The Parliament House

Edward Marston's "The Parliament House" is set in London in 1670. Charles II aka 'the Merrie Monarch' had by then been king of England for a little over 10 years, and it's been 5 years since the Great Plague, and 4 years since the Great Fire of London in 1666. Although Charles II has been restored as King, Parliament is very much a force to be reckoned with, and one of it's chief members is Sir Julius Cheever who used to be a commander in Cromwell's army, and still opposes royal rule of England (which has earned him quite a few royalist enemies).

Our hero Christopher Redmayne, a young architect, designed Sir Julius' new townhouse, and when a friend of Sir Julius is killed in Christopher's presence he cannot help but investigate. Joined by his friend the constable Jonathan Bale, Christopher must unravel an intricate plot that will lead them to some very unexpected places, and some equally surprising conclusions...

This is the very first novel by Edward Marston I've read, and a very good read it was too. The plot is very well done, the characters are very much 'alive' and engaging, and you get a very good sense of London in the 1670s. This is a very good historical whodunnit, and I was glad to discover that Edward Marston is apparently a prolific author which means there's plenty more to enjoy.

A Case of Mistaken Identity (3/5 people found this helpful)

I am always excited about a new book from Edward Marston. He is perhaps not as well known as some authors but he is certainly in my top six and a new novel is always well worth waiting for.

Christopher Redmayne has just overseen the completion of a house he has been commissioned to design for a merchant. To celebrate the completion of the property Francis Polegate the merchant throws a party and invites Christopher as an honoured guests and also several people who are known to Christopher including his sweetheart Susan.

The party is brought to an abrupt and sad end when news is brought that one of the guests who recently left the house has been murdered. Christopher cannot help but feel involved and seeks out the help of a constable Jonathan Bale, a man Christopher has had assistance from before with the solving of certain crimes. He also enrols the help of his wayward brother Henry and between them they set out to solve the murder of the unfortunate guest.

There investigations lead them to believe that there may have been a case of mistaken identity. The dead man was very well liked and had no apparent enemies. If he had been killed by mistake who was the intended victim.

Good Plot, Shame about the Ending. (3/3 people found this helpful)

I had not read Edward Marston's books before and there were three things I liked about this one. Firstly, you get two very different sleuths operating in different spheres in 17th century London - Christopher Redmayne mixes with the toffs, while Constable Jonathon Bale gets to grips with the lower orders. Their professional partnership and friendship is a particular strength of the novel. Secondly, the narrative is driven by some cracking dialogue and sketches; he doesn't hamper us with descriptive passages or stall the story with unnecessary signposts to the fact that he has done his research into the period. Thirdly, we have some engaging minor characters and tantalising romantic sub-plots - will the three men, Christopher Redmayne, Sir Julius Cheevers and the rakish Henry Redmayne get their respective girls in the end?.

The only disappointment was the ending. It seemed rushed and it didn't convince me. I groaned at its weakness and tossed the book over my shoulder after reading the denouement. It would have got four stars but for that.

A Case of Mistaken Identity? (5/8 people found this helpful)

I am always excited about a new book from Edward Marston. He is perhaps not as well known as some authors, but he is certainly in my top six and a new novel is always well worth waiting for.

Christopher Redmayne has just overseen the completion of a house he has been commissioned to design for a merchant. To celebrate the completion of the property, Francis Polegate the merchant throws a party and invites Christopher as an honoured guest, and also several people who are known to Christopher, including his sweetheart Susan.

The party is brought to an abrupt and sad end when news is brought that one of the guests, who recently left the house has been murdered. Christopher cannot help but feel involved and seeks out the help of jonathan Bale, a constable, and a man Christopher has had assistance from before. Jonathan had been a great asset in the solving of several previous crimes. Christopher also enrols the help of his wayward brother, Henry, and between them they set out to solve the murder of the unfortunate guest.

There investigations lead them to believe that there may have been a case of mistaken identity. The dead man was very well liked, he had no apparent enemies. If he had been murdered by mistake who was the intended victim?

An enjoyable read. (8/14 people found this helpful)

I had not read Marston before and admit to not being a huge fan of the amateur sleuth. However, I did find this a very enjoyable book with a wonderful range of interesting characters. The period details didn’t always ring true to me, although they may well have been, but nothing to cause me great distress. There was some good suspense; the dialogue was well done and seemed appropriate to the period. To the negative, there were a couple coincidences, and I did suspect on of the characters part way through. All-in-all, it was a fairly quick, enjoyable read.

Edward Marston

Reader Reviews:

Fine historical whodunnit (1/1 people found this helpful)

A Case of Mistaken Identity (3/5 people found this helpful)

Good Plot, Shame about the Ending. (3/3 people found this helpful)

A Case of Mistaken Identity? (5/8 people found this helpful)

An enjoyable read. (8/14 people found this helpful)

Similar Products

Categories