The White Rider: A Thrilling Tale of Murder and Deception

Tom Marlowe Adventures #2

by Chris Priestley

It is London, 1716. The streets are full of spies and buzzing with intrigue. Jacobite rebels are being rounded up and hanged at Tower Hill, and on the outskirts of London the roads are haunted by a mysterious Highwayman known only as The White Rider; a robber so fierce that he kills his victims simply by pointing at them! Tom Marlowe, caught in the fascinating heart of events, is resolved to get to the bottom of them. With the help of his mentor, Dr Harker, Tom is determined to discover who is behind the White Rider's gruesome mask. But Dr Harker seems to be keeping secrets of his own. Who is the mysterious stranger with the Scottish accent seen at Harker's house, and why does the Doctor lie when questioned about him? Highly atmospheric, with a gripping plot this historical adventure will fascinate and engage readers.The second exciting historical mystery, featuring Tom Marlowe.

Genres: Childrens, Historical Fiction, Mystery

256 pages, Paperback

First published January 1, 2004

About the author

His father was in the army and so he moved around a lot as a child and lived in Wales. He was an avid reader of American comics as a child, and when he was eight or nine, and living in Gibraltar, he won a prize in a newspaper story-writing competition. He decided then “that my ambition was to write and illustrate my own book”.
He spent his teens in Newcastle-upon-Tyne, before moving to Manchester, London and then Norfolk. He now lives in Cambridge with his wife and son where he writes, draws, paints, dreams and doodles (not necessarily in that order). Chris worked as an illustrator and cartoonist for twenty years, working mainly for magazines & newspapers (these include The Times, The Guardian, The Independent, The Economist and the Wall Street Journal) before becoming a writer. He currently has a weekly strip cartoon called 'Payne's Grey' in the New Statesman.

Chris has been a published author since 2000. He has written several books for children & young-adults, both fiction and non-fiction, and
has been nominated for many awards including the Edgar Awards, the UKLA Children's Book Award and the Carnegie Medal. In recent years he has predominantly been writing horror.
Ever since he was a teenager Chris has loved unsettling and creepy stories, with fond memories of buying comics like 'Strange Tales' and 'House of Mystery', watching classic BBC TV adaptations of M R James ghost stories every Christmas and reading assorted weirdness by everyone from Edgar Allen Poe to Ray Bradbury. He hopes Uncle Montague's Tales of Terror will haunt his readers in the way those writers have haunted him.

Reviews

[Leeya]

All I can say a VER GOOD BOOK. I recommend it for those who love horses, like myself

[Andrew · Rating 4 out of 5]

I have enjoyed the work of Chris Priestley every since I first stumbled across Uncle Montague's Tales of Terror which I will admit even though aimed at a younger audience I really enjoyed. I think what makes his work so appealing to me is that he can portray some very mature and chilling situations and events without being either gratuitous or long winded. He has such a refreshing simplicity in his language which I think many authors could learn from - but do not think for a second that his work is simplistic - far from it as this book stands as testament,
I will admit now that I found this book as part of the haul from the recent book festival and as such I didn't realise at the time this is actually the middle book from a trilogy of Tom Marlowe. However after reading it I can say that even though there are references to the earlier book they are not critical to understanding and enjoying this book.
Set in 1716 London there is a historical back drop which provides the first impetuous to the story however there are quickly other story elements introduced that rapidly confound and compound the dire situation Tom finds himself in. As a result this book just does not let up and seems to ricochet from one event to the next. It makes for a very fast paced and thrilling read which I found really enjoyable.
This book was in fact so much fun I have now set out and acquired the other two titles in the series - now lets see what they shape up to be.

[Mila · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is the first book of the series I read (and who knows whether I'll pick up the others sooner or later) but I really enjoyed it. It is well put together, not too obvious not too abstract. The content (mentioning the Union 1707 and Jacobites and the like) reminded me of my time taking Higher History in Scotland~ Good times
Anyways, it is a good enjoyable read. There were some bits not entirely to my taste and especially "action scenes" as they were probably meant to be, seemed a bit clumsy to me.
A good book. Not too special but quite special enough :)

[Kell · Rating 4 out of 5]

*REVIEWED FOR PUBLISHER*

Chris Priestley has taken the characters he introduced in Death and the Arrow and developed them, so that the reader grows with Tom and is introduced to another round of murder and intrigue. Priestly never condescends to the reader and instead encourages deductive skills and complex thinking while never once losing the plot. The perfect sequel with equal parts excitement, adventure and fun!

[Yami · Rating 4 out of 5]

am starting to enjoy this kind of historical fiction, it is the second novel in this series, and as small as it is , it has a VERY good plot twist and a surprise element , that will simply fool you.
it is a diamond in a rough.

[Hannah · Rating 3 out of 5]

Something about it didn't appeal to me, maybe the fact that I could see what was going to happen or just the authors style. Didn't enjoy it like I normally enjoy reading.

[Shania · Rating 3 out of 5]

I thought it was quite good. I like the suspense in it.

[Anne B · Rating 3 out of 5]

it was good, the plot was really wow, i myself did not expect it and the mystery was nice.