The Thief Taker by C.S. Quinn

Final Rating: 3.8/5

   The Thief Taker is a gritty historical thriller that revolves around the city of London and beyond the gates in the heat of the summer of 1665. With classic action, layered mysteries and secrets, marvelous atmosphere and a truly fascinating plot; The Thief Taker is sure to excite those readers who love an adventure spiked with macabre details straight from history. Expect the unexpected in terms of mysteries and secrets with this novel, as we follow a thief taker named Charlie Tuesday from charmingly named ale houses to back alleys teeming with thieves and cut-throats to fields filled with mountebanks and everywhere between and beyond as he is hunted by spies and cat-paws for an unspeakable crime he is wrongly accused of. It is a desperate race against the tolling bells of the surrounding churches that announce another soul taken by the rampant plague as Charlie seeks the real killer who wears the mask of a plague doctor and may be the devil himself who is ready to destroy England.

   In the end, this novel packs a punch. Ms. Quinn has a talent with descriptions and adaptation of history that leaves an inquisitive vivid mind racing with her characters as the twists and turns of the novel grip the reader until the last page. The writing captures the plague, the monarchy, the geography and the layered mysteries kept to the period and the parade of red herrings had this reader guessing longer than usual. This novel also held some fascinating trivia and points of interest that I have been craving to see put into fiction.

   I have to note that entertainment boundaries may be crossed for some readers with some peppery and bawdy scenes and graphic passages about the plague and the effects on a stricken body but keeping with the period of history the grittiness and depictions are accurate and necessary to capture 17th-century England and the magnitude of the epidemic (you have been amply warned though). The only true negatives that I can report (for this reader) were the somewhat exaggerations and believability with a few drama and action scenes and dialogue that kept to the period as much as possible but sadly bordered on disappointing missing something with spark but what is a rollicking good story without a little exaggeration worthy of the silver screen. Surprising political and religious intrigue cleverly woven into a historical thriller with a fascinating murder mystery at the heart of a bucking ride through the cruel streets of London and beyond the gates during the fateful year of 1665- if you like this short description then you will enjoy The Thief Taker and hopefully join this reader in eagerly awaiting the next installment of this promising series.

* I would like to thank Amazon Publishing and NetGalley for the opportunity to read and enjoy The Thief Taker