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The Railway Detective #14

The Circus Train Conspiracy

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Following a string of successful performances, the Moscardi Circus is travelling by train to Newcastle for their next show. Yet a collision on the track with a couple of sleepers causes passengers are thrown about, animals escape into the night and the future of the circus looks uncertain.When the body of a woman is discovered in woodland next to the derailment, Inspector Colbeck is despatched to lend assistance, believing the two incidents might be connected. It is up to Colbeck to put the pieces together to discover the identity of the nameless woman and unmask who is targeting Moscardi's Magnificent Circus.

328 pages, Kindle Edition

First published July 10, 2017

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About the author

Edward Marston

239 books466 followers
Librarian Note: There is more than one author in the Goodreads database with this name.

A pseudonym used by Keith Miles
AKA A.E. Marston

Keith Miles (born 1940) is an English author, who writes under his own name and also historical fiction and mystery novels under the pseudonym Edward Marston. He is known for his mysteries set in the world of Elizabethan theatre. He has also written a series of novels based on events in the Domesday Book, a series of The Railway Detective and a series of The Home Front Detective.


Series contributed to:
. Malice Domestic
. Crime Through Time
. Perfectly Criminal

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5 stars
228 (34%)
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235 (35%)
3 stars
147 (22%)
2 stars
38 (5%)
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11 (1%)
Displaying 1 - 30 of 55 reviews
Profile Image for Gerry.
Author 43 books118 followers
October 7, 2023
Inspector Robert Colbeck and his partner Sergeant Victor Leeming embark once more on solving crimes connected to the railways. This time it is the Newcastle and Carlisle Railway (NCR) on which the dirty deed is committed. But it is not just the derailing of a train carrying Mauro Moscardi's circus that needs looking into for, nearby, a body of a dead woman is discovered and Inspector Colbeck seems to think that the two may be connected.

The reason that Colbeck and Leeming are involved is because the owners of the NCR were at a loss to explain what had happened and, along with the local constabulary who were equally baffled, had requested the assistance of officers from Scotland Yard. Colbeck's boss Superintendent Tallis was, as usual in these type of cases, reluctant to allow the duo to go north but in the end he has little option but he insists that they keep him fully posted as to their progress. Their relationship with him is nothing if not fraught, as always.

And that progress is slow to begin with as there are plenty of people who could have wanted to inflict trouble on Moscardi's travelling circus and, as for the dead woman, it was initially difficult to identify her but then a break gave them information as to who she was. But there was no clue as to why she, from the south, was up in the north. This complicated matters and Colbeck and Leeming split the investigation so each could follow one strand at a time.

Then an additional problem presented itself when, back at home, Colbeck's wife, Madeleine, having recently given birth to their first child, a daughter, discovers that her closest friend is being stalked. She confides in Colbeck and in between times he tries to offer some help to his wife and her friend Lydia Quayle. In splitting his time in different directions he encounters some resentment from the circus owner who feels that he is not spending enough time on dealing with what he considers to be the primary problem.

After the derailment, the circus company camps for a while and then moves on by road but whoever is intent on causing them trouble strikes again and the horses, who are the star turn in the circus show, are released to run wild. Moscardi, and his brother Gianni, are at loggerheads as they disagree on the action that Colbeck is taking but the Inspector meets with them and reassures them that he is working ceaselessly on their crime as well as on the murder of the lady. But then, when the circus arrives at Newcastle the unknown troublemaker strikes again but fortunately disaster is averted when the circus staff manage to subdue a rampant lion that had been released to enter the circus ring unattended and they return it safely, and without harm to the spectators who thought it was all part of the show, to its cage.

The two detectives travel around the country interviewing various suspects in both crimes and, in true Railway Detective style, they eventually unravel the perpetrators of both and, by also spending time in London with Madeleine and Lydia, they also manage to unmask who is causing the latter the grief that she suffered. It is a case of three solved in one go - and all three turn out quite differently.

'The Circus Train Conspiracy' is a worthy successor to all the other Railway Detective novels and once again it not only captures the Victorian times in relation to the development of the railways but Edward Marston provides credible characters and blends the strands of the story together with sumptuous skill.
Profile Image for Susan.
422 reviews10 followers
February 22, 2021
This was a reasonable offering in the Railway Detective Series. I enjoyed it but felt there were a lot of strands to this - several unrelated cases to follow. There is a body found in the woods near where a circus train has been derailed in Northumberland and back at home Madeline Colbeck's friend is in terror of an unknown stalker. This offering felt rather 'bitty' with Colbeck and Leeming travelling all over the place and a large number of possible suspects. The Circus Owners complaints of Colbeck's handling of the case seemed to be repeated almost word for word every so often and became a bit tiresome. I realise that all the books could be read as stand alone but that means that in every book we have a repeat discussion about Leeming's hatred of railways, his attachment to his family and his fear of facing Inspector Tallis. Maybe the series is getting a little tired
Profile Image for Helen Birkbeck.
243 reviews
January 17, 2019
Back to the quality of the first in the series, with a good plot and interesting locations, plus less of victor moaning about missing his family! Caleb is getting a bit silly, though.
1,082 reviews14 followers
June 23, 2025
Spoiler Alert
I'm responding to comments left in the library copy (!!!) I read so it will necessarily reveal plot items. So, as the earlier reader noted:
There are three threads
One is the attacks on the train, two is the murder, and three is the stalking of Lydia. The train attacks brings us Mr. Mulrine, the policeman fired from the detective branch and now working for the circus as labour and security. The murder (a woman found carefully buried near the first train attack) draws Colbeck away from the circus/train concern and creates considerable tension between Colbeck and the proprietors of both the circus and the railway. Work that you can't see being done probably isn't being done in their eyes. Lydia is from an earlier story where Colbeck investigated the murder of Lydia's father. She is now trying to create a new life for herself in London and is terrified to find that some man, identity unknown is following her and at one point steals her dress. We would be upset at that happening today so imagine how terrified a Victorian lady would be
The previous reader complains that the murderer doesn't appear in the story, not even as a name until page 311 (of a 351 page book). If we are expected to be able to solve the case (or cases) it scarcely gives us time to find a place for him. Now, I will give him points for this one because I found myself scrambling on this, too, but once he's there there's not much question as to his guilt and Colbeck was working on this one off the side of his desk as it were.
The attacks on the circus, and I definitely was with Colbeck right from the start that it was the circus being attacked, not the railway, was one part where I definitely agreed with my co-library member, and I quote from his tiny writing on the last page: "... the guilty party, despite an earlier reference to his work and a passing 'cameo' on a train [with Colbeck another passenger] makes no appearance at all, even by name, until p. 344." That is not to say that the book isn't a great read because it is and we meet all the regular characters, Officer Leeming, the Chief Superintendent, Madeline and her father and so on, as well as traveling up and down to Northumberland and Bristol and points in between.
The stalker is definitely a lesser part of the book and I wonder if Marston wrote this as a way to begin a wind down of the series. He almost assumes that you have read Lydia's earlier story so that you know about her brother and might even have read about the high jinks that happened at his school. I haven't read that book so I don't know but I was able to follow the explanation. You didn't have time or the means to work it out for yourself. No, I really enjoyed the read and even though I agree that we didn't have enough material to "solve" the cases, it didn't really damage my enjoyment. I certainly wouldn't class it, as the other reader did as "com(ing) close to being a calculated insult."
Nope, a really good read. You just found yourself with a number of possibilities just before Marston did his reveal

Profile Image for Les Wilson.
1,832 reviews14 followers
May 29, 2024
Love the Edward Marston! Different in settings to other mystery stories.
942 reviews5 followers
July 4, 2021
Despite ( or maybe because of ) this book having 3 plots going on, this isn't the best of the set. The circus plot is very enjoyable, while the murdered woman plot sort of just rambles along. The 3rd plot with Lydia only serves to add to the page count and give Maddie something to do. I'd rather have had a shorter book than put up with that rubbish. Worth reading for the circus bits but anything with Lydia and Maddie can be skipped completely without detracting from the other plots at all.
Profile Image for Leigh.
271 reviews2 followers
January 5, 2025
I was taken to see a circus when I was a small boy and didn't enjoy it. Because of that experience I was not overly keen on reading this, the 14th book in the Railway Detective Series. Settling in to the investigations, two in Northumberland and one in London, there wasn't much progress and a lot of time was spent travelling without many thrills. In the latter stages the story came alive resulting in another very enjoyable and fulfilling mystery.
Profile Image for Maggie.
3,049 reviews8 followers
January 9, 2021
Love this series and am trying to spread the books out as im nearly at the latest one. Love the characters and the way the story develops Would highly recommend
Profile Image for James.
21 reviews
July 15, 2025
another good read, I enjoyed the return of an old character

There was a good thrill of having 2 crimes to solve
Profile Image for Annie Weatherly-Barton.
284 reviews3 followers
February 3, 2021
One of the very best in this series. All the fun of the fair but who is trying to stop the circus from getting to its destination and giving a show? And who is the woman buried in shallow grave?

Love Marston, as his thrillers are never what one thinks might be the culprits until the end.

This one is no exception. Superb.
Profile Image for Rabspur.
220 reviews
September 14, 2022
Book 14 of the series, the Railway detective investigating the derailment of a Circus train at the location a dead body was discovered half buried, are the two connected?read and find out another fast moving easy read. Recommended. Now for book 15.
Profile Image for Kimberly Ann.
1,658 reviews
June 12, 2018
Not liking the major players in a book has a profound effect on me... I take away stars, in this case Minus 2 Stars for the too many unlikable characters and Minus 2 Star for the story itself, which was mostly all Red Herrings. One or two Red Herrings really enhance a murder mystery, but in this case the guilty parties (there were 3 mysteries) were not introduced until the summation of the book, making for all the alleged clues in the book misleading & false.

A circus train derails, but no one is hurt, the only loss being an Arabian horse. Immediately after the derailment, Jocko, the Capuchin (monkey) runs off into a copse of trees. When Jocko's human (a former policeman who has worked w/ Colbeck) finally catches up with Jocko he find the monkey waving the hand of a corpse, which turns out to be that of a widow who was very popular w/ the married men of her town.

At the behest of the local MP & police, Inspector Colbeck & Detective Leeming are sent off to determine who derailed the circus train and why; and to shed light on who was the corpse and how she came to be buried out in the countryside.

As the circus continues its way to the next town, it is plagued by ever increasing acts of sabotage and tempers fly as both Colbeck & Leeming are obliged to split their time between both crimes.

Meanwhile back in London, Colbeck's wife, Madeline, is providing shelter for a long-time friend who is being stalked.

There are no end of suspects (Red Herrings) and really no clues as to whom the criminals are. I really believe that Marston just pulled the bad guys out of nowhere in order to complete the story.

Overall I was very disappointed with the story, thankfully neither Leeming nor Colbeck's father-in-law were given to as many fits of whining as in the past, that would have earned this book a Minus Star.
1,250 reviews
May 14, 2018
Rating between 2.5 and 3

Normally I enjoy this series of books but I could not get involved with this one. Not sure why as the writing was as sure as always, and the reintroduction of Mulryne now acting as security for a circus was interesting.
The brief descriptions of the employees and owners of the circus were interesting but did feel like a bit caricature at times, or at least that is how it felt for me.
The two main stories of dead woman found in wood and train derailment had no links between them and why Colbeck should have been summoned to investigate is a bit of a narrative stretch.
The third story of the stalker of the young lady was okay but it felt like a way to introduce extra characters and drama, in a way that soap operas normally do. Not bad but not really a railway detective mystery.
Overall an okay entry into this series but after 14 stories the reasons for Colbeck to investigate a crime are starting to get very tangential to the original premise.
724 reviews
July 7, 2018
Another enjoyable adventure in The Railway Detective series with Inspector Colbeck investigating an attack on a circus in the north of England and the discovery of a woman's body in woodsnearby.
The stories are undemanding but they provide real entertainment as the various suspects are questioned and considered. In this novel the central character of the circus owner is an excitable Italian with definite opinions on how Colbeck should be investigating the attacks on the circus.
As usual, the railway is at the heart of the novel with Colbeck and his assistant Leeming speeding across the country to investigate the crimes.
These novels are always an easy read and it is interesting to see the onward development of the main characters as their lives progress.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
Profile Image for Andrew.
716 reviews1 follower
August 9, 2017
Another very enjoyable read in the Railway Detective Series. There was certainly plenty going on in this book, with most of the events taking place in Northumberland, England. I certainly recommend this series (have now read them all) for anyone who likes light enjoyable historical mystery series - although there is more emphasis on the mystery as opposed to the history. Good for early railway enthusiasts!
219 reviews4 followers
September 8, 2017
A good light read. The book has great charm,and the inspector is once again called to solve a mystery. He find himself immersed in the world of a Victorian circus but also has to link a railway accident with a murder. The Victorian railway is well researched and offers a detailed insight in to the social changes that came about with the building of new railways.
105 reviews
September 17, 2017
I have loved these novels ever since the first one. I love the main characters very much. It was a great story and I did not figure out who did the killing which was good for me.
Profile Image for Zoe Radley.
1,659 reviews23 followers
January 3, 2018
*drum roll*..... and Edward Marston has done it again... another cracking mystery(ies) set in the north of the country around Newcastle and Durham. loved it. can't wait to read the next instalment.
Profile Image for Martin Hollands.
52 reviews
May 2, 2018
Another of the Railway Detective series.

Less Railway but more crime. Excellent tale, well written and continues to develop the main and subsidiary characters in a very attractive manner.
Profile Image for Robert Hepple.
2,278 reviews8 followers
February 9, 2023
Published in 2017, 'The Circus Train Conspiracy' is another in the popular 'Railway Detective' series of murder mysteries set in Great Britain in the 1850s-1860s, and featuring Inspector Colbeck of Scotland Yard who is regularly tasked with investigating major crimes on Britain's railway system. The plot is this book concerns a circus travelling by train from Carlisle to Newcastle-upon-Tyne, and two crimes that have occurred on the way. As usual, the characters are excellent, and the main plot full of diversions. A sub-plot concerning the insipid wife of Colbeck and her annoying father is mostly irrelevant, and seems to be their just to get them in the book, but as the thing is so quick to read it does not delay the main plot much.
Profile Image for Mark Higginbottom.
185 reviews2 followers
January 31, 2022
I have read and really enjoyed all the previous thirteen novels in the railway detective series so was eagerly anticipating starting this one.They are just so easy to read,so enjoyable,so interesting.The descriptions of the various steam trains is always fascinating.The characters are always varied and so original.Once again another writer who really excels at putting you there in the times and the locations ( his Doomsday series is another particular favourite of mine ! ).So what else is there to say?You either love them or hate them .I find them a joy to read and this particular novel maintains the high standard of the previous books.bring on the next one !
710 reviews2 followers
September 14, 2022
ollowing a string of successful performances, the Moscardi Circus is travelling by train to Newcastle for their next show. Yet a collision on the track with a couple of sleepers causes pandemonium: passengers are thrown about, animals escape into the night and the future of the circus looks uncertain.
When the body of a woman is discovered in woodland next to the derailment, Inspector Colbeck is despatched to lend assistance, believing the two incidents might be connected. It is up to Colbeck to put the pieces together to discover the identity of the nameless woman and unmask who is targeting Moscardi's Magnificent Circus.
513 reviews12 followers
July 10, 2022
This passed the time very pleasantly. Inspector Colbeck, known as the Railway Detective, unravels a mystery about whether a saboteur wants to render a circus or a railway company unviable.

Set in the north of England in 1860, the novel allows Edward Marston the chance to recreate the great days of the travelling circus, the changes that new technologies make to the solving of crime, and the commercial aspects of railway development. Lots to engage a reader in a fast-paced, easily followable whodunit.
Profile Image for Medh.
279 reviews4 followers
May 28, 2020
These books don't hold up to close scrutiny, there are glaring plot holes, there are untied threads, and the language is often dreadfully wooden- with characters repeating the same sentences or phrases over and over again and expressing the same sentiments repeatedly to the point of annoyance (like how Caleb Andrews always moans about any railway that isn't the LNWR or Tallis just yelling at his subordinates)
But that is not the intent- they are quick reads, and they evoke an historical era.
6 reviews
July 19, 2020
The ending was lame because it had nothing to do with any of the characters written about. As in the previous book, Colbeck suddenly had a completely unrelated brainwave which led to him plucking the perpetrators out of the blue. It left me feeling it was a waste of time reading the book because no clues had been sown. It was the same with Lydia’s stalker.
142 reviews1 follower
June 25, 2022
Really good as always, Marston's writing is as good as ever - we have a double crime and a solid subplot! Obviously this isn't a character driven series, so don't look for character development and insight - our 2 main characters - colbeck and madeline are very dull, on the other hand I think the supporting characters are well written and Leeming is the underrated star of the show.
Profile Image for Christopher Slater.
12 reviews
August 21, 2024
It's an amazing novel that's got many twists and turns. Unlike his previous books, there was more than one case on the go at all times. This made the novel extremely exciting.

The only downside that I have about the novel is that in the, what you could say, the main case, it had a very lack lustre ending, regarding who did it.
Profile Image for Jdblair.
185 reviews
December 29, 2024
I believe this was mentioned in other reviews but this story line in this book seemed to be very disconnected and the reader (me) had trouble keeping all of the sub-plots straight. Otherwise, this is the 14th in the series that I have read and I've generally been pleased with all of them. Yes, I will continue until I have read all of the Railway Detective series. I've read 14 of 23 books).
97 reviews1 follower
January 9, 2025
Another thrilling tale of murder and mystery

Set around a circus, a dual investigation is underway when the body of a woman is found in a shallow grave, and a circus is targeted. Set in beautiful Northumberland out dating duo are off again, when a train is derailed carrying a circus troupe and beasts.
This kept me guessing for the whole book.
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