| Title | : | The Thames River Murders (Captain Lacey, #10) |
| Author | : | |
| Rating | : | |
| ISBN | : | 1941229751 |
| ISBN-10 | : | 9781941229750 |
| Language | : | English |
| Format Type | : | Paperback |
| Number of Pages | : | 314 |
| Publication | : | First published October 27, 2015 |
The Thames River Murders (Captain Lacey, #10) Reviews
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It's out!
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Capt Lacey is asked to help solve a cold-case crime; meanwhile he must deal with a determined blackmailer and his daughter's come-out. -
Review written April 15, 2018
3.7 Stars - Immediately hooked as always...
Book #10
Just published as a audiobook and I of course downloaded at once. My favorite Captain is always a good book choice. - 7:37 hours narrated greatly by
James Gillies.
« Captain Lacey is asked by Thompson of the Thames River Police to help him investigate a cold case–the murder of a woman found near the docks Thompson patrols. »
A good interesting whodunnit part once again. It feels like really knowing these characters and their old, pretty dangerous, dark and dirty, world back then in London. Nasty villains and a very clever, manly and warm-hearted Captain with a couple of great helpful friends. Add fun, joy, love and care for others. — A audiobook listening to just enjoy as always.
The series, author / pen-name, my reviews:
I LIKE - my Captain adventures in book after book -
My favorite of the Captain Lacey books I've read so far. I enjoyed the mystery, and Lacey's personal life dilemmas with his wife and daughter. I've read reviews that say the books have gotten in a rut; but since I haven't read them all, I have not noticed. These are not hard-hitting thrillers, but a gentler mystery that one might expect from a gentleman solving a murder in the Regency era.
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I've been looking forward to this installment in the Captain Lacey series since I binged on the previous books earlier this year. So, even though I had STUFF TO DO today, I decided to go ahead and read a couple chapters while I was drinking my morning coffee.
Let's just say that, thirty one chapters later, I still have STUFF TO DO. There is nothing like a great mystery (let alone TWO) to crowd everything else out of my head.
So here's the scoop:
Lacey is called upon to solve a cold case. A really cold case. A decade ago, a skeleton was fished out of the River Thames. The examination concluded that the skeleton was female, and, thanks to a big old gaping hole in her skull, they know she was murdered. Beyond that, they know almost nothing. Nobody came looking for this woman, so they don't even have an ID.
Armed with the remains and a couple nondescript personal effects, along with his own, not-so-official resources (wife Donata, friend Grenville, frenemy and crime lord Denis, and assorted other regulars and walk-ones), Lacey sets out to solve the case. Meanwhile, someone is sending Lacey blackmail letters and threatening him and his family.
You are a lot smarter than I am if you figure out either mystery before the denouement, which is wholly satisfying. Unfortunately, the next installment isn't even available for pre-order yet.
5 stars. -
The Thames River Murders was an okay read with a solid mystery. However, I was so sick of reading about the coming out season preparations for Gabriella's, Lacey's teenaged daughter from his first marriage. I found myself scrolling through all scenes focusing on a bunch of filler. Gabriella seemed to go through the motions to appease her stepmother but clearly her heart and mind elsewhere. So, all the frenzied preparations seemed like a waste of my reading time.
Too much time has passed for father and daughter to bond. It would have been enough seeing his long-long daughter then sending her back to her mother and stepdad.
However, I loved how Lacey includes his wife, Donata, on all the machinations of his investigations,; he holds her as an equitable partner and values her opinion.
This book was a fascinating look into the life of the Jewish community during the Regency era and the murder mystery was intriguing and engrossing. -
How does this series keep getting better? We get to see Gabriel settling into family life even more, a flash of the cavalryman during a scene with Peter at the park, more development of the friendship between Gabriel and Brewster (and even a scene with Gabriel, Grenville, and Brewster having a drink), preparations for Garbriella’s ball, Gabriel being a hilariously protective dad, and a look into Jewish life in London during the early 1800s. There’s so much more.
One of the strong currents: humor. The banter between Gabriel and Donata and then Gabriel and Brewster is so entertaining!
The one odd point: No Marianne. Just one mention of her. -
While I thoroughly enjoyed the Captain Lacey Series up to now, I am not entirely happy with this one. The whole plot is so far fetched. Why is this 20 year old murder / accident investigated in the first place? And the mysterious, enigmatic, dangerous Mr. Denis is starting to get on my nerves, he is just not coming over as an authentic person. The series has been going on for 10 books and even though we got a glimpse on his personal life in a former book he is still not "real" to me.
But my small complaints notwithstanding I enjoyed the book even though it is not my favorite of the series and I am looking forward to the next sequel. -
First Sentence: The letter, neatly folded at my plate, looked innocuous enough, but I had a sense of disquiet about it.
Someone is threatening Captain Gabriel Lacey by claiming he’s not who he says. When that threat includes an attempt to harm Lacey’s wife’s son, Lacey takes It very seriously. Yet he also has the matter of a decade-dead woman to identify, and a killer to find, and his daughter, Gabriella, who is coming out.
One can greatly appreciate the use of Ms. Gardner’s expressions appropriate to the social class of the period to describe Lacey’s wife—“Donata had been quite a diamond of the first water in her Season.” However, it is interesting to learn of the laws of the period and the control men had over their wives. While women of wealth and position could act and go out independent of their husbands, where women of lower classes could not, for them all, unless a woman inherited directly from her father, it was men who controlled the money, property and the lives of their children. Even further, in this particular book, Gardner addresses the laws with regard to Jews in England at the time.
Followers of the series will be pleased to see how the relationship between Lacey, his wife, daughter and stepson is progressing. However, new readers will not feel the lack of their history and will quickly understand just how unusual is their relationship, even for the time. However, this is by no means a book where the marital relationship overwhelms the story. Far from it. In many ways, the most intriguing relationships are between Lacey; James Dennis a dangerous and powerful criminal; Brewster, the man charged by Denis to keep track of Lacey; and Lacey’s friend Lord Granville, a man of extreme wealth and position whose friendship with Granville helps stave off his own boredom. Lacey is a former front-line soldier and is not without his flaws, the worst being his temper and penchant to hurl himself into potentially dangerous situations—“Captain, you could find trouble inside St. James’s Palace.” But it’s Lacey’s empathy for others, and his determination for justice that makes him a compelling and dimensional character; one who would attract such diverse range of associates.
That the victim and her family are Jewish introduces a new and interesting element. The wonderful scene of Lacey visiting a synagogue leads to a particularly poignant observation—“Any man I’d met of the Hebrew religion had been no different than I was, I’d observed—in fact, many came from circumstances far better than mine, and blended into London life more seamlessly than I did. True, I was able to vote for stand for Parliament…but how did that make me a superior man?” Shades of Shylock from “The Merchant of Venice.”
“The Thames River Murders” is an excellent read, filled with twists, suspense, action, balanced by a touch of relationships and two threads which peak our curiosity of the next book.
THE THAMES RIVER MURDER (Hist Mys–Cpt. Gabriel Lacey–London–1818) - Ex
Gardner, Ashley – 10th in series
JA/AG Publishing - October 2015 -
Domesticated!
Although he is very happily married, Captain Gabriel Lacey still spends time helping a friend investigate an old murder.
He doesn’t let his status as loving husband and father interfere with his involvement with the notorious Denis James, either.
Despite his busy schedule pleasing his wife, finding an acceptable husband for his daughter and clearing his debt with James, Captain Lacey is still determined to help solve the murder of a poor, young girl. -
Very exciting story
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Completely loving this series!
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Review also at
Historical Readings and Reviews
Captain Lacy is happily married with a baby on the way, he lives in a nice home and always has money to spare, and his relationship with his estranged daughter grows stronger everyday. He wants for nothing now, and yet he still seeks the excitement and justice of amateur crime solving in early 19th century London. His latest sleuthing adventure takes us to the Thames River where a young woman's body was found years ago and the Thames River Police are still looking for her identity and killer, turning to Lacy for help in solving this cold case.
Meanwhile, Lacy is receiving threats and accusations of identity theft from an anonymous letter writer and he desperately attempts to keep his new family safe. He also gains a new ally with an interesting back story while visiting the infamous Mr. Denis.
I think what I love most about this series is the many sub-plots, the witty dialogue, and the continually evolving character development. It never goes stale, the relationships between characters are always growing and evolving, and the mystery always keeps you guessing.
The only downside is that each book is such a fun and quick read, I blow through it and then have to wait ages for the next book to be written and released. I should just be grateful that the author is really writing the series but dammit, I want more of Captain Lacy! -
Captain Lacey's Latest Adventure
I didn't realize that there were additional books about Captain Lacey adventures set in around 1820 England. Captain Lacey is an ex-military officer who left the army because of an injury during a battle. He has only a small pension and is very depress. One day he arrives as troop of soldiers are harassing a man. He managed to help the man when he learned is story Captain steps about finding answer.
Is is the 10 th book of his adventures. This one Peter Thompson of the Thames River police shows him a set of bones that have languished for 15 years in their vault. He sets about a finding an answer to the bones. Someone is trying to blackmail Lady Donata that Lacey is not the real Captain who died in Europe. Lacey is concerned about his family of Donata , Gabriela and young Lord Peter, Donata's 6 year old son. Donata is planning Gabriella Come Out Ball. Denis and Grenvile both play important parts. I feel this series is better read in order. -
Captain Lacey does not disappoint. I'm wondering if he is going to somewhat redeem Denis? And will he get entangled in a mystery abroad?
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Solid mystery read - I enjoy the atmosphere and period feel in these books (though could do without the info-dumping and have never really connected with the characters, even after ten books!).
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A Thames River policeman, named Peter Thompson, contacts Captain Lacey regarding a skeleton he discovered about ten years ago that has been languishing in the basement of the police station. Thompson has always wanted justice for the death. Captain Lacey, of course, cannot turn down an opportunity to help someone in distress, even in the midst of planning his daughter's debut into society. His wife, Donata, is busy with Gabriella's come-out, but she, too, is always interested in helping Lacey solve a crime. Through some good detective work, Lacey is able to find out the identity of the body and he tentatively knows who murdered the young lady, but actually confronting the murderer will take some extraordinary sleuthing. This is a very entertaining series, I recommend it for anyone who enjoys Regency period history.
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Another book that I didn't know it was part of a series :/
But even although this is the 10th in the series, I was able to follow it with no problem, so there is that :P
And I liked both storylines: the old case that is brought to Captain Lacey by Thompson of the Thames River Police, and the one closely linked to his family.
The story flows easily, the mysteries kept my attention and I really liked the characters. There is a great sense of warmth and caring along with the whole story and I found truly endearing the way in which Lacey involves his wife Donata in his work.
I'm probably will be looking for more books in this series.
And I really liked James Gillies' narration -
I absolutely adore the Captain Lacey regency Murders! The Thames River Murders is another fabulously intricate murder mystery! These are best read in order, only because you get a clear picture of the main characters who flow through the series with regularity. Ashley’s attention to details makes these books all run through your head like a movie. The audiobooks are superbly done by a very talented narrator who is used throughout the series. I personally try to buy both book and audiobook, as I enjoy listening to the audiobooks as I work but can read the books while hubby is watching boring TV “guy” shows. 😂😍
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Peter Thompson of the Thames River police asks Lacey to try and find the murderer of a person killed about fifteen years earlier, all he has are the bones, a piece of cloth and a locket.
Meanwhile he is receiving blackmail letters stating that he is not the real Captain Lacey, and trying to cope with his daughters' coming out.
I really enjoy this series, the stories, the characters and the writing style. -
Smashing!
Even though this story had fewer twists and less action than the previous books, it was still a marvelous mystery. The author's research into Jewish London of the era was well done and moved the story along nicely. It was also good to see most of the secondary characters again; Ms. Gardner shares a little more about each of them each time we meet them. -
Better the Second Time!!
I love this series and have been rereading them all - just finished this one and I can honestly say it was even better the second time around!!!! Each one is fabulous!!!
