorough-going edit. This sequel hit just the right tone I think, and really tightened things up – the result was a thoroughly entertaining mystery that moved at just the right pace throughout.
The characters are what pulled me in to the first book, and what held me through the course of the story, even when it seemed to meander a bit. This time around, the meandering path has been forced into a more structured one and that really allowed the characters to shine… I enjoy Di as a protagonist – she’s a delightful blend of sassy and self-doubting that renders her altogether relatable. Jasper is a bit over the top, but he’s supposed to be somewhat awkward and quirky, like all the best Sherlock-type detectives (up to and including the Great Man himself), and so he plays well as a foil/compatriot to the more grounded Di. The supporting characters more than pull their own weight also, adding a nice insulating layer of intrigue, secrets, and surprises. The supernatural element was significantly played down in this one – I found that aspect to be a bit over-played in the first book, and think that the more straightforward handling of the mystery in this installment read a lot truer to the feel of the world/characters on hand.
The series really stepped up its game here, and I definitely look forward to more Jesperson and Lane adventures!
The Curious Affair of the Witch at Wayside Cross is available in paperback now; the Kindle edition releases November 28, 2017.
My review copy was provided by NetGalley.
A young man after stumbling unexpectedly into the London address of the consulting-detective partnership of Mr. Jesperson and Miss Lane screams “Witch” and dies. Thus begins the strangest case yet to land, quite literally, on the doorstep of Jesperson and Lane.
It is suspected that Mr. Charles Manning died of a heart attack, despite the fact that he was considered to be in perfect health. The late Mr. Manning’s address book leads Jesperson and Lane to the shrieking pits of Aylmerton, an ancient archaeological site reputed to be haunted by a vengeful ghost.
They sift through local suspects, each more suspicious than the last which include, Manning’s associate, Felix Ott, an English folklore enthusiast; Reverend Ringer, a fierce opponent of superstition; and the Bulstrode sisters, a trio of beauties with a reputation for witchcraft.
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Series: From the Casebooks of Jesperson & Lane
Author: Lisa Tuttle
Genre: Fantasy/Mystery
Publisher: Random House
The Curious Affair of the Witch at Wayside Cross is written in the setting of long ago London. The author does not use the actual date but implies a time just before or during WWI, but the reader is never quite sure. The structure of the story is built around the death of a stranger who drops dead in the office and home of the detectives, in the middle of the night while screaming the word “Witch.”
There are hints of paranormal activities and witchcraft with just a hint of believability. The mere detectives begin an adventure to find out if in fact Mr. Manning was killed by a witch or if he was hallucinating. The reader is taken on a trip through small-town village life, complete with a rude and judgmental cast.
The main characters of Jesperson and Lane are likable characters with what would be considered a modern mindset in an old-world setting. Jesperson is laid back, calm and eternally curious. Lane is a single woman trying to make headway in a man’s world. Both characters are intelligent with imperfections and room to grow. The remaining cast of characters are narrow-minded, rude and very forgettable.
Although this is an interesting read and has moments of deep thoughtful interaction and situations as it reverts to almost an Agatha Christie style, it just doesn’t have quite the excitement needed to make it a truly good book. The story is a bit plodding, and there is no real action. Clues are hard to find within the pages and may be completely missed. The solution is entertaining, but it is a bit disappointing for the reader. Overall there is room for improvement in this story, and hopefully, the author will expand the characters and the plotlines in future volumes.
This is the second in a Victorian era mystery series with professional detectives Jasper Jefferson and Aphrodite (Di) Lane being woken abruptly by a man, Charles Manning, knocking at their door at 2:00 a.m., in obvious terror, screaming “witch” at the sight of Miss Lane and then dropping dead. Although the authorities pronounce this as death by natural causes, the man’s brother hires the detective duo to investigate his last moves to confirm this. Their investigation takes them to the village of Aylmerton, noted for the infamous “shrieking pits,” where Charles had resided at the Vicarage with Reverend Ringer and his family, and then on to Wayside Cross, home to Miss Bella Bulstrode and her two sisters. As they press forward with their investigation, they need to separate facts, superstitions, and fairy lore, before unraveling the truth of the death of Charles and maybe others. The story moved along quickly, told primarily through the eyes of Miss Lane, and captured the flavor of the Victorian Era, with its prejudices against woman, and its tales of fairy rings and witches. There was a subplot involving a maid and (spoiler) a missing child, but while this has some connections with the main story, I found it to be more of a distraction and a deliberate attempt to interject a bit of paranormal into the story. The relationship between the two main characters is similar to that between Mary Russell and Sherlock in Laurie King’s series, although I don’t think Jesperson has enough respect for Lane’s intelligence, nor is he as quite as intuitive as Sherlock but then he is still young. Disclosure: I am voluntarily reviewing this book received from NetGalley.