Relief Reads 15 - The Railway Viaduct

The Railway Viaduct by Edward Marston

Charity Shop: Arthritis Research, Newcastle

Charity: Arthritis Research UK is the leading UK funder of research into the cause, treatment and cure of arthritis.

Price: £1

Book Blurb: [There's a oxfam price sticker blocking parts. This book has had an adventure] The Railway Detective faces his most dangerous Adversary Yet // 1852. Inspector Robert Colbeck and his assist##### Victor Leeming are faced with their most complex and difficult ######. As a train speeds over the Sankey Viaduct, a man is hurled fr#### and plummets into the canal below. It later transpires that he has been stabbed to death. With no papers by which to identify the man, the detectives' investigation is hampered from the start. // Suspecting that the victim may have come from continental Europe, Colbeck and Leeming take the case to France where a new railway is being built by a British contractor. But in a new country the detectives face new problems. Anti-British feeling is rife and Colbeck and Leeming must put their own lives in danger to pick up the murderer's trail. // The third in the acclaimed Railway Detective series, The Railway Viaduct is an absorbing mystery that will keep you guessing till the very end.

Expectation: A light hearted murder mystery.

Reality: A light hearted murder mystery. Rosemary and Thyme-esq in terms of far-fetchedness. I loved the beginning as it is a description of the painting of the cover painting with the added addition of the falling body. The bulk of the story occurs on site at a construction of a railway line in France which satisfied the engineer in me. Working conditions in 1852 were quite different from nowadays! Interesting political situation too as the story is set within living memory of the battle of Waterloo so France and Britain are not best buddies. The reader is kept a step ahead of the detective so the statement that it will 'keep you guessing till the very end' is a lie. I won't hold it against the book blurb writer though!

Overall Rating

It was a struggle           2        3        4        5        6        7        8       9      Gripping page  

to make it                                                                                                        turner

I enjoyed the book, but not the highest quality piece of writing in the world. As I said, Rosemary and Thyme esq.

Twist Scale:

Knew the beginning,                                                                                 As twisty as the 

middle and end         2       3        4         5       6        7        8        9      bendy wendy road

from the first line 

It's not the most mysterious murder mystery ever. The explanation has many layers to it, but the motivation is pretty simple.

Tear-jerker Scale:

 As dry as a house       2        3       4         5         6         7       8        9     Cried an ocean

 throughout

As I said, light hearted.

Main Character(s): Colbeck. Genius detective with an obsession with railways. Fairly socially inept and terrible at office politics to the point that he nearly gets kicked out of Scotland Yard multiple times, however he does have a girlfriend (sort of) which is quite a nice side storyline. She helps with some of the detective work, albeit very unofficially.

Moral of the Story: Don't think it was deep enough for morals. How about... engineering companies need to look beyond political divisions, and justice shouldn't stop at our border either.

***

Coming up: From Nottinghill with Love... Actually by ??? Highly intellectual of course!