Vile Spirits

by John MacLachlan Gray

An exhilarating page-turner set in 1920s Vancouver post prohibition, when liquor was the fuel driving big business, big government―and major crime. In this spellbinding follow-up to his mystery The White Angel , John MacLachlan Gray captures the spirit of Vancouver in those gritty, gin-soaked days, as the city was remaking itself between wars. Alcohol is once again legal in Vancouver after the failed experiment of prohibition, but pro-temperance sentiments remain strong. Politicians like Attorney General Gordon Cunning attempt appeasement by establishing the Liquor Control Board, which oversees supply, from the lofty circles of power down to bleak public drinking factories called “beer parlours.” But when Cunning is found deceased, an empty martini glass at his side, quickly followed by Mrs. Harlan Crombie, the wife of a prominent bureaucrat, who falls dead after an afternoon book club meeting, suspicions are raised. Is it pure coincidence that the deceased were both drinking the same brand of “tonic”? Or is it a spillover from American prohibition, where deliberately tainted booze is killing thousands? Fans of The White Angel will be delighted by the return of straight-shooting constable Calvin Hook, frustrated poet-cum-reporter Ed McCurdy and unpredictable, eavesdropping telephone operator Mildred Wickstram, as they pool their skills in order to get to the truth. The result is a clash between temperance activists, the Ku Klux Klan, the Liquor Control Board and global events on the mean streets of Vancouver―a rough little city on the edge of empire.

Genres: Historical Fiction, Historical Mystery

320 pages, Hardcover

Published March 8, 2022

Reviews

[Doug · Rating 2 out of 5]

2.5, rounded down.

Having read and semi-liked this novel's prequel (The White Angel), I thought I would try this, since it made a couple of year-end 'best of 2022' lists. Although three characters from the earlier work return, this just didn't seem to have the same energy (it took me three times as long to read) - and also suffered, like the earlier book, from a surfeit of characters that were difficult to keep straight ... and a somewhat botched ending. Things that seemed innovative and unique the first time round (including dialogues from operators at old telephone switchboards, entire newspaper columns quoted verbatim) now seemed shopworn and tired. There were a few intriguing set pieces, but not enough of them to warrant more than 2.5 stars. Disappointing.

[Hella Comat · Rating 4 out of 5]

I found this story intriguing as it was set in 1920s British Columbia. It starts with a suspicious death of the attorney general and involves the Liquor Control Board, the prohibition movement, and the KKK. Even Emily Carr makes an appearance.

[Helen · Rating 3 out of 5]

This is the second book, follows The White Angel. You don't have to have read the first one.
I read it through and enjoyed parts but many things irritated me.
If you are going to set the story amongst a circle of real people it becomes difficult to know who you have to change in order to avoid libel suits. In this case we're dealing with the premier and cabinet, as well as the Vancouver police force of 1924. The attorney general is poisoned at a reception for Prince George who is on a royal tour. Prince George? That's not David, who came to the throne as Edward VIII and it's not his brother who followed him as George the VI (unless there was a tour in there that I missed). If he had come he would have visited the city named for his deceased relative certainly.
The attorney general? Well, how many people keep a list of past cabinet members in their minds? Give the author this one, but really it would have been so much easier to have written a mystery, exactly the same mystery in fact, involving a fictional person which would not necessitate tampering with so many historical people. Unless, that is, MacLauchlan Gray wanted to titillate us with all the illicit activities that were (and probably still are) going on in this fair city. If the victim had been the attorney general's secretary it would still have worked.
This is not the Vancouver of either of my grandparents; neither the uptight Presbyterians of my grandmother's family nor the fervent union members of my grandfather and his brothers, but that's alright because everyone has their own home town and the further back the less likely you are to have it right. I couldn't help but love the local details, the places I recognized, the real people likewise and the talk about town. However, the newspapers got changed and I wonder if Ed McCurdy is intended to be the father (?) of the 60s folk singer of the same name. I can't imagine an editor allowing those terrible verses into his columns, however.
I just don't believe in our bouncy little telephone operator, either, tripping around the streets and telling tales. That phone answering pattern is so strange, but I'm sure the author has researched it.
It was a fun read, but I wish the mystery had not focused on fictionalised real people.

[Paul Sutter]

VILE SPIRITS is the sequel to John MacLachlan Gray’s previous page turner, THE WHITE ANGEL. But don’t despair if you have not read that book. VILE SPIRITS works well enough on its own, that you understand the story and intricate plot within.
The book is set in Vancouver during prohibition. The author has given us the atmospheric feel of the 1920’s when anything goes, and there was lots of alcohol flowing, and lawlessness was sometimes the order of the day. There was also racial injustice with the Ku Klux Klan showing their muscle as well.
There is a most stunning death, in that the head of the Liquor Control Board Gordon Cunning is discovered dead the morning after a reception for HRH Prince George. There is a empty martini glass near him, and with no outright signs of anything unusual with the death, D. S. Calvin Hook looks into the death. But soon another death stuns the community, that of Alga Crombie, the wife of a noted politician. Could the two deaths be connected, and if so, why would kill the two people and why were they chosen for death?
Calvin has some help in the investigation, Ed McCurdy a reporter, and Mildred Wickstram, a telephone operator. It makes for a most interesting trio who delves deeply into the murder and what it could signify for them all. Calvin starts making progress, and because he is getting closer to the truth, he is the target of someone who is ready to silence him once and for all. It becomes apparent that alcohol may be one of the triggers for the deaths, as a new person must head the Liquor Control Board. There are struggles between those who want alcohol to flow freely and be capped, along with racists factions who want to infiltrate Vancouver.
It makes for a most enjoyable book, with a little bit of everything. There is nothing vile about this book, totally a winner all the way.

[Dorothy · Rating 4 out of 5]

I really enjoy reading books set in my home province of BC. This one takes place in Vancouver during Prohibition where the Canadian branch of the Klu Klux Clan are operating and police use thuggery tactics to arrest people who are drinking....except of course for politicians and the very wealthy. I don't live in Vancouver but have visited often and I recognise some of the street names and buildings.
The main character is Ed McCurdy, a journalist who is particularly good at writing articles that put these wealthy and powerful people in a bad light, particularly those who run the Liquor Control Board (which still exists in BC but happily with a more liberal view of alcohol. Detective Inspector Hook is one the case of

[Barb · Rating 4 out of 5]

Good historical background of Vancouver, BC Canada during Prohibition days, woven into plot that portrayed political and social scene of the time. Learned some facts and enjoyed interesting if predictable characters such as the jaded reporter, the questionable police chief and tainted politician. Females were not entirely believable, though I am sure they were carefully researched. Plot could have been melded a tad better.

[Christina · Rating 4 out of 5]

For someone interested in 1920s Vancouver, this is as fun as a speakeasy with live entertainment and cheap moonshine. Loved the bit at the end, it reminded me of an episode that happened just a month earlier; some things still remain the same. Proofing could have been better, Douglas & Macintyre ("died-in-the-wool"?)

If I happen to notice John MacLachlan Gray in my travels I shall tell him his novel is the bee's knees.

[Christopher · Rating 3 out of 5]

If there was a way to vote it 3.5 stars, I would. Clever mystery involving Prohibition in Canada but a couple of things bothered me. Every once in a while the author would jar me out of the story with a turn of phrase at the end of a chapter or language that doesn't really fit the character. Otherwise, fairly solid read.

[Annarella · Rating 4 out of 5]

It was an entertaining, compelling, and well written historical mystery that kept me hooked and made me learn something new.
The plot is well developed, the solid mystery kept me guessing, and i appreciated the characters.
Recommended.
Many thanks to the publisher for this ARC, all opinions are mine

[Byron Wright · Rating 3 out of 5]

I have a soft spot for books set in this time period. So, from a reading perspective, I enjoyed the general flow of the story. I also liked the characters.

About the only thing that didn't work well for me was the mystery reveal at the end. The reveal seemed contrived. I would have been happy for the whole thing to just be a story.

[Cathy · Rating 3 out of 5]

Very funny at times...and at other times I could not understand what the heck was going on.
The womens roles were especially confusing to me.
And did the crimes get solved? Not to my satisfaction.

[Patricia Buchanan · Rating 1 out of 5]

Like watching paint dry. At 200 pages decided that life was too short to waste my time.

[Scott Wahl · Rating 3 out of 5]

Interesting historical crime fiction set in 1920s Vancouver. A a bit plodding at times, more interested in the history bits than narrative momentum.

[Amanda Borys · Rating 1 out of 5]

I did not finish this book. It is as awful and illogical as his first book.