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Ian Hamilton Mysteries #3
Edinburgh Midnight
Superstition and murder haunt nineteenth-century Scotland in a twisting mystery by the prize-winning author of Edinburgh Twilight and Edinburgh Dusk.
Spiritualism has captured the public’s imagination. Séances are all the rage, and Detective Ian Hamilton’s otherwise sensible aunt Lillian is not immune to their allure. But for Ian, indulging her superstitions has its limits. When members of Lillian’s circle of séance friends begin turning up dead, Ian doesn’t need a medium to tell him these aren’t freak accidents.
With the help of his friend Arthur Conan Doyle, Ian investigates, and he is soon drawn into a dark world of believers and tricksters, and a puzzling series of murders with no pattern, no motive, and no end in sight. Most alarming, the crimes conjure up the ghosts of Ian’s own past, including the mysterious deaths of his parents, which have haunted him for years.
As two cases converge, science collides with the uncanny, and Ian must confront truths that are more disturbing than he could ever have imagined.
Spiritualism has captured the public’s imagination. Séances are all the rage, and Detective Ian Hamilton’s otherwise sensible aunt Lillian is not immune to their allure. But for Ian, indulging her superstitions has its limits. When members of Lillian’s circle of séance friends begin turning up dead, Ian doesn’t need a medium to tell him these aren’t freak accidents.
With the help of his friend Arthur Conan Doyle, Ian investigates, and he is soon drawn into a dark world of believers and tricksters, and a puzzling series of murders with no pattern, no motive, and no end in sight. Most alarming, the crimes conjure up the ghosts of Ian’s own past, including the mysterious deaths of his parents, which have haunted him for years.
As two cases converge, science collides with the uncanny, and Ian must confront truths that are more disturbing than he could ever have imagined.
362 pages, Kindle Edition
Published June 9, 2020
932 people are currently reading
2183 people want to read
About the author
Carole Lawrence
5 books401 followersPseudonym for C.E. Lawrence
Author Carole Lawrence is an award-winning novelist, poet, composer, and playwright. Among her published works are eleven novels, six novellas, and dozens of short stories, articles, and poems, many of which appear in translation internationally.
She is a two-time Pushcart Poetry Prize nominee and winner of the Euphoria Poetry Prize, the Eve of St. Agnes Poetry Award, the Maxim Mazumdar playwriting prize, the Jerry Jazz Musician award for short fiction, and the Chronogram Literary Fiction Award. Her plays and musicals have been produced in several countries as well as on NPR; her physics play Strings, nominated for an Innovative Theatre Award, was recently produced at the Kennedy Center. A Hawthornden Fellow, she is on the faculty of NYU and Gotham Writers, as well as the Cape Cod and San Miguel Writers' Conferences.
She enjoys outdoor sports such as hiking, biking, and horseback riding, and you can often find her cooking and hunting for wild mushrooms. She also writes under the names C. E. Lawrence and Carole Buggé.
Author Carole Lawrence is an award-winning novelist, poet, composer, and playwright. Among her published works are eleven novels, six novellas, and dozens of short stories, articles, and poems, many of which appear in translation internationally.
She is a two-time Pushcart Poetry Prize nominee and winner of the Euphoria Poetry Prize, the Eve of St. Agnes Poetry Award, the Maxim Mazumdar playwriting prize, the Jerry Jazz Musician award for short fiction, and the Chronogram Literary Fiction Award. Her plays and musicals have been produced in several countries as well as on NPR; her physics play Strings, nominated for an Innovative Theatre Award, was recently produced at the Kennedy Center. A Hawthornden Fellow, she is on the faculty of NYU and Gotham Writers, as well as the Cape Cod and San Miguel Writers' Conferences.
She enjoys outdoor sports such as hiking, biking, and horseback riding, and you can often find her cooking and hunting for wild mushrooms. She also writes under the names C. E. Lawrence and Carole Buggé.
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 222 reviews
June 28, 2020
God I love these books. I need a fourth one right now. Like, right now. I mean, waiting is hard and I don't like it so book 4 now, please??
March 5, 2022
1880, Edinburgh Police Procedural
I read the first two books quite some time ago and didn't seem to like them. I liked many elements of this book and enjoyed the read. There is a tad more drama, perhaps, that I don't usually cotton to in a crime book, but I enjoyed it all on this outing. Conan Doyle's presence with his medical help from time to time as well his spiritualist knowledge with regard to a séance lady in town helps round things out for the crusading and sometimes reckless Ian Hamilton on the police end of things.
There are many quotations from plays adding to the theme of drama, and this one ends with Scrooge as it is Christmas in Edinburgh. Edinburgh landmarks are generously referred to as well, adding to the enjoyment.
Kindle Unlimited
I read the first two books quite some time ago and didn't seem to like them. I liked many elements of this book and enjoyed the read. There is a tad more drama, perhaps, that I don't usually cotton to in a crime book, but I enjoyed it all on this outing. Conan Doyle's presence with his medical help from time to time as well his spiritualist knowledge with regard to a séance lady in town helps round things out for the crusading and sometimes reckless Ian Hamilton on the police end of things.
There are many quotations from plays adding to the theme of drama, and this one ends with Scrooge as it is Christmas in Edinburgh. Edinburgh landmarks are generously referred to as well, adding to the enjoyment.
Kindle Unlimited
December 21, 2020
Not my favorite in the series. The author breaks into the voice of the murderer for a few chapters, and they don’t contain anything revelatory, so don’t add to the story (and actually, pulled me out of it). Also, the villain is easy to figure out from the way the author positions (gender hidden) behavior in a family context. Lastly, the “regular” characters aren’t developed any further in this book, something I’d like to see.
One thing I do like is the “elder” romance. It’s a lovely touch.
All in all, a light read for a winter evening, and recommended for that purpose.
One thing I do like is the “elder” romance. It’s a lovely touch.
All in all, a light read for a winter evening, and recommended for that purpose.
June 13, 2020
This is the third book in the Ian Hamilton series. I enjoyed it very much. The descriptions of the time were very evocative; the characters very real to me. The murders of people associated with Madame Velensky's seances were a bit easy to solve in the end, but the mystery didn't end there. There is still a dark, mysterious evil character now living in Edinburgh. Is this person involved in the deaths of Ian's parents in a fire seven years ago? We don't find out yet. There is definitely a cliff-hanger to keep us coming back for book 4. I like the addition of Dr. Bell and Arthur Conan Doyle in the plot. These men were real and bring a sense of history to the story. I'm curious to see if Ian and Nurse Stuart manage to continue their friendship as the next book comes out. A very interesting dark mystery series. It also brought back memories to me of my trip to Great Britain twenty years ago. I loved exploring the Royal Mile, Holyrood Palace, and Edinburgh Castle. I'd love to go back someday.
February 20, 2022
It is so difficult to concentrate on reading right now.
The third book was repetitive in its storytelling. I understand that detective could be a simple affair, but it could also be more engaging and complicated.
Also the book sells we would learn who is behind Ian's parents death, but we got only teaser of the next book.
The third book was repetitive in its storytelling. I understand that detective could be a simple affair, but it could also be more engaging and complicated.
Also the book sells we would learn who is behind Ian's parents death, but we got only teaser of the next book.
November 5, 2023
You know you've read something you've enjoyed when you walk away sad or bittersweet it's over. This was a fun one, and sadly seems like the last entry in the series as 2023 is almost over. I would happily check back in with Ian, Dickerson, Crawford, and Doyle again. These stories are rich in historical detail, and the crimes are well written and enjoyable. You won't necessarily walk away with the Christie WOW, but that's okay because they are high quality regardless. This one had a solid crime, that was interwoven well with the larger overarching story of Ian's past. I would honestly say that's my only major complaint: there's not much resolution for the story we've been exploring for 3 books. So I walk away feeling a bit incomplete. It feels like a larger thread is missing. I get that this might just be a period of Ian's life we were lucky to read about, leaving room for you to know there are future untold stories. But for something so important to his character, it feels a bit like a let down to get no real resolution. With that being said, the rest was great. The drama this time around felt a lot more natural, and the underlying decisions and behavior felt a lot more believable. Ian was clearly overwhelmed in this book, and it made sense why he made the decisions he did. The writing and pacing was the same as the other books; all really digestible. If you're a historical mystery fan, I would highly recommend reading this series. It has good historical detail, good characters, and solid mysteries. I'm sad that it's over (still hoping there's maybe 1 more book in the works that concludes the story), but I'm glad I read it.
Quick hits:
+ Characters are well written, and their character growth pays off.
+ Decisions and behavior felt natural and earned this time around.
+ The crime was well written and mysterious in how it related to Ian's past.
- The ending was a bit of a let down. There wasn't much resolution on some big points and it feels like there's a bigger piece missing from this overall story.
I hope we get another book, but if not, I'm satisfied with having read the serious. I'd definitely recommend to historical mystery fans. 4/5 stars.
Quick hits:
+ Characters are well written, and their character growth pays off.
+ Decisions and behavior felt natural and earned this time around.
+ The crime was well written and mysterious in how it related to Ian's past.
- The ending was a bit of a let down. There wasn't much resolution on some big points and it feels like there's a bigger piece missing from this overall story.
I hope we get another book, but if not, I'm satisfied with having read the serious. I'd definitely recommend to historical mystery fans. 4/5 stars.
February 18, 2025
It is with sadness that I embark upon this book report. To my knowledge, this is the latest and final Ian Hamilton book. It was published right around COVID and there is no listing or promise of a fourth. In this one, DI Hamilton has a lot on his plate... Solving the murders in a seance circle, ascertaining the credibility of underground information pertaining to a bold robbery being planned in EDINBURGH. Also, he takes it upon himself to investigate the deaths of his parents in a fire seven years previous...which is why he keeps missing his first dates with the sassy Nurse Fiona Stuart. I love these characters...Sgt. Hamilton; the steadfast, food-loving Yorkshireman. Gruff Detective Chief Inspector Crawford...His recovering alcoholic medical student of a brother named Donald... A younger Conan Doyle himself has become a pal...(Being from Edinburgh himself.) The stakes are higher this time and all these crimes may be connected by a foreign criminal mastermind. And damned if he doesn't remind the reader of Prof. Moriarty himself. The background mystery of Ian Hamilton has deepened...which makes me sad this that this series hasn't been continued yet.
June 15, 2020
I have always enjoyed the Ian Hamilton mysteries. The third installment is another case for the detective to solve; however, this time the author includes - I felt- a lot more of the dynamics of the police unit as they deal with a possible informant who is untrustworthy. I also enjoyed the look at more forensic aspects of police work such as blood spatter and graphology. The additional attention given to Hamilton's love life, his relationships with his aunt and brother, and the inclusion of Dr. Doyle were also major pluses. On the bad side, it seemed as though the killer was almost too obvious and the unresolved nature of the in-house dynamics at the police house- especially with Dickerson- and the mystery connected with the fire that killed Hamilton's parents left the reader hanging- which I suppose is intentional. I had not noticed it before, but the author also spends much attention on using a character's speech to determine his or her origins. I hadn't remembered this as much in past books. It seemed to appear almost too frequently this time. I guess she is trying to develop secondary characters more??? At least, in this rendering, Hamilton becomes a bit more human than in the previous books.
February 5, 2025
3.5 stars 🌟
I read this straight off the back of the second book, unfortunately this didn't work quite as well and I think it may be because it was juggling a bit too much. There were 3 separate mysteries to follow and it doesn't quite perfect the split.
Ian Hamilton's character does progress further in this reintroducing and cementing a love interest and the biggest mystery of the fire is also built up with bigger reveals.
Unfortunately, though left on a slight cliffhanger there doesn't seem to be another installment and it doesn't look like another is forthcoming which is a real shame as I'd love to learn the truth of the mystery.
I read this straight off the back of the second book, unfortunately this didn't work quite as well and I think it may be because it was juggling a bit too much. There were 3 separate mysteries to follow and it doesn't quite perfect the split.
Ian Hamilton's character does progress further in this reintroducing and cementing a love interest and the biggest mystery of the fire is also built up with bigger reveals.
Unfortunately, though left on a slight cliffhanger there doesn't seem to be another installment and it doesn't look like another is forthcoming which is a real shame as I'd love to learn the truth of the mystery.
August 31, 2023
Such a good read, or listen in my case. Narration is good, I had a wee bit of trouble distinguishing between some of the male voices. Two murders to be solved, one being the murders occurring in Aunt Lillian’s seance group and the other being Detective Ian Hamilton's ongoing quest to find out who murdered his parents. A great supporting cast of characters unchanged from the 1st book, including Nurse Stuart and Arthur Conan Doyle who appeared in the 2nd. After several missed rendezvous, Ian and Fiona finally manage to go out together, will see how that will develop. I love Edinburgh and have visited several times, a lot of the appeal for me is the setting of these book as I am so familiar with many of the landmarks and have walked the cobbled streets of the Old Town many times.
June 11, 2020
I love "Gaslight Mysteries" and this is a book I would put in that classification.
Overall it was a pretty good mystery, although it wasn't too difficult to figure out "who done it" but maybe that's because I read a lot of mysteries.
I liked the way the author included some other historical characters, real and fictional in the story and for me any book with a cat character is a book I want to read :) But for some reason, aside from the cat I couldn't really get into the characters. They didn't seem to have much depth and there wasn't much likeable about any of them for me. A little more humor might have helped although I realize that those times were grim and difficult times to live in. But still...
Having said that, it was an okay read and I liked it enough to finish it but I'm not sure I'd search out any others in this series.
I received a free copy of this ebook via a Goodreads giveaway.
Overall it was a pretty good mystery, although it wasn't too difficult to figure out "who done it" but maybe that's because I read a lot of mysteries.
I liked the way the author included some other historical characters, real and fictional in the story and for me any book with a cat character is a book I want to read :) But for some reason, aside from the cat I couldn't really get into the characters. They didn't seem to have much depth and there wasn't much likeable about any of them for me. A little more humor might have helped although I realize that those times were grim and difficult times to live in. But still...
Having said that, it was an okay read and I liked it enough to finish it but I'm not sure I'd search out any others in this series.
I received a free copy of this ebook via a Goodreads giveaway.
June 27, 2020
Another enjoyable read featuring my favorite detective, Ian Hamilton.
In this book, Ian is juggling THREE cases, one being the ongoing mystery regarding his parents' deaths. The other two cases are based on the serial murders of some seance attendees, and a huge heist. Ian is busy, and his running around without eating or getting much sleep is beginning to take a toll on him.
I felt that the climax and the ending of the book was a little rushed, but it was still a satisfactory read. Looking forward to the next book!
In this book, Ian is juggling THREE cases, one being the ongoing mystery regarding his parents' deaths. The other two cases are based on the serial murders of some seance attendees, and a huge heist. Ian is busy, and his running around without eating or getting much sleep is beginning to take a toll on him.
I felt that the climax and the ending of the book was a little rushed, but it was still a satisfactory read. Looking forward to the next book!
June 29, 2020
This is the 3rd book in the Ian Hamilton series. This is a dark thriller set on the cold streets of Victorian Edinburgh. The story starts when Ian accompanies his Aunt Lillian to a seance, and it's not long before the murders start to happen - the victims? members of the seance group.
I do like this series of books, but the authors Americanisms often show through, and the Scottish slang still needs a wee bit of work. But apart from that, I really do like the series.
I do like this series of books, but the authors Americanisms often show through, and the Scottish slang still needs a wee bit of work. But apart from that, I really do like the series.
June 10, 2020
Setup for a series Big Bad...
July 29, 2020
Review soon.
October 10, 2023
Should be a series rather than a trilogy. Would translate well to a tv/network series.
February 8, 2022
This is book #3 in a mystery series based in Edinburg, Scotland in the late 19th Century I found engaging enough to go back and read books one and two.
The conflicted hero is quite interesting; the deary winter setting in Edinburg makes me never want to go there, even though I have heard it is beautiful. I do not especially care to see inside the head of a psychopath but this is a small part of the action and characterization, which apparently are cleverly set up to carry over into at least one more book.
Lawrence does a very good job of characterization. I do enjoy the interplay of the main character, a detective, and his brother, a medical student and several other characters. What is up with one character's name being Arthur Conan Doyle and not once any other character questions or alludes to this well-known name of literature? This seems odd. Conan Doyle, a professional friend of the main character also acts as a foil to him, shining lightness next to the darkness of Ian Hamilton, the main character. Yet Ian Hamilton is not all dark and not the cliche loner of film noir; he's not as mysterious as the other characters find him either. Lawrence also has drawn some interesting women characters, such as a woman nurse who is mutually attracted to Ian Hamilton; it appears she too will continue to people the plot in the next book of the series. At least I hope so, even though I searched and could not find a book following this one. There are two or three strong hints for a possible next book. Along with a palette of well-drawn characters, these hints have me hankering for the read book in the series.
The conflicted hero is quite interesting; the deary winter setting in Edinburg makes me never want to go there, even though I have heard it is beautiful. I do not especially care to see inside the head of a psychopath but this is a small part of the action and characterization, which apparently are cleverly set up to carry over into at least one more book.
Lawrence does a very good job of characterization. I do enjoy the interplay of the main character, a detective, and his brother, a medical student and several other characters. What is up with one character's name being Arthur Conan Doyle and not once any other character questions or alludes to this well-known name of literature? This seems odd. Conan Doyle, a professional friend of the main character also acts as a foil to him, shining lightness next to the darkness of Ian Hamilton, the main character. Yet Ian Hamilton is not all dark and not the cliche loner of film noir; he's not as mysterious as the other characters find him either. Lawrence also has drawn some interesting women characters, such as a woman nurse who is mutually attracted to Ian Hamilton; it appears she too will continue to people the plot in the next book of the series. At least I hope so, even though I searched and could not find a book following this one. There are two or three strong hints for a possible next book. Along with a palette of well-drawn characters, these hints have me hankering for the read book in the series.
September 13, 2020
Edinburgh Midnight by Carole Lawrence
Synopsis /
In nineteenth-century Edinburgh, spiritualism has captured the public’s imagination. Séances are all the rage, and Detective Ian Hamilton’s otherwise sensible aunt Lillian is not immune to their allure. But for Ian, indulging her superstitions has its limits. When members of Lillian’s circle of séance friends begin turning up dead, Ian doesn’t need a medium to tell him these aren’t freak accidents.
With the help of his friend Arthur Conan Doyle, Ian investigates, and he is soon drawn into a dark world of believers and tricksters, and a puzzling series of murders with no pattern, no motive, and no end in sight. Most alarming, the crimes conjure up the ghosts of Ian’s own past, including the mysterious deaths of his parents, which have haunted him for years.
As two cases converge, science collides with the uncanny, and Ian must confront truths that are more disturbing than he could ever have imagined.
My Thoughts /
The Ian Hamilton Mysteries is an historical mystery series set in Edinburgh, Scotland in the late 1800s. It focuses on the work and personal life of (fictional) Detective Inspector Ian Hamilton. The story involves Hamilton and his partner, Detective Sergeant Dickerson investigating a heinous murder. They are often helped by a street urchin named Derek McNair, Ian’s doctor-in-training brother, Donald, and Arthur Conan Doyle (yes, really).
Things to love about this book:-
The language
To say that I am totally enamoured with the language in this book would be an understatement. I had a grin from ear to ear whilst reading. I was totally whisked away to 1880 Victorian Edinburgh. There were so many quotable moments in this book, but I’ll leave you with a couple of my most favourite ones:
“Any journalist who fails to seize opportunity will never be successful.”
“Nor will any policeman who blindly trusts the press.”
“Please don’ say I see more than people wi’ two good eyes. I don’ see nothin’, mate. What I do is listen. Most people are too busy struttin’ around tryin’ tae make an impression. I got nothin’ to prove, so I listen.”
“There’s better places tae buy a drink”.
“Seems like you’ve had a few already.”
“Aye. I’m mad wi’ it,” Jimmy said with a grin. “Totally bladdered.”
“Hammered, eh?”
“Aye. I’m wrecked, mate.” 😂
The characters
Police Inspector Ian Hamilton, Sergeant Dickerson, Donald (Ian’s brother), Aunt Lillian, (a young) Arthur Conan Doyle, the young street urchin Derek McNair, Rat Face (and yes, that’s how he got this nickname).
The Plot
I’ll be honest and say that it’s not the best murder mystery story I’ve read, but, when combined with the charming and engaging characters, the author’s attention to detail with description and the fact that I loved loved loved the written language – the whole recipe comes together really well.
A solid 4.5⭐️ read.
Synopsis /
In nineteenth-century Edinburgh, spiritualism has captured the public’s imagination. Séances are all the rage, and Detective Ian Hamilton’s otherwise sensible aunt Lillian is not immune to their allure. But for Ian, indulging her superstitions has its limits. When members of Lillian’s circle of séance friends begin turning up dead, Ian doesn’t need a medium to tell him these aren’t freak accidents.
With the help of his friend Arthur Conan Doyle, Ian investigates, and he is soon drawn into a dark world of believers and tricksters, and a puzzling series of murders with no pattern, no motive, and no end in sight. Most alarming, the crimes conjure up the ghosts of Ian’s own past, including the mysterious deaths of his parents, which have haunted him for years.
As two cases converge, science collides with the uncanny, and Ian must confront truths that are more disturbing than he could ever have imagined.
My Thoughts /
The Ian Hamilton Mysteries is an historical mystery series set in Edinburgh, Scotland in the late 1800s. It focuses on the work and personal life of (fictional) Detective Inspector Ian Hamilton. The story involves Hamilton and his partner, Detective Sergeant Dickerson investigating a heinous murder. They are often helped by a street urchin named Derek McNair, Ian’s doctor-in-training brother, Donald, and Arthur Conan Doyle (yes, really).
Things to love about this book:-
The language
To say that I am totally enamoured with the language in this book would be an understatement. I had a grin from ear to ear whilst reading. I was totally whisked away to 1880 Victorian Edinburgh. There were so many quotable moments in this book, but I’ll leave you with a couple of my most favourite ones:
“Any journalist who fails to seize opportunity will never be successful.”
“Nor will any policeman who blindly trusts the press.”
“Please don’ say I see more than people wi’ two good eyes. I don’ see nothin’, mate. What I do is listen. Most people are too busy struttin’ around tryin’ tae make an impression. I got nothin’ to prove, so I listen.”
“There’s better places tae buy a drink”.
“Seems like you’ve had a few already.”
“Aye. I’m mad wi’ it,” Jimmy said with a grin. “Totally bladdered.”
“Hammered, eh?”
“Aye. I’m wrecked, mate.” 😂
The characters
Police Inspector Ian Hamilton, Sergeant Dickerson, Donald (Ian’s brother), Aunt Lillian, (a young) Arthur Conan Doyle, the young street urchin Derek McNair, Rat Face (and yes, that’s how he got this nickname).
The Plot
I’ll be honest and say that it’s not the best murder mystery story I’ve read, but, when combined with the charming and engaging characters, the author’s attention to detail with description and the fact that I loved loved loved the written language – the whole recipe comes together really well.
A solid 4.5⭐️ read.
August 25, 2020
Frustrating
Our book group chose this book and I fear its the worst book we've ever read. The plot jars, the speech in accents is infuriating and the constant use of Scottish language,then explained feels like a comedian explaining his own joke.all of this frustrated any interest in plot or character. Conan doyle? Really? Why?
Our book group chose this book and I fear its the worst book we've ever read. The plot jars, the speech in accents is infuriating and the constant use of Scottish language,then explained feels like a comedian explaining his own joke.all of this frustrated any interest in plot or character. Conan doyle? Really? Why?
June 2, 2022
The 3rd book in the Detective Ian Hamilton series ends on a "to be continued" note. This time, romance is in the air for Aunt Lillian, and it starts in the small theater group in which she participates. After a hit and miss series of encounters where either or both find job obligations in the way, a new friend - possibly more? - comes into the detective's life.
But let's back up a bit. There has been a change in the criminal element. An informant, maybe more than one, previously reliable, are either deliberately misleading the police or are themselves getting told bad information. Or, perhaps, there is someone on the force abetting and aiding the criminal element. Perhaps both. Ian knows whom he suspects if it's someone on the force.
Aunt Lillian has been attending seances, the fad at the time, and an era when, my own grandmother told me, charlatans thrived (she used to help the cops take them down). My other grandmother was taken in by them for much the same reasons as the characters in the book - an attempt to see if the dead they still loved and missed deeply were happy where they were. And like Ian, and his boss DCI Crawford, I believed - still believe - all this was a way for unscrupulous people to prey on the emotions of others for monetary gain, and that it has only as much importance as the recipient of the "message from the spirit world" wants to impart to it...or, as DCI Crawford puts it, "bosh and bunkum." In my one grandmother's case, I believe she wanted to know that all her miscarried and stillborn infants could be contacted, could forgive her. Her only child was my father. She raised him in Spiritualism as my mother had been raised in church and by parents who considered the occult to be a source of fun, having her tea leaves, palms, skulls, or whatever read and laughing at how generalized the predictions were, how they could fit anyone.
Still, one constant about the occult was that there was always some information imparted to a new person, eso. a skeptic, that, often, no one but the skeptic or newbie could know, and the medium or fortune teller would have no obvious way of finding out. This happens to Ian when he goes to a seance to humor his Aunt Lillian. Ian is outraged and behaves churlishly as a result, and though he does apologize for his behavior, he refuses to apologize for not believing.
But there's a problem. One by one, it seems, the seance attendees are turning up dead. First, it is a female teacher whose death seems an accident until Ian looks more closely. The same then happens to the retired military man, leaving his cruel, sullen, and as Ian eventually discovers, bullying son as his heir. Then the son dies.
Meanwhile Donald, Ian's brother, has been doing well with his abstinence from drink, and has been cooking for them. His medical school training has been going well, and a new medical student, the affable Arthur Conan Doyle, is introduced. Doyle enjoys helping Ian with his cases and they do scientific studies of things like blood spatter patterns, a new idea started by a French policeman. Conan Doyle, the name by which he is most often addressed in the tale, isn't certain any longer whether he likes medicine or helping the police more, and both he and Ian do what they can to advance the idea of forensics as a science in its own right. Derek, Ian's young informant, has his own group that Ian dubs as Derek's "irregulars," who gather intelligence.
The most worrisome thing to Ian is the way the criminal class is now cooperating among rival gangs, and their increasing fear of the unifying force that has kept the police at bay.
Ian has been advised by the medium to look to his dreams for his answers. He has ahllhad a few vivid dreaks since the seance, and in one, his mother approaches him, reaches out to touch his face - and leaves a painful gash there that wakens him. All his dreams seem to warn him of something, but what? Throughout the story, the gash on the cheek never heals, and often breaks open and bleeds, esp when he gets close to learning more about who set the fire when he was a child. His brother tells him things about his own childhood that make Ian wonder what else he has missed. Donald also begs Ian repeatedly to let his dogged pursuit of the peeson who set the fire, the one that drove Donald to drink and lost them their parents, stop. He tells Ian he will not like the results but will not tell him why. When he gets close to finding out more, Ian is stymied by the same shadowy personage who is uniting the criminal element. As his investigations continue, his attitude and intensity grate more and more on heretofore loyal Sgt. Dickerson, and Ian's enemy on the force - and the possible police link to the new, more unified, criminal element - moves in on Ian's sargeant, providing a sense of camaraderie where Ian has failed. As Ian discovers, his intensity, and his demands on those around him as an unconscious result, are off-putting and hurt the feelings of others. Though he demands far more of himself than he does of his fellow policemen, they don't see it. They see only constant criticism.
As Ian learns more about this new, invisible person on the criminal scene, he becomes more determined than ever to expose this person and stop the rampant crime sprees and murder. But when Ian takes Crawford to a place where a robbery is, as it ends up, happening, he exposes his chief - and himself - to far more danger. In addition, he is on the trail of the seance group's killers just before he gets DCI Crawford involved, and is grateful for Doyle's unflagging help. As he comes to, tied up at the mercy of the criminals, this shadowy person shows up, but Ian is unable to see his face. He warns Ian away, knowing full well he is egging Ian on to find and expose him, yet he seems to hope Ian will leave off his investigation of the fire that destroyed his family.
We will likely have to wait for the next book to find out how Lillian's romance comes along, if Donald will do more than hint about why Ian should obey the shadowy figure and stop investigating the fire that orphaned them, how those wounded in the bank robbery fare, and what the shadowy figure will do next...also, why the gash on Ian's cheek hasn't healed yet, the meaning, if any, of his dreams, and how his new friendship progresses. Plus, what will his investigations into possible internal corruption fare, and if Aunt Lillian will see seances for the fakes they are (or the deviltry at their base, something with which I got entirely too familiar before I turned away from it. And so I look forward eagerly to the next book in the series, and hope that the series will have a long life. These books are eminently readable and enjoyable.
But let's back up a bit. There has been a change in the criminal element. An informant, maybe more than one, previously reliable, are either deliberately misleading the police or are themselves getting told bad information. Or, perhaps, there is someone on the force abetting and aiding the criminal element. Perhaps both. Ian knows whom he suspects if it's someone on the force.
Aunt Lillian has been attending seances, the fad at the time, and an era when, my own grandmother told me, charlatans thrived (she used to help the cops take them down). My other grandmother was taken in by them for much the same reasons as the characters in the book - an attempt to see if the dead they still loved and missed deeply were happy where they were. And like Ian, and his boss DCI Crawford, I believed - still believe - all this was a way for unscrupulous people to prey on the emotions of others for monetary gain, and that it has only as much importance as the recipient of the "message from the spirit world" wants to impart to it...or, as DCI Crawford puts it, "bosh and bunkum." In my one grandmother's case, I believe she wanted to know that all her miscarried and stillborn infants could be contacted, could forgive her. Her only child was my father. She raised him in Spiritualism as my mother had been raised in church and by parents who considered the occult to be a source of fun, having her tea leaves, palms, skulls, or whatever read and laughing at how generalized the predictions were, how they could fit anyone.
Still, one constant about the occult was that there was always some information imparted to a new person, eso. a skeptic, that, often, no one but the skeptic or newbie could know, and the medium or fortune teller would have no obvious way of finding out. This happens to Ian when he goes to a seance to humor his Aunt Lillian. Ian is outraged and behaves churlishly as a result, and though he does apologize for his behavior, he refuses to apologize for not believing.
But there's a problem. One by one, it seems, the seance attendees are turning up dead. First, it is a female teacher whose death seems an accident until Ian looks more closely. The same then happens to the retired military man, leaving his cruel, sullen, and as Ian eventually discovers, bullying son as his heir. Then the son dies.
Meanwhile Donald, Ian's brother, has been doing well with his abstinence from drink, and has been cooking for them. His medical school training has been going well, and a new medical student, the affable Arthur Conan Doyle, is introduced. Doyle enjoys helping Ian with his cases and they do scientific studies of things like blood spatter patterns, a new idea started by a French policeman. Conan Doyle, the name by which he is most often addressed in the tale, isn't certain any longer whether he likes medicine or helping the police more, and both he and Ian do what they can to advance the idea of forensics as a science in its own right. Derek, Ian's young informant, has his own group that Ian dubs as Derek's "irregulars," who gather intelligence.
The most worrisome thing to Ian is the way the criminal class is now cooperating among rival gangs, and their increasing fear of the unifying force that has kept the police at bay.
Ian has been advised by the medium to look to his dreams for his answers. He has ahllhad a few vivid dreaks since the seance, and in one, his mother approaches him, reaches out to touch his face - and leaves a painful gash there that wakens him. All his dreams seem to warn him of something, but what? Throughout the story, the gash on the cheek never heals, and often breaks open and bleeds, esp when he gets close to learning more about who set the fire when he was a child. His brother tells him things about his own childhood that make Ian wonder what else he has missed. Donald also begs Ian repeatedly to let his dogged pursuit of the peeson who set the fire, the one that drove Donald to drink and lost them their parents, stop. He tells Ian he will not like the results but will not tell him why. When he gets close to finding out more, Ian is stymied by the same shadowy personage who is uniting the criminal element. As his investigations continue, his attitude and intensity grate more and more on heretofore loyal Sgt. Dickerson, and Ian's enemy on the force - and the possible police link to the new, more unified, criminal element - moves in on Ian's sargeant, providing a sense of camaraderie where Ian has failed. As Ian discovers, his intensity, and his demands on those around him as an unconscious result, are off-putting and hurt the feelings of others. Though he demands far more of himself than he does of his fellow policemen, they don't see it. They see only constant criticism.
As Ian learns more about this new, invisible person on the criminal scene, he becomes more determined than ever to expose this person and stop the rampant crime sprees and murder. But when Ian takes Crawford to a place where a robbery is, as it ends up, happening, he exposes his chief - and himself - to far more danger. In addition, he is on the trail of the seance group's killers just before he gets DCI Crawford involved, and is grateful for Doyle's unflagging help. As he comes to, tied up at the mercy of the criminals, this shadowy person shows up, but Ian is unable to see his face. He warns Ian away, knowing full well he is egging Ian on to find and expose him, yet he seems to hope Ian will leave off his investigation of the fire that destroyed his family.
We will likely have to wait for the next book to find out how Lillian's romance comes along, if Donald will do more than hint about why Ian should obey the shadowy figure and stop investigating the fire that orphaned them, how those wounded in the bank robbery fare, and what the shadowy figure will do next...also, why the gash on Ian's cheek hasn't healed yet, the meaning, if any, of his dreams, and how his new friendship progresses. Plus, what will his investigations into possible internal corruption fare, and if Aunt Lillian will see seances for the fakes they are (or the deviltry at their base, something with which I got entirely too familiar before I turned away from it. And so I look forward eagerly to the next book in the series, and hope that the series will have a long life. These books are eminently readable and enjoyable.
January 20, 2021
A ridiculous book. The two previous Ian Hamilton books were fine, but this one just went off on a downward tangent. Basically, this was a modern book in period costume. The odious Fiona Stewart acts like a very 21st century woman, and instead of being surprised, the hard-nosed Ian Hamilton gets completely tongue-tied in her presence. Ridiculous! Also, extremely jarring to have such American terminology in a book about Edinburgh. Each time it happens (which is distressingly frequent), it breaks the reader's immersion into the book. Also, would someone please tell this author that there is no such thing as a 'Central London' accent. She calls a 'posh' English accent a central London accent. What rubbish! Posh in England only shows which school you went to, not at all where you come from.
This book was dull and unimaginative, and the characters were flat and one dimensional. And the supernatural turn the story is taking makes it even more preposterous. Where did that come from (and more to the point, where one earth is it going?) Ian Hamilton behaves so stupidly in almost every situation that I can scarcely bear to read him any more. He's more like a hot-headed youth than a mature man approaching his middle years. I couldn't wait for the book to end and I doubt I will be reading any more.
This book was dull and unimaginative, and the characters were flat and one dimensional. And the supernatural turn the story is taking makes it even more preposterous. Where did that come from (and more to the point, where one earth is it going?) Ian Hamilton behaves so stupidly in almost every situation that I can scarcely bear to read him any more. He's more like a hot-headed youth than a mature man approaching his middle years. I couldn't wait for the book to end and I doubt I will be reading any more.
November 9, 2020
Things have taken a spooky turn in the third book in the Ian Hamilton detective series. Ian’s beloved Aunt Lillian has been attending seances to talk to her husband since his death. Ian thinks all this is bosh and bunkum but when his aunt asks him to accompany her in a weak moment, he agrees. Once there, as soon as the medium enters a trance, she delivers him a message where he is addressed as Bear, his mother’s pet name for him. The message tells him that sometimes things should be left alone. Upset, confused and angry, Ian rushes from the house. The trouble is that Ian has already been given the same message from his Lillian and from his brother but he can’t let it alone. He is determined to investigate the fire that killed his parents and left him with an injured shoulder until he does find the truth. And soon he receives a message to say that someone has information for him. That person does not live long enough to tell Ian his tale.
Meanwhile work is piling up. There has been a murder. The victim’s name is Miss Staverley, retired schoolteacher, and coincidentally a usual attendee at the same seances frequented by Aunt Lillian. The murder has been arranged to look like an accident but Ian is not convinced. A public autopsy conducted by Dr Bell confirms his suspicions that miss Staverley was bludgeoned in the side of the head and then either fell or was pushed down the cellar steps. But who would want to kill a retired schoolteacher?
Before Ian and his trusty Sergeant Dickerson have made any ground on this murder, another body turns up. The new victim is Major Fitzpatrick, retired. Again the scene has been arranged to look unsuspicious, death by suicide this time, but again Ian is no convinced. This time he asks for his new friend Arthur Conan Doyle’s help and he confirms that it s murder. Strangely, Ian has met the Major before and it was at his Aunt’s seance. Why would anyone want to kill people who attend that seance in particular? I mentioned the trusty Sergeant Dickerson at the start of this but all is not harmonious on that front. The good sergeant is jealous of Ian’s new friendship with Doyle. He sees their easy familiarity, mutual respect and the equality in their relationship and feels his subordinate relationship keenly. Sergeant Dickerson hero worships Ian and has taken enormous satisfaction from being his right hand man. He fears that role has been usurped. Add to that a few times when Ian rides roughshod over the Sergeant’s feelings, albeit unknowingly, and the cracks start to appear. Ready to widen those cracks is Constable Turnbull. Although only a Constable, Turnbull wields a lot of influence in the station. Turnbull feels Ian crossed him and Ian simply knows Turnbull is a wrong un so the battle lines are drawn and the pawn is Sergeant Dickerson.
If his own investigation and a double murder aren’t enough to be working on, DCI Crawford also asks Ian to investigate a possible informer, either from within the station or one of the police officers usual snouts, who is giving them false information. There have been two large scale robberies where the police were told that something big was going down elsewhere. The papers are having a field day, questioning the competence of the police to do their jobs effectively. This makes Ian question his sources, even as he puts the word out to look for the source of the misinformation.
So now there are three main plot lines; the fire that killed his parents, the seance murders and the misinformant. The station has been told there is going to be a robbery at a large and exclusive jewellers but is this information true or false? In addition, the sub plots are Ian and Dickerson’s relationship, Ian and Fiona’s stalling attempts to start a relationship and the supernatural element. In the latter’s case, Ian is given more warnings purporting to be from beyond the grave when he returns to question the medium about the murders. He also has strange nightmares including dreaming that his mother touches his face with icy fingers, only to wake to find he has a wound on his cheek: a wound that won’t heal. The resonances with the play A Christmas Carol being performed by the amateur players Sergeant Dickerson belongs to are very nicely done.
This is my favourite of the series so far. So many different plates are kept spinning, it’s enough to make the reader dizzy. As well as all the action, there is plenty of other things to enjoy, principally the historical detail and the increasing number and depth of relationships Ian is embarking on. In book one, Ian was an island. Now bridges are being built, some of them even by him. But will he get to enjoy them with the arrival of the shadowy figure, who has already admitted to being responsible for the death of Ian’s parents, and who has built a criminal empire without the police realising? We have been nicely set up for the next book in the series. I can’t wait!
Meanwhile work is piling up. There has been a murder. The victim’s name is Miss Staverley, retired schoolteacher, and coincidentally a usual attendee at the same seances frequented by Aunt Lillian. The murder has been arranged to look like an accident but Ian is not convinced. A public autopsy conducted by Dr Bell confirms his suspicions that miss Staverley was bludgeoned in the side of the head and then either fell or was pushed down the cellar steps. But who would want to kill a retired schoolteacher?
Before Ian and his trusty Sergeant Dickerson have made any ground on this murder, another body turns up. The new victim is Major Fitzpatrick, retired. Again the scene has been arranged to look unsuspicious, death by suicide this time, but again Ian is no convinced. This time he asks for his new friend Arthur Conan Doyle’s help and he confirms that it s murder. Strangely, Ian has met the Major before and it was at his Aunt’s seance. Why would anyone want to kill people who attend that seance in particular? I mentioned the trusty Sergeant Dickerson at the start of this but all is not harmonious on that front. The good sergeant is jealous of Ian’s new friendship with Doyle. He sees their easy familiarity, mutual respect and the equality in their relationship and feels his subordinate relationship keenly. Sergeant Dickerson hero worships Ian and has taken enormous satisfaction from being his right hand man. He fears that role has been usurped. Add to that a few times when Ian rides roughshod over the Sergeant’s feelings, albeit unknowingly, and the cracks start to appear. Ready to widen those cracks is Constable Turnbull. Although only a Constable, Turnbull wields a lot of influence in the station. Turnbull feels Ian crossed him and Ian simply knows Turnbull is a wrong un so the battle lines are drawn and the pawn is Sergeant Dickerson.
If his own investigation and a double murder aren’t enough to be working on, DCI Crawford also asks Ian to investigate a possible informer, either from within the station or one of the police officers usual snouts, who is giving them false information. There have been two large scale robberies where the police were told that something big was going down elsewhere. The papers are having a field day, questioning the competence of the police to do their jobs effectively. This makes Ian question his sources, even as he puts the word out to look for the source of the misinformation.
So now there are three main plot lines; the fire that killed his parents, the seance murders and the misinformant. The station has been told there is going to be a robbery at a large and exclusive jewellers but is this information true or false? In addition, the sub plots are Ian and Dickerson’s relationship, Ian and Fiona’s stalling attempts to start a relationship and the supernatural element. In the latter’s case, Ian is given more warnings purporting to be from beyond the grave when he returns to question the medium about the murders. He also has strange nightmares including dreaming that his mother touches his face with icy fingers, only to wake to find he has a wound on his cheek: a wound that won’t heal. The resonances with the play A Christmas Carol being performed by the amateur players Sergeant Dickerson belongs to are very nicely done.
This is my favourite of the series so far. So many different plates are kept spinning, it’s enough to make the reader dizzy. As well as all the action, there is plenty of other things to enjoy, principally the historical detail and the increasing number and depth of relationships Ian is embarking on. In book one, Ian was an island. Now bridges are being built, some of them even by him. But will he get to enjoy them with the arrival of the shadowy figure, who has already admitted to being responsible for the death of Ian’s parents, and who has built a criminal empire without the police realising? We have been nicely set up for the next book in the series. I can’t wait!
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
November 24, 2020
Very good historical mystery with an excellent protagonist
-In this third story in the Ian Hamilton series, which takes place in the late 19th Century Scotland, Detective Ian Hamilton is accompanying his aunt Lillian to a seance. As did many people in that time period, she believed that a medium was able to bring up the spirits of the dead, and she wanted to reach out to the soul of her husband who had died years before. Ian, on the other hand, went with his aunt grudgingly, as he had no patience to attend what he considered a parlor trick by a con artist. During the seance, the medium, Madame Veselka, goes into a trance, and begins to address Ian. She calls him by a nickname that his mother called him and speaks to him as if by his mother, giving him a warning. He is visibly shaken and rushes out, but the experience has a lasting effect on him.
-At the same time, his superior, Detective Chief Inspector Crawford, has given Hamilton the task of trying to ascertain the reliability of their current informants to possibly find out who of their informants was misdirecting their efforts to solve a string of thefts that were occurring in the city. It seemed that the various gangs were now working in concert and major thefts were being successfully conducted throughout the city. The police were seemingly powerless and the informants were not coming up with any useful information to catch the criminals. It was a difficult assignment, but Crawford had faith in Hamilton.
-Shortly after the seance, Hamilton’s aunt Lillian comes to him in the police station. She needs his assistance urgently. One of her acquaintances who also attended the seance had fallen in her basement, and appeared to be dead. Hamilton goes to the house, and, though it appears that the woman fell down the stairs and died from the fall, Hamilton realizes that she was struck from behind, and that was the cause of death. There was now a killer on the loose, and more deaths of the seance group would follow.
-Hamilton also is contacted by someone from the underworld, known as Rat Face who has information on who started the fire years before that killed Hamilton’s parents and that left Hamilton with burns in his shoulder. On the side, Hamilton deals with this personal investigation, which results in the death of his informant and ends up with Hamilton’s near death.
-As a side story, we have the nurse, Fiona Stuart, who had a run in with Hamilton in a previous book, but who ended up liking him. Both Fiona and Hamilton keep playing a game of tag as they try to keep dinner dates that they make with each other, but something always happens that makes one or the other unable to attend.
-The first two novels in the series were excellent, but the smoothness of the writing drops for some reason in this current story. The suspense seems forced, where it was naturally portrayed in the other novels. At the end, the story is set up for additional novels to come out in the future, as the psychopath that killed Hamilton’s parents is revealed, and, for some reason, is toying with Hamilton himself.
-In this third story in the Ian Hamilton series, which takes place in the late 19th Century Scotland, Detective Ian Hamilton is accompanying his aunt Lillian to a seance. As did many people in that time period, she believed that a medium was able to bring up the spirits of the dead, and she wanted to reach out to the soul of her husband who had died years before. Ian, on the other hand, went with his aunt grudgingly, as he had no patience to attend what he considered a parlor trick by a con artist. During the seance, the medium, Madame Veselka, goes into a trance, and begins to address Ian. She calls him by a nickname that his mother called him and speaks to him as if by his mother, giving him a warning. He is visibly shaken and rushes out, but the experience has a lasting effect on him.
-At the same time, his superior, Detective Chief Inspector Crawford, has given Hamilton the task of trying to ascertain the reliability of their current informants to possibly find out who of their informants was misdirecting their efforts to solve a string of thefts that were occurring in the city. It seemed that the various gangs were now working in concert and major thefts were being successfully conducted throughout the city. The police were seemingly powerless and the informants were not coming up with any useful information to catch the criminals. It was a difficult assignment, but Crawford had faith in Hamilton.
-Shortly after the seance, Hamilton’s aunt Lillian comes to him in the police station. She needs his assistance urgently. One of her acquaintances who also attended the seance had fallen in her basement, and appeared to be dead. Hamilton goes to the house, and, though it appears that the woman fell down the stairs and died from the fall, Hamilton realizes that she was struck from behind, and that was the cause of death. There was now a killer on the loose, and more deaths of the seance group would follow.
-Hamilton also is contacted by someone from the underworld, known as Rat Face who has information on who started the fire years before that killed Hamilton’s parents and that left Hamilton with burns in his shoulder. On the side, Hamilton deals with this personal investigation, which results in the death of his informant and ends up with Hamilton’s near death.
-As a side story, we have the nurse, Fiona Stuart, who had a run in with Hamilton in a previous book, but who ended up liking him. Both Fiona and Hamilton keep playing a game of tag as they try to keep dinner dates that they make with each other, but something always happens that makes one or the other unable to attend.
-The first two novels in the series were excellent, but the smoothness of the writing drops for some reason in this current story. The suspense seems forced, where it was naturally portrayed in the other novels. At the end, the story is set up for additional novels to come out in the future, as the psychopath that killed Hamilton’s parents is revealed, and, for some reason, is toying with Hamilton himself.
December 31, 2020
The Gist
I loved Lawrence’s two previous books in the Ian Hamilton Mysteries Series, Edinburgh Twilight and Edinburgh Dusk, and I was eagerly awaiting the publication of Edinburgh Midnight.
Usually, I can’t put the book until I have finished the last page, but with Edinburgh Midnight I struggled. I struggled a lot.
The Details
Being the third in the series, I thought that at this point the reader might find out a little more about the protagonist.
Instead, it felt like the author decided to take Hamilton a step back; to make him more obscure than in the first two books in the series.
It was all fun and games getting to know Hamilton as the slightly brooding, complex character, but at this point the reader has committed to the series and the character and deserves a little more depth.
Unfortunately, we are still stuck in the stock character stage. We got the main character, who appears to promise us a good and interesting backstory. Plus, the possibility of more character depths and personality traits as the series progresses.
There are plenty of good secondary characters that have the potential to take this series from the monotonous, rather cookie-cutter sort of who-dunnit story to something that would put the Hamilton Mysteries above the rest.
Sadly, the reader is presented with stock characters that won’t go beyond “the brother”, who tries to change his ways. “The detective”, who is brooding and we should take his moods as they come, and whatever other cardboard figures posing as characters would bring this story from point A to point B.
The writing, generally speaking, is still very good. It’s just that it stopped focusing on the story and got stuck explaining Scottish culture in 1800’s. It takes the reader out of the story by way of saying “this is what this word actually means, yet it doesn’t really matter to the story as a whole”.
I wasn’t impressed. The whole thing began to test my patience. I just wanted a good murder mystery to read during the holidays.
Plus, I wasn’t sure what was going on with the plot. All of a sudden there are three murders to investigate, yet none get very much attention. I mean, Hamilton is very busy brooding.
The Verdict
Overall, after reading Edinburgh Midnight I’m the one brooding. The spark and excitement I felt reading the other two in this series are gone. I feel let down and disappointed.
I don’t think I would recommend this one.
ElliotScribbles
I loved Lawrence’s two previous books in the Ian Hamilton Mysteries Series, Edinburgh Twilight and Edinburgh Dusk, and I was eagerly awaiting the publication of Edinburgh Midnight.
Usually, I can’t put the book until I have finished the last page, but with Edinburgh Midnight I struggled. I struggled a lot.
The Details
Being the third in the series, I thought that at this point the reader might find out a little more about the protagonist.
Instead, it felt like the author decided to take Hamilton a step back; to make him more obscure than in the first two books in the series.
It was all fun and games getting to know Hamilton as the slightly brooding, complex character, but at this point the reader has committed to the series and the character and deserves a little more depth.
Unfortunately, we are still stuck in the stock character stage. We got the main character, who appears to promise us a good and interesting backstory. Plus, the possibility of more character depths and personality traits as the series progresses.
There are plenty of good secondary characters that have the potential to take this series from the monotonous, rather cookie-cutter sort of who-dunnit story to something that would put the Hamilton Mysteries above the rest.
Sadly, the reader is presented with stock characters that won’t go beyond “the brother”, who tries to change his ways. “The detective”, who is brooding and we should take his moods as they come, and whatever other cardboard figures posing as characters would bring this story from point A to point B.
The writing, generally speaking, is still very good. It’s just that it stopped focusing on the story and got stuck explaining Scottish culture in 1800’s. It takes the reader out of the story by way of saying “this is what this word actually means, yet it doesn’t really matter to the story as a whole”.
I wasn’t impressed. The whole thing began to test my patience. I just wanted a good murder mystery to read during the holidays.
Plus, I wasn’t sure what was going on with the plot. All of a sudden there are three murders to investigate, yet none get very much attention. I mean, Hamilton is very busy brooding.
The Verdict
Overall, after reading Edinburgh Midnight I’m the one brooding. The spark and excitement I felt reading the other two in this series are gone. I feel let down and disappointed.
I don’t think I would recommend this one.
ElliotScribbles
August 6, 2023
Still good.
I do enjoy these stories, but I feel a bit removed from the series. Not surprisingly, when I look back to see that I reviewed the 2nd book in January 2019.
I love the literary influences throughout this. The author's love for this era of literature is clear, paying tribute to and drawing influences from Doyle, Dickens and Shakespeare without ever copying their works. Ian, as a detective, has been one that I've liked from the beginning. I liked him most in the first book, though, as I preferred him as an almost asexual, purely work focused person. Each subsequent book seems intent on socializing, normalizing and romanticizing him more. This one is definitely pushing him toward a relationship with Nurse Stuart, whom I do like, but I wasn't following these books for romance. It's clear that the author can write that and I'd be happy to read romance or mystery with romantic subplot from her, but I just liked Ian kept out of that. I'd love for Donald to get a romantic story focus. I try very hard not to ship the fictional Arthur Conan Doyle with Ian or Donald. The potential for romances is in each book, but I'd just rather it not be if it's going to change Ian's personality, which seems to be happening.
As for the mysteries in this, I liked them and would have liked even more focus on the seance killings. There was a lot of focus on the mystery of the fire that killed Ian's parents. While I'd love that mystery to be solved for Ian and Donald, this book just adds more to the mystery. It's clear another book was/is meant for the series, but it's been a few years now and I've not see a book 4 released so the dangling threads irk me a little. I'd love to see this series completed and be able to reread it from the beginning.
I do enjoy these stories, but I feel a bit removed from the series. Not surprisingly, when I look back to see that I reviewed the 2nd book in January 2019.
I love the literary influences throughout this. The author's love for this era of literature is clear, paying tribute to and drawing influences from Doyle, Dickens and Shakespeare without ever copying their works. Ian, as a detective, has been one that I've liked from the beginning. I liked him most in the first book, though, as I preferred him as an almost asexual, purely work focused person. Each subsequent book seems intent on socializing, normalizing and romanticizing him more. This one is definitely pushing him toward a relationship with Nurse Stuart, whom I do like, but I wasn't following these books for romance. It's clear that the author can write that and I'd be happy to read romance or mystery with romantic subplot from her, but I just liked Ian kept out of that. I'd love for Donald to get a romantic story focus. I try very hard not to ship the fictional Arthur Conan Doyle with Ian or Donald. The potential for romances is in each book, but I'd just rather it not be if it's going to change Ian's personality, which seems to be happening.
As for the mysteries in this, I liked them and would have liked even more focus on the seance killings. There was a lot of focus on the mystery of the fire that killed Ian's parents. While I'd love that mystery to be solved for Ian and Donald, this book just adds more to the mystery. It's clear another book was/is meant for the series, but it's been a few years now and I've not see a book 4 released so the dangling threads irk me a little. I'd love to see this series completed and be able to reread it from the beginning.
June 18, 2020
Another interesting foray into the world of 1880 Victorian Edinburgh following the exploits of Ian Hamilton Police Inspector confronted with the desire to solve the murder of his parents seven years ago he also take the lead on a series of murders whose only common denominator is a Spiritualist. On top of that his boss Chief Inspector as assigned him the responsibility of determining the potential target a a ruthless gang of thieves.
Throughout this he is assisted by in this case a fictional Arthur Conan Doyle senior medical student and a young street urchin. All the while his movements are being watched closely by an unknown hostile party who might be linked to all three of the tasks Ian has set himself.
There a smidgeon of personal family drama, a hostile police constable, the murder of his most trusted informant, and the hint of a love life for Ian.
I find the premise of the story intriguing but you race from one event to another that it can quickly become a bit of race to the finish. While everything is tied up neatly in the end except for the death of his parents and the mysterious mastermind behind it all I found it lack the clarity of her previous to books involving the Inspector Ian Hamilton, I found it difficult in this case to suspended believability that one person would be dealing with that many major cases all within the same time period of what seemed no more than week or ten days. As I said above it seemed a race to the finish.
Throughout this he is assisted by in this case a fictional Arthur Conan Doyle senior medical student and a young street urchin. All the while his movements are being watched closely by an unknown hostile party who might be linked to all three of the tasks Ian has set himself.
There a smidgeon of personal family drama, a hostile police constable, the murder of his most trusted informant, and the hint of a love life for Ian.
I find the premise of the story intriguing but you race from one event to another that it can quickly become a bit of race to the finish. While everything is tied up neatly in the end except for the death of his parents and the mysterious mastermind behind it all I found it lack the clarity of her previous to books involving the Inspector Ian Hamilton, I found it difficult in this case to suspended believability that one person would be dealing with that many major cases all within the same time period of what seemed no more than week or ten days. As I said above it seemed a race to the finish.
October 5, 2020
I received this ebook as a Goodreads giveaway.
I enjoy Victorian mysteries. As the title indicates, this one takes place in Edinburgh, Scotland, December 1880. It is the third book in the Ian Hamilton mystery series, and the first one I've read. I'm hoping to read the previous two.
Ian Hamilton is a Detective Inspector with the Edinburgh police. There are several other main characters, including Chief Crawford, Sergeant Dickerson, Constable Turnbull, Ian's brother Donald, their Aunt Lillian and medical student Conan Doyle. Ian's Chief has given him the task of finding the source of misinformation being provided to the police, especially about the rumor of an impending major robbery. Ian suspects there may be a mole in the department.
There isn't a lot of action in the first part of the story, but that gradually changes after the first murder. The police were dependent on either walking or cabs for transportation. They also relied heavily on informants. I'm just wondering how Ian managed to afford to take so many cab rides, pay his informants and and make charitable donations to street vendors and orphans.
While I was reading the book I could picture the settings, hear the sounds in the crowded pub, see the characters, etc. I enjoy a story that draws me into the scene itself and this one did. If you enjoy Victorian mysteries you will like the Ian Hamilton mystery series.
I enjoy Victorian mysteries. As the title indicates, this one takes place in Edinburgh, Scotland, December 1880. It is the third book in the Ian Hamilton mystery series, and the first one I've read. I'm hoping to read the previous two.
Ian Hamilton is a Detective Inspector with the Edinburgh police. There are several other main characters, including Chief Crawford, Sergeant Dickerson, Constable Turnbull, Ian's brother Donald, their Aunt Lillian and medical student Conan Doyle. Ian's Chief has given him the task of finding the source of misinformation being provided to the police, especially about the rumor of an impending major robbery. Ian suspects there may be a mole in the department.
There isn't a lot of action in the first part of the story, but that gradually changes after the first murder. The police were dependent on either walking or cabs for transportation. They also relied heavily on informants. I'm just wondering how Ian managed to afford to take so many cab rides, pay his informants and and make charitable donations to street vendors and orphans.
While I was reading the book I could picture the settings, hear the sounds in the crowded pub, see the characters, etc. I enjoy a story that draws me into the scene itself and this one did. If you enjoy Victorian mysteries you will like the Ian Hamilton mystery series.
September 5, 2020
Best Ian Hamilton Murder Mystery Yet!
I love this series by Carole Lawrence. The past, present, and future collide in conflict and chaos as Ian finds out disturbing news about his mother and that the fire he was almost killed in as a boy was maliciously set to murder his parents. But why? Meanwhile in the present, Edinburgh police informers are being viciously murdered on Ian's watch. 'Tis said there is a new a new crime boss in the Scottish city. The addition of the young medical student Arthur Conan Doyle in the last book has the would-be doctor questioning his future vocational plans as he aids Detective Hamilton in crime solving. Dried, fertile seeds of Sherlock Holmes have yet to be planted. The ending is set up perfectly for the next book in the series as the unknown crime Lord pens his final tantalizing note to Ian. The emotional redemption of more than one character graces a barren Christmas in the face of a harsh, cruel, and penniless winter. The true gifts of the spirit are the best Christmas presents ever bestowed on all, but the hopes of the future are slashed to pieces by the unanswered, treacherous clues staring into Ian's scarred and bleeding face.
I love this series by Carole Lawrence. The past, present, and future collide in conflict and chaos as Ian finds out disturbing news about his mother and that the fire he was almost killed in as a boy was maliciously set to murder his parents. But why? Meanwhile in the present, Edinburgh police informers are being viciously murdered on Ian's watch. 'Tis said there is a new a new crime boss in the Scottish city. The addition of the young medical student Arthur Conan Doyle in the last book has the would-be doctor questioning his future vocational plans as he aids Detective Hamilton in crime solving. Dried, fertile seeds of Sherlock Holmes have yet to be planted. The ending is set up perfectly for the next book in the series as the unknown crime Lord pens his final tantalizing note to Ian. The emotional redemption of more than one character graces a barren Christmas in the face of a harsh, cruel, and penniless winter. The true gifts of the spirit are the best Christmas presents ever bestowed on all, but the hopes of the future are slashed to pieces by the unanswered, treacherous clues staring into Ian's scarred and bleeding face.
February 13, 2023
Something about this series has been very appealing to me, but I can’t quite explain what that ‘something’ is. The MC, Ian, is a detective in Edinburgh, Scotland, in the late 1800s, and is dealing with his own personal demons as well as those he must investigate. He reminds me somewhat of Chief Inspector Armand Gamache from Louise Penny’s series set in Three Pines (Canada), which may be why I like this series so much.
The mystery in this book was well-done, with the list of likely suspects growing smaller as the story progressed, but I kept changing my mind about who the killer was. After one interview, I moved one character closer to the top of my list, and was surprised when that person was ultimately revealed as the killer. The motive wasn’t obvious until after the fact, probably because I’m not usually good at piecing clues together.
I want to read more from this series – there are questions that were not answered in this book – but it’s been three years since this book was published, so it appears that this is as far as the series goes. I will keep an eye out for more, though, just in case.
The mystery in this book was well-done, with the list of likely suspects growing smaller as the story progressed, but I kept changing my mind about who the killer was. After one interview, I moved one character closer to the top of my list, and was surprised when that person was ultimately revealed as the killer. The motive wasn’t obvious until after the fact, probably because I’m not usually good at piecing clues together.
I want to read more from this series – there are questions that were not answered in this book – but it’s been three years since this book was published, so it appears that this is as far as the series goes. I will keep an eye out for more, though, just in case.
July 1, 2021
Have now read all 3 of the Ian Hamilton, Victorian Edinburgh police mysteries. One really jarring seemingly. petty criticism is the American author’s insistence on calling the Edinburgh new and old towns just New town and old town without Using the in front of them. As a Scot with a father from Edinburgh this would just never happen. It jars, dislocates me from the otherwise reasonably authentic sense of place. It’s The new town and The old town please.
Also a bit put off by all these incomers from parts of England with odd dialects liberally scattered around Inspector Hamilton’s patch. ,Sure Scotland’s capital was awash with dislocated people from the Highlands and the borders, lured to the city to find work but all these poor folk from across the border! Ireland perhaps though they mainly settled on the west coast, but England, I doubt it! The displaced English poor gravitated to English cities not Scottish ones.
At present Hamilton is a bit cardboard, his character needs fleshed out a bit before I can really care for him.
Also a bit put off by all these incomers from parts of England with odd dialects liberally scattered around Inspector Hamilton’s patch. ,Sure Scotland’s capital was awash with dislocated people from the Highlands and the borders, lured to the city to find work but all these poor folk from across the border! Ireland perhaps though they mainly settled on the west coast, but England, I doubt it! The displaced English poor gravitated to English cities not Scottish ones.
At present Hamilton is a bit cardboard, his character needs fleshed out a bit before I can really care for him.
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