The Mesmerist's Apprentice:

Sarah Tanner #2

by L.M. Jackson

The second mystery for lady detective Sarah Tanner in L. M. Jackson's gripping series set in 1850s London.

A desperate plea from her former lover, the aristocrat Arthur DeSalle, turns Sarah Tanner's quiet life upside down.

Arthur needs Sarah's help. Suspicious of the hold that Dr Stead, renowned practitioner of the strange art of mesmerism, has gained on his aging parents, he hope to expose him as a fraud.

But Mrs Tanner is troubled closer to home by a series of increasingly violent confrontations with a gang of Lambeth youths intent, it seems, on putting her out of business. What is their interest in her humble Dining and Coffee Rooms? And what is the closely guarded secret which connects the sinister doctor to the young thugs, and threatens to destroy a family's honour?

Her very life at stake, her loyalty tested, Sarah Tanner sets out on a trail of murder and deceit, which stretches from the alleys of Leather Lane to the drawing-rooms of Mayfair...

Genres: Historical Fiction, Historical, Mystery, Victorian, Fiction, Crime, Historical Mystery

370 pages, Kindle Edition

First published May 13, 2008

Reviews

[Liisa · Rating 4 out of 5]

I never expected to become fascinated (and in truth, obsessed) with Victorian London and the adventures of Sarah Tanner…. But I did and I am!

’The Mesmerist’s Apprentice’ by Lee Jackson is the second in the Sarah Tanner series and I am bereft that the third is not yet available to read (if there even will be a third!)

It was another fantastical tale of the seedier side of Victorian London, filled with twists, turns, intrigue and deceit, and of course the much beloved and ‘colourful’ characters introduced in ‘A Most Dangerous Lady’.

I particularly love the chameleon-like abilities of the main character and how she refuses to confirm to what is expected by society.

In short, fantastic! Roll on Adventure number 3!

[Jean Walton · Rating 3 out of 5]

Enjoyable read with a very feisty heroine. I found the epilogue rather sad though not unexpected as that was the way aristocrats behaved in that era.

[Paula · Rating 3 out of 5]

This was ok but not great and a few pages were skimmed

[Naznin Azeez · Rating 4 out of 5]

You can also read this review on my blog: http://nazninazeez.wordpress.com/2013...

First of all, the cover of the book is very beautiful. The Victorian buildings in the background and that street light are apt because this whole story is set in the Victorian London of the 1850s. The cover’s purplish hue is very pretty. I love purple. However, the lady who nearly seems to be levitating, doesn’t quite gel well with the scenery.

Though the summary discusses about mesmerism, some thugs, murder and a closely guarded secret, among other things, it didn’t quite attract me. I am not sure why. I didn’t expect much from the story itself and that where I was completely wrong. Probably because I went onto to reading it without any expectations, I was floored by how good a story it was and what a strong female lead it has. Sarah Tanner is a very intuitive and clever protagonist. She is very independent and strong willed. I love books with a strong female lead.

The author beautifully paints a picture of Victorian London with his fluid words. His love for that era is profound throughout the book. The story turned out to be a pretty gripping mystery from the beginning. If I had read through the Goodreads description I would have known that Sarah loves to play detective but I just went by the book summary and expected her to be a regular lady, having some troubles with her business. She turned out to be quite amazing at her sleuthing skills. One problem I had is that she very easily came up with the first clue that lead to the series of discoveries that eventually helps in solving the mystery. That kind of put me off. There was no particular reason as to how she got that idea. However, from then on, there was a step by step build up of clues and she did just great.

The other characters in the book are portrayed really well. The way everyone (particularly Arthur Desalle’s mother) behaved back in those times, according to what class of the society they belonged to, was very interesting to read. This shows that the author has well researched the norms of those times.

I am not boasting, but my vocabulary is quite good (Trivia: Funny as it is, but my friends used to call me ‘A walking dictionary’ back in school!). So I was pretty surprised when I found myself checking the meanings of quite a few new (probably obsolete!) words*.

I found this to be a very intriguing book. I got to know that A Most Dangerous Woman is the first book where Sarah Tanner was first introduced. I would very much love to read that book because certain things are discussed in The Mesmerist’s Apprentice that related to some incidents that happened in the first book. So I would love to read that book and get to know more about each character’s past. However, you can read The Mesmerist’s Apprentice, the second book in the Sarah Tanner series, and still enjoy it as a stand alone book.

Considering how unputdownable it was and I finished it in under two days, I would have easily given it 5 stars however, the author left some questions unanswered, by the time I finished it. So this book gets 4 stars from me, which according to Goodreads standards means I ‘really liked it’.

[Kristen · Rating 2 out of 5]

If I could have, I would have given this two and a half stars rather than three. Ultimately I was disappointed in this book, but right up until the end, I enjoyed it.

As the follow up book to Jackson's previous "A Most Dangerous Woman" The Mesmerist's Apprentice picks up just where the first book left off. Sarah Tanner is running her newly re-built coffee house and trying to get on with her life.

When a strange event happens in the neighbourhood, with a gang of hoodlums causing trouble for the local butcher - who many, including Sarah buy their meat from - Sarah becomes certain something nefarious is going on, and is determined to look into the matter.

This causes all sorts of trouble, not only for Sarah, but for everyone who knows her, including her former lover, aristocrat Arthur DeSalle, whom Sarah is trying to get over and forget. As Sarah becomes more involved in investigating the mystery, things quickly get out of hand and violent incidents begin to happen.

I enjoy the sense of place the author creates with his books. He does a very good job of putting the reading into Victorian London and allowing modern people to really understand what living in that time and place was like. Everything feels realistic and gritty and dangerous, and for someone who is a fan of the Victorian era - as I am - that is a definite positive feature of the book.

I also very much like the main character, Sarah Tanner. She is a woman alone in a time and place where women alone tended to be abused and/or taken advantage of, but Sarah has fought tooth-and-nail to create a place for herself where she can be self-sufficient and beholden to no one but herself. If not everyone applauds her independance, well, she doesn't much care, and I love a strong female protagonist, so I enjoyed Sarah.

Unfortunately, the choice the author made as to how to finish this book really disappointed me. I will not give specifics to avoid spoilers, but suffice it to say, given all the other choices Sarah made before, and how she chose to live her life and deal with others, I couldn't reconcile the choice she makes that ends the book. I felt it was not something I believed she would do. I could accept her CONSIDERING the choice, but I believe she wouldn't have actually DONE what the author had her do.

The other thing about both this book and the previous is that the writing is a bit awkward and I can't decide if this is simply a feature of the author trying to write in the way the people of the time would have actually spoken, or if he just needs a strong editor. Either way the writing is not smooth and does create a small distraction that takes the reader out of the story, if the reader is - as I am - a bit of a grammar nerd. But that is a fairly minor complaint.

So, while on balance, I was disappointed in the ending, the rest of the book told a great story, and the plot was cleverly conceived with plenty of action and drama. However, given the ending, I would not read future books with these characters, as I'm too disappointed in Sarah to want to read more about her.

[Sheilagh Lee · Rating 5 out of 5]

The Mesmerists Apprentice

Category: Mystery

By L.M .Jackson

In this second book of the series Sarah Tanner is still trying to hide a less than respectable past. She’s made a good life for herself working hard to be respectable and is not about to let anyone take that away from her. She's feisty resourceful and truly love-able as she seeks her way in this Victorian world running a tearoom to make ends meet a young patron claims the pies contain horsemeat. Sarah is devastated her business is her means to make ends meet and continue her respectability

Her former love Arthur De Salle comes to ask a favour of her she finds she cannot refuse. His father is dying from a stroke. A nurse who has been seen in a house of ill repute holds sway over his father and Arthur’s mother. Arthur wants Sarah to investigate how this woman is mesmerizing his mother. As she seeks to solve that mystery her past and future collide as she realized the two cases are linked and Sarah is placed in grave danger.

This is a gripping tale that paints a realistic picture of Victorian times and the plight of the poor and the concerns of the wealthy. What a great twist that both concerns should cross each other .

[Edafe · Rating 2 out of 5]

Hmmm

Whenever the main character annoys the ever loving shit out of me by making spectacularly bad decisions, I tend to err on the side of "what a croc!" with a sprinkling of "what the flock?"

Everything and I mean everything that happened to this character was down to her being a nosey, interfering bint. That included folks dying, her closest associates getting hurt and for what? Pride? Ugh!

The last few chapters, after the story climax, then went on with more poor decision making. Essentially this book is a cautionary tale about not making poor life choices in the guise of a female "detective" story. Also, the mystery wasn't up to much lady, just sayin.

2 stars because the technical stuff was OK, and the supporting characters were great and deserved to be in a better story with a brighter protagonist.

[Linda · Rating 4 out of 5]

Sarah Tanner's new coffee shop is doing well until someone decides to tell her clients that she serves horse meat in her food. As Sarah investigates the butcher he begins to suffer too but there is no proof he sells horse meat. Then Sarah is approached by her former lover to help investigate a man who says he is a mesmerist and can heal people with his skill. The mesmerist, Mr. Stead, is using his knowledge to "help" Arthur DeSalle's father get better after a stroke. He believes that his mother, who has hired Mr. Stead, is being taken for a ride.

As Sarah begins to check into Mr. Stead, she finds that the horse meat incident and Mr. Stead are related and her life is now in danger.

Another interesting Victorian Mystery. I like Sarah, she is smart and believable. Her friends and employees fiercely guard her privacy and her life.

[Josephine (Jo) · Rating 3 out of 5]

I read this book because I enjoyed the first Sarah Tanner mystery, I was not disappointed! This is a snapshot of life in the streets of Victorian London! Sarah Tanner is a lady detective but with no similarity to Miss Marple or Lois Mead, she is extremely self-sufficient for a woman of her day and more than capable of taking care of herself when faced with the criminal fraternity in the back streets of London. There were some good plot twists in the story and obvious knowledge of the era by the author. I am left wondering how this woman who runs a coffee house in a run-down area of London, can by changing her dress become like a chameleon just blend in with members of high society and pass for a well-bred lady.

[Stephanie Ou-Young · Rating 4 out of 5]

A solid Victorian detective mystery with a very capable female lead who is not only intelligent but adept at taking care of herself. Sarah Tanner is far from perfect - and there's a genuine sting in the epilogue that makes me earnestly wish Jackson had continued this series - but her motivations are intriguing and her interactions with others quite different from what might be expected. The matter that she has been asked to investigate by her former aristocratic lover has a few twists and turns and a far higher body count than I expected, with all the loose ends neatly tied up by the end. I'll be on the look out for the first in this series, to see how she was first introduced to readers.

[Kate · Rating 3 out of 5]

All in all a pleasant detective tale, The author seemed a little overly fond of the word interlocutor and sprinkled it liberally throughout the book. Not sure also, why he felt the need to continually refer to the main character as Mrs. Tanner or Sarah Tanner for the entire length of the story. It seemed as if he was worried we might all forget her name if he didn't keep stating it in full over and over again.
I would read more of Mrs Tanners adventures though and enjoyed the intrigues supplied by the writer.

[Dawn Davies · Rating 5 out of 5]

What a wonderful writer, just like 'A most dangerous woman' it bought Victorian London alive, the sights and smells seemed so real. The characters believable and likeable. And the story itself had me on the edge of my seat during all the twists and turns. Fantastic Book.

[Jay · Rating 4 out of 5]

This audiobook is well read and kept me interested throughout. I would have rated this 3.5 stars if I could, but gave a higher rating than for the first Sarah Tanner tale, also an audiobook, which I found somewhat confusing when heard rather than read.

[Tuuli Platner · Rating 4 out of 5]

A great Victorian crime and mystery story. I love the legitimate London setting that it was in, and could imagine every street she stepped in and walked down.

[Jane · Rating 4 out of 5]

I really enjoyed the story and the characters but I think I should have read A Most Dangerous Woman first. Will now look for first one and others by same author.

[Fiona · Rating 4 out of 5]

Audio version
Was good with a few twists. Enjoyable