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Marc Edwards Mystery #8
Desperate Acts
In Toronto’s rough days of 1839, several elite citizens harbor dark secrets, offering rich compost for a sleazy blackmailer. Caught in the muck is the gallant young Brodie Langford who is desperate to protect his sweetheart from disgrace. When Brodie is arrested for the extortionist’s murder, Marc Edwards, now a barrister, struggles to save him from the gallows and to reunite the couple.
275 pages, Kindle Edition
First published March 9, 2015
About the author
Don Gutteridge
118 books100 followersDon Gutteridge was born in Sarnia and raised in the nearby village of Point Edward. He taught High School English for seven years, later becoming a Professor in the Faculty of Education at the Western University, where he is now Professor Emeritus. He is the author of twenty-two novels. including the twelve-volume Marc Edwards mystery series. Don is also an accomplished poet and has published twenty-three books of poetry, one of which, Coppermine, was a finalist for the 1973 Governor-General's Award. In 1970 he won the UWO President's medal for the best periodical poem of that year. To listen to interviews with the author, go to: http://thereandthen.podbean.com. Don currently lives in London, Ontario.
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Displaying 1 - 3 of 3 reviews
August 1, 2017
3.5 - a good, fun read.
June 14, 2019
Really 4.5 🌟. To see full review go to Marc Edwards Box Set 7 -12.
February 27, 2016
Desperate Acts continues the history of the Durham Report and its aftermath, thereby fusing this novel satisfyingly with the previous, The Bishop's Pawn, and therefore the whole Marc Edwards mystery sequence. Don Gutteridge's use of that traumatic event, the 1837 Rebellion -- its causes, unfolding, and consequences, so vital to the shaping of Canada -- is inspired. Each of the Marc Edwards mysteries is like a milestone on the road to nationhood. It's a toll road, though. In each Marc Edwards mystery, somebody certainly is destined to pay a toll. This time the blind sword of justice takes aim at a close friend of Marc's.
But what if there are too many suspects? "Hang `em all" is not the appropriate response. "Canada" does not yet exist in 1839, but Marc Edwards demonstrates a caring and sensitivity that are in the best of Canadian legal traditions. He may be new at lawyering, but goes up against the experienced and skilful Kingsley Thornton in a delightful battle of two good legal minds. Marc's strategy, however, is derailed by the heavy shadow of Family-Compact-tainted politics. What to do? Horatio Cobb has moved ahead, proving he has the mind of a detective and a fundamental skill at acting. Putting the latter at the service of the former, he and Marc roll the dice. Desperate Acts continues the Tory-Radical conflict, a story fleshed out with clashes of comedy and class, our familiar families, and another Gutteridge intricate mystery, in 1839 Toronto.
Reviewed by Jim French
Don Gutteridge's Desperate Acts is a classic whonunnit which, while beginning in leisurely fashion with necessary background, soon becomes a genuine page-turner. Marc Edwards, the maturing hero of Gutteridge's series, is now a lawyer, circa 1840, and he combines forces once more with the amusing Constable Horatio Cobb to solve an intriguing murder of which Edwards' young friend, Brodie Langford, is logically accused; although the reader knows full well he is innocent, circumstances point irrefutably to his guilt. But dark as the case against Brodie seems, Edwards is convinced of his friend's innocence, and acting as his counsel (there's a cracking good courtroom scene), discovers there are actually a bevy of suspects, all of whom appear to have been targets of the murder-victim's blackmail. The plot thickens, indeed, and here is where Gutteridge deploys his extensive knowledge of Canadian history: Edwards ability to defend his friend is maddingly is compromised by the complex political situation of the time - and so the historical background becomes not simply an adjunct to but an integral part of the plot. Thus Desperate Acts gives the reader not only a gripping whodunnit but also an interesting slice of Canadiana. Highly recommended. Reviewed by Bruce Ashdown
But what if there are too many suspects? "Hang `em all" is not the appropriate response. "Canada" does not yet exist in 1839, but Marc Edwards demonstrates a caring and sensitivity that are in the best of Canadian legal traditions. He may be new at lawyering, but goes up against the experienced and skilful Kingsley Thornton in a delightful battle of two good legal minds. Marc's strategy, however, is derailed by the heavy shadow of Family-Compact-tainted politics. What to do? Horatio Cobb has moved ahead, proving he has the mind of a detective and a fundamental skill at acting. Putting the latter at the service of the former, he and Marc roll the dice. Desperate Acts continues the Tory-Radical conflict, a story fleshed out with clashes of comedy and class, our familiar families, and another Gutteridge intricate mystery, in 1839 Toronto.
Reviewed by Jim French
Don Gutteridge's Desperate Acts is a classic whonunnit which, while beginning in leisurely fashion with necessary background, soon becomes a genuine page-turner. Marc Edwards, the maturing hero of Gutteridge's series, is now a lawyer, circa 1840, and he combines forces once more with the amusing Constable Horatio Cobb to solve an intriguing murder of which Edwards' young friend, Brodie Langford, is logically accused; although the reader knows full well he is innocent, circumstances point irrefutably to his guilt. But dark as the case against Brodie seems, Edwards is convinced of his friend's innocence, and acting as his counsel (there's a cracking good courtroom scene), discovers there are actually a bevy of suspects, all of whom appear to have been targets of the murder-victim's blackmail. The plot thickens, indeed, and here is where Gutteridge deploys his extensive knowledge of Canadian history: Edwards ability to defend his friend is maddingly is compromised by the complex political situation of the time - and so the historical background becomes not simply an adjunct to but an integral part of the plot. Thus Desperate Acts gives the reader not only a gripping whodunnit but also an interesting slice of Canadiana. Highly recommended. Reviewed by Bruce Ashdown
Displaying 1 - 3 of 3 reviews