This sequel to Hodgson's award-winning debut novel, The Devil in the Marshalsea (2015) continues the adventures of that gentleman rogue Thomas Hawkins and Kitty Sparks, the woman who saved him from the horrors of the notorious Marshalsea Debtor's Prison.
Alas, it appears that Tom has already forgotten the lessons he learned in the Marshalsea. The domestic charms of his new life with Kitty, selling pornographic books and prints in the shop on Russell Street she has inherited from her late guardian, are not enough for Tom. He's bored, and spoiling for a fight. But this time he may have overreached.
Tom finds himself enlisted by of the captain of the most dangerous street gang in London, entangled in court intrigues at the behest of Queen Caroline and King George II's hapless mistress, Henrietta Howard, and the chief suspect in the murder of his next-door neighbor. Alternating chapters follow Tom’s journey to the gallows and the events leading up to his sentence to be hanged,
Hodgson combines compelling historical details of the early 18th century Georgian period with the fast pace and suspense of a modern thriller. The book can be read as a stand-alone, but is even better if you first take the time to read the equally compelling The Devil in the Marshalsea. And if you enjoy the adventures of Thomas Hawkins you can confidently look forward to the third book in the series, A Death at Fountains Abbey to be published this August in Great Britain and next year in the U.S.
Click HEREto read a review from the U.K. Express.
Click HERE to read a review from the U.K. Independent.
Click HERE to read a review from the Historical Novel Society web site.
Click HERE to read a review from Publishers Weekly.
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