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Bowman of the Yard #3
The Body In The Trees: A Bowman Of The Yard Investigation
Bowman of the Book Three 'Wonderfully atmospheric, full of the thrills of Victorian London.' Adam Croft. Summer, 1892. Accompanied by the trusted Sergeant Graves, Detective Inspector George Bowman finds himself in Larton, a sleepy village on the River Thames. A series of supposed suicides has opened up old wounds between the locals and a gypsy camp in the woods. The detectives are viewed with suspicion as the villagers close ranks against their investigation, even more so when Bowman succumbs to visions of his dead wife. His sanity in the balance, it’s not long before he places Graves himself in danger, risking the wrath of the Commissioner of Scotland Yard. Is Bowman in full possession of his wits? As village life continues and a link between the suicides is discovered, Bowman finds himself ensnared in the machinations of a secret society, with a figure at its head who will stop at nothing to escape justice. Soon, the inspector is embroiled in a case that began on the dusty plains of Africa, and ends at the gates of a lunatic asylum. Richard James is an actor, playwright and author with many credits to his name. The Bowman Of The Yard series marks his first as an author. Other books in the acclaimed series include Devil in the Dock and The Head in the Ice. 'A genuinely impressive debut.' Andrew Cartmel, The Vinyl Detective . 'Crime fiction with wit and twists.' Richard Foreman, The Complete Innings .
215 pages, Paperback
First published January 9, 2020
26 people are currently reading
23 people want to read
About the author
Richard James
20 books20 followersI've been telling stories all my life. As an actor I've spent a career telling other people's, from Charles Dickens to David Walliams. As I writer, I get to create my own!
I have written almost thirty plays which are produced the world over; from USA to New Zealand and just about everywhere in between. They're mostly comedies and frequently win awards in competitions and festivals.
In 2014 I wrote a memoir, Space Precinct Unmasked, detailing my experiences working as an actor on Gerry Anderson's last live action sci-fi series. This was followed by an adaptation of the unscreened pilot episode, Demeter City, and four new short stories featuring the officers of Precinct 88, Space Precinct: Revisited.
As to my own series, I decided I wanted to write a sequence of books set in a world I would want to spend time in and featuring characters I would want to be with. Most importantly, it would have to feature a grisly murder or two! I love the Victorian era. It seems such a rich period of history, populated by some hugely colourful characters, so that is where we first meet Detective Inspector George Bowman.
The Head In The Ice is the first in the Bowman Of The Yard series and follows Bowman's investigation into the discovery of - well, a head in the ice of the River Thames. Over the course of the book, however, and throughout the series in general, we see he has demons of his own to contend with.
There are four books in the Bowman Of The Yard series in all, together with some short stories from Bowman's Casebook. These have been collected into two volumes and fill in the gaps between the novels, giving the reader the chance to follow Bowman's professional progress and personal battles (he's a troubled man, as you'll see) over twelve months of his life.
'A masterful new Victorian mystery series.' Rosie Amber books
'A genuinely impressive debut.' Andrew Cartmel
'Full of the thrills of Victorian London.' Adam Croft
I really hope you like the books. If you do, you can tweet me your thoughts at @RichardNJames. I hope to hear from you!
Richard James
2019
www.richardjamesonline.com
I have written almost thirty plays which are produced the world over; from USA to New Zealand and just about everywhere in between. They're mostly comedies and frequently win awards in competitions and festivals.
In 2014 I wrote a memoir, Space Precinct Unmasked, detailing my experiences working as an actor on Gerry Anderson's last live action sci-fi series. This was followed by an adaptation of the unscreened pilot episode, Demeter City, and four new short stories featuring the officers of Precinct 88, Space Precinct: Revisited.
As to my own series, I decided I wanted to write a sequence of books set in a world I would want to spend time in and featuring characters I would want to be with. Most importantly, it would have to feature a grisly murder or two! I love the Victorian era. It seems such a rich period of history, populated by some hugely colourful characters, so that is where we first meet Detective Inspector George Bowman.
The Head In The Ice is the first in the Bowman Of The Yard series and follows Bowman's investigation into the discovery of - well, a head in the ice of the River Thames. Over the course of the book, however, and throughout the series in general, we see he has demons of his own to contend with.
There are four books in the Bowman Of The Yard series in all, together with some short stories from Bowman's Casebook. These have been collected into two volumes and fill in the gaps between the novels, giving the reader the chance to follow Bowman's professional progress and personal battles (he's a troubled man, as you'll see) over twelve months of his life.
'A masterful new Victorian mystery series.' Rosie Amber books
'A genuinely impressive debut.' Andrew Cartmel
'Full of the thrills of Victorian London.' Adam Croft
I really hope you like the books. If you do, you can tweet me your thoughts at @RichardNJames. I hope to hear from you!
Richard James
2019
www.richardjamesonline.com
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Displaying 1 - 13 of 13 reviews
May 8, 2021
This had me gripped from the start. We see Inspector Bowman on a case in a part of the country he has not visited before and therefore a little out of his comfort zone. He is also suffering with some ill health himself. However what follows is an intriguing story of secrets and hush hush as the case unravels itself. Brilliant!
November 23, 2020
I received an early ARC copy of this novel, which I freely chose to review.
This is the third novel in the series of A Bowman in the Yard Investigation that I read, and I’ve become a keen follower of the series, which combines interesting characters and plot with a great attention to detail and a compelling style of writing that transport readers right into the heart of Victorian England. While the previous novels were set in London (and we learned much about the changes taking place in the city at the time and the criminal underworld), this novel takes inspector Bowman, Graves, and later Hicks, from Scotland Yard, to the countryside, where they are confronted with a village that is fiercely suspicious of outsiders, and where anybody straying from the established social order is frown upon. The author proves as adept at depicting this society (with its rigid norms of behaviour, its prejudices and xenophobia, its narrow-mindedness and its cruelty) as he had been at showing us what the big metropolis was like. This is no idyllic English village, but a place full of secrets, envies, one-upmanship, spite, and lack of empathy. It might look pretty from the outside, but like a rotten fruit, its insides are ugly.
Bowman, who had been struggling with his grief and his mental health difficulties from the first book, is quickly becoming unravelled, and that is partly why he is sent away from London to a place where his superiors think he is less likely to cause any damage or come to any serious harm. It is also a way of testing him and seeing how he manages, under the supervision of Graves. As the description explains, things start going wrong quite quickly and Bowman’s mental state puts everybody at risk.
The P.O.V. is the same as in the rest of the series, omniscient, mostly focused on Bowman, but there are parts of the story where we share in the point of view of one of his men, and even of some of the villagers and others involved. I know some readers are not fond of this particular point of view, and although I think it works particularly well in this setting (as the main character becomes an increasingly unreliable narrator) prospective readers might want to check a sample of the writing beforehand. There are hints and references to events in previous novels in the series, but I think a reader new to the series would be able to enjoy it as well, and I’m convinced he’d be sufficiently intrigued with the events here to want to catch up with the rest of the story.
I particularly liked the depiction of village life, and the social commentary resulting from it (gypsies are suspected of all crimes, there are rigid social norms and people cannot try to move across the divide without causing resentment). I also enjoyed the background to the mystery (but I won’t say anything else to avoid spoilers). There are plenty of red herrings, twists and turns, and cul-de-sacs; although at a personal level I am more interested in Victorian London and its criminal world. I was also intrigued by the baddie, who in some ways seems to understand Bowman perfectly (better than he understands himself, perhaps because they have things in common, although each one of them have dealt with their personal situation in a completely different way), and enjoyed seeing more of Graves and even Hicks (who can be quite effective when he gets going).
What got me hooked into the story most of all was Bowman and his descend into his personal hell. He tries to find some remedy and some help for his condition, but it is not easy, and in his path to self-destruction he gathers a momentum he is unable to control. The ending came as no surprise (I refer to what happens to Bowman, rather than the actual case, although I also guessed the guilty parties, but then I have a suspicious mind. I wouldn’t say it’s easy to guess), and I wonder what will come next.
This is another great novel, and one that explores a different, but not kinder, aspect of life in the Victorian era. There is domestic violence, exploitation, murders, secrets, cowardice, and the full catalogue of human sins. We also get an opportunity to witness the unequal fight of a good man against his grief and his PTSD. The violence and the crimes and not particularly explicit in this book, but this is not a gentle cozy mystery, and readers should be prepared for their emotions to be put to the test. A great combination of historical mystery, social commentary and psychological study. Highly recommended.
This is the third novel in the series of A Bowman in the Yard Investigation that I read, and I’ve become a keen follower of the series, which combines interesting characters and plot with a great attention to detail and a compelling style of writing that transport readers right into the heart of Victorian England. While the previous novels were set in London (and we learned much about the changes taking place in the city at the time and the criminal underworld), this novel takes inspector Bowman, Graves, and later Hicks, from Scotland Yard, to the countryside, where they are confronted with a village that is fiercely suspicious of outsiders, and where anybody straying from the established social order is frown upon. The author proves as adept at depicting this society (with its rigid norms of behaviour, its prejudices and xenophobia, its narrow-mindedness and its cruelty) as he had been at showing us what the big metropolis was like. This is no idyllic English village, but a place full of secrets, envies, one-upmanship, spite, and lack of empathy. It might look pretty from the outside, but like a rotten fruit, its insides are ugly.
Bowman, who had been struggling with his grief and his mental health difficulties from the first book, is quickly becoming unravelled, and that is partly why he is sent away from London to a place where his superiors think he is less likely to cause any damage or come to any serious harm. It is also a way of testing him and seeing how he manages, under the supervision of Graves. As the description explains, things start going wrong quite quickly and Bowman’s mental state puts everybody at risk.
The P.O.V. is the same as in the rest of the series, omniscient, mostly focused on Bowman, but there are parts of the story where we share in the point of view of one of his men, and even of some of the villagers and others involved. I know some readers are not fond of this particular point of view, and although I think it works particularly well in this setting (as the main character becomes an increasingly unreliable narrator) prospective readers might want to check a sample of the writing beforehand. There are hints and references to events in previous novels in the series, but I think a reader new to the series would be able to enjoy it as well, and I’m convinced he’d be sufficiently intrigued with the events here to want to catch up with the rest of the story.
I particularly liked the depiction of village life, and the social commentary resulting from it (gypsies are suspected of all crimes, there are rigid social norms and people cannot try to move across the divide without causing resentment). I also enjoyed the background to the mystery (but I won’t say anything else to avoid spoilers). There are plenty of red herrings, twists and turns, and cul-de-sacs; although at a personal level I am more interested in Victorian London and its criminal world. I was also intrigued by the baddie, who in some ways seems to understand Bowman perfectly (better than he understands himself, perhaps because they have things in common, although each one of them have dealt with their personal situation in a completely different way), and enjoyed seeing more of Graves and even Hicks (who can be quite effective when he gets going).
What got me hooked into the story most of all was Bowman and his descend into his personal hell. He tries to find some remedy and some help for his condition, but it is not easy, and in his path to self-destruction he gathers a momentum he is unable to control. The ending came as no surprise (I refer to what happens to Bowman, rather than the actual case, although I also guessed the guilty parties, but then I have a suspicious mind. I wouldn’t say it’s easy to guess), and I wonder what will come next.
This is another great novel, and one that explores a different, but not kinder, aspect of life in the Victorian era. There is domestic violence, exploitation, murders, secrets, cowardice, and the full catalogue of human sins. We also get an opportunity to witness the unequal fight of a good man against his grief and his PTSD. The violence and the crimes and not particularly explicit in this book, but this is not a gentle cozy mystery, and readers should be prepared for their emotions to be put to the test. A great combination of historical mystery, social commentary and psychological study. Highly recommended.
July 3, 2020
I received an early ARC copy of this novel, which I freely chose to review.
This is the third novel in the series of A Bowman in the Yard Investigation that I read, and I’ve become a keen follower of the series, which combines interesting characters and plot with a great attention to detail and a compelling style of writing that transport readers right into the heart of Victorian England. While the previous novels were set in London (and we learned much about the changes taking place in the city at the time and the criminal underworld), this novel takes inspector Bowman, Graves, and later Hicks, from Scotland Yard, to the countryside, where they are confronted with a village that is fiercely suspicious of outsiders, and where anybody straying from the established social order is frown upon. The author proves as adept at depicting this society (with its rigid norms of behaviour, its prejudices and xenophobia, its narrow-mindedness and its cruelty) as he had been at showing us what the big metropolis was like. This is no idyllic English village, but a place full of secrets, envies, one-upmanship, spite, and lack of empathy. It might look pretty from the outside, but like a rotten fruit, its insides are ugly.
Bowman, who had been struggling with his grief and his mental health difficulties from the first book, is quickly becoming unravelled, and that is partly why he is sent away from London to a place where his superiors think he is less likely to cause any damage or come to any serious harm. It is also a way of testing him and seeing how he manages, under the supervision of Graves. As the description explains, things start going wrong quite quickly and Bowman’s mental state puts everybody at risk.
The P.O.V. is the same as in the rest of the series, omniscient, mostly focused on Bowman, but there are parts of the story where we share in the point of view of one of his men, and even of some of the villagers and others involved. I know some readers are not fond of this particular point of view, and although I think it works particularly well in this setting (as the main character becomes an increasingly unreliable narrator) prospective readers might want to check a sample of the writing beforehand. There are hints and references to events in previous novels in the series, but I think a reader new to the series would be able to enjoy it as well, and I’m convinced he’d be sufficiently intrigued with the events here to want to catch up with the rest of the story.
I particularly liked the depiction of village life, and the social commentary resulting from it (gypsies are suspected of all crimes, there are rigid social norms and people cannot try to move across the divide without causing resentment). I also enjoyed the background to the mystery (but I won’t say anything else to avoid spoilers). There are plenty of red herrings, twists and turns, and cul-de-sacs; although at a personal level I am more interested in Victorian London and its criminal world. I was also intrigued by the baddie, who in some ways seems to understand Bowman perfectly (better than he understands himself, perhaps because they have things in common, although each one of them have dealt with their personal situation in a completely different way), and enjoyed seeing more of Graves and even Hicks (who can be quite effective when he gets going).
What got me hooked into the story most of all was Bowman and his descend into his personal hell. He tries to find some remedy and some help for his condition, but it is not easy, and in his path to self-destruction he gathers a momentum he is unable to control. The ending came as no surprise (I refer to what happens to Bowman, rather than the actual case, although I also guessed the guilty parties, but then I have a suspicious mind. I wouldn’t say it’s easy to guess), and I wonder what will come next.
This is another great novel, and one that explores a different, but not kinder, aspect of life in the Victorian era. There is domestic violence, exploitation, murders, secrets, cowardice, and the full catalogue of human sins. We also get an opportunity to witness the unequal fight of a good man against his grief and his PTSD. The violence and the crimes and not particularly explicit in this book, but this is not a gentle cozy mystery, and readers should be prepared for their emotions to be put to the test. A great combination of historical mystery, social commentary and psychological study. Highly recommended.
This is the third novel in the series of A Bowman in the Yard Investigation that I read, and I’ve become a keen follower of the series, which combines interesting characters and plot with a great attention to detail and a compelling style of writing that transport readers right into the heart of Victorian England. While the previous novels were set in London (and we learned much about the changes taking place in the city at the time and the criminal underworld), this novel takes inspector Bowman, Graves, and later Hicks, from Scotland Yard, to the countryside, where they are confronted with a village that is fiercely suspicious of outsiders, and where anybody straying from the established social order is frown upon. The author proves as adept at depicting this society (with its rigid norms of behaviour, its prejudices and xenophobia, its narrow-mindedness and its cruelty) as he had been at showing us what the big metropolis was like. This is no idyllic English village, but a place full of secrets, envies, one-upmanship, spite, and lack of empathy. It might look pretty from the outside, but like a rotten fruit, its insides are ugly.
Bowman, who had been struggling with his grief and his mental health difficulties from the first book, is quickly becoming unravelled, and that is partly why he is sent away from London to a place where his superiors think he is less likely to cause any damage or come to any serious harm. It is also a way of testing him and seeing how he manages, under the supervision of Graves. As the description explains, things start going wrong quite quickly and Bowman’s mental state puts everybody at risk.
The P.O.V. is the same as in the rest of the series, omniscient, mostly focused on Bowman, but there are parts of the story where we share in the point of view of one of his men, and even of some of the villagers and others involved. I know some readers are not fond of this particular point of view, and although I think it works particularly well in this setting (as the main character becomes an increasingly unreliable narrator) prospective readers might want to check a sample of the writing beforehand. There are hints and references to events in previous novels in the series, but I think a reader new to the series would be able to enjoy it as well, and I’m convinced he’d be sufficiently intrigued with the events here to want to catch up with the rest of the story.
I particularly liked the depiction of village life, and the social commentary resulting from it (gypsies are suspected of all crimes, there are rigid social norms and people cannot try to move across the divide without causing resentment). I also enjoyed the background to the mystery (but I won’t say anything else to avoid spoilers). There are plenty of red herrings, twists and turns, and cul-de-sacs; although at a personal level I am more interested in Victorian London and its criminal world. I was also intrigued by the baddie, who in some ways seems to understand Bowman perfectly (better than he understands himself, perhaps because they have things in common, although each one of them have dealt with their personal situation in a completely different way), and enjoyed seeing more of Graves and even Hicks (who can be quite effective when he gets going).
What got me hooked into the story most of all was Bowman and his descend into his personal hell. He tries to find some remedy and some help for his condition, but it is not easy, and in his path to self-destruction he gathers a momentum he is unable to control. The ending came as no surprise (I refer to what happens to Bowman, rather than the actual case, although I also guessed the guilty parties, but then I have a suspicious mind. I wouldn’t say it’s easy to guess), and I wonder what will come next.
This is another great novel, and one that explores a different, but not kinder, aspect of life in the Victorian era. There is domestic violence, exploitation, murders, secrets, cowardice, and the full catalogue of human sins. We also get an opportunity to witness the unequal fight of a good man against his grief and his PTSD. The violence and the crimes and not particularly explicit in this book, but this is not a gentle cozy mystery, and readers should be prepared for their emotions to be put to the test. A great combination of historical mystery, social commentary and psychological study. Highly recommended.
February 25, 2021
Sergeant Graves and Detective Inspector George Bowman are now in the village of Lanton, investigating a series of suicides that have strained the relationships between the villagers and the nearby Gypsy camp in the forest. Villagers look at the inspectors with suspicion, especially after Bowman sees his dead wife and Graves is endangered. Bowman's sanity is on the line, and it appears that a secret society will do just about anything to remain secret.
The Body in the Trees is the third book in the Bowman of the Yard series, following The Head In The Ice and The Devil In The Dock. Bowman isn't in a very good place at the beginning of the novel, visiting the Victorian equivalent of Twelve Step meetings at the Salvation Army and tremors in his hands when not drinking. He would've been fired if not for the low number of inspectors on the force and his skill in prior cases. Because of his erratic conduct, Sergeant Graves is essentially his babysitter.
In the time period of these novels, the Roma were referred to as travellers or Gypsies, and were treated even worse than they are now in Europe. The hanged man's son is also treated terribly, shunned by the village as bad luck while he knows of all their poor behavior when they appear god-fearing. A number of the villagers, especially those with a modicum of power, are distasteful and awful people, to the point that I was pulling faces as I read about them in the book. Most villagers don't have warm relationships with each other, even in a hardscrabble life, and a secret order meets at night with a sinister air.
We get to the bottom of the mystery by the end of the novel, and Bowman was steadily declining throughout the story. While justice is served at the end, he's still emotionally broken and he loses grip on himself. I feel sorry for him, because he tries so hard to get to the truth, and loses hold of himself in the process, and once again is swallowed up by the grief for his wife he carried with him.
The Body in the Trees is the third book in the Bowman of the Yard series, following The Head In The Ice and The Devil In The Dock. Bowman isn't in a very good place at the beginning of the novel, visiting the Victorian equivalent of Twelve Step meetings at the Salvation Army and tremors in his hands when not drinking. He would've been fired if not for the low number of inspectors on the force and his skill in prior cases. Because of his erratic conduct, Sergeant Graves is essentially his babysitter.
In the time period of these novels, the Roma were referred to as travellers or Gypsies, and were treated even worse than they are now in Europe. The hanged man's son is also treated terribly, shunned by the village as bad luck while he knows of all their poor behavior when they appear god-fearing. A number of the villagers, especially those with a modicum of power, are distasteful and awful people, to the point that I was pulling faces as I read about them in the book. Most villagers don't have warm relationships with each other, even in a hardscrabble life, and a secret order meets at night with a sinister air.
We get to the bottom of the mystery by the end of the novel, and Bowman was steadily declining throughout the story. While justice is served at the end, he's still emotionally broken and he loses grip on himself. I feel sorry for him, because he tries so hard to get to the truth, and loses hold of himself in the process, and once again is swallowed up by the grief for his wife he carried with him.
February 8, 2021
“The Body in the Trees “is number three in a series of historical mysteries by Richard set in 1890’s England.
Inspector Bowman is a seriously troubled man. Troubled in the sense that he suffers from a deep depression and self - hatred that began after the death of his wife from a runaway carriage which Bowman saw happen before his horrified eyes. His PSTD, as we would term it today, caused Bowman to spend some time in an asylum, before being cleared for work. But he still has visions of her death, and drinks heavily.
Now Bowman has been sent off to investigate a set of suspicious deaths in a farming village. A man was found hanging from a tree-suicide or murder? Bowman knows he is being given a last chance to prove he is up to the job.
The villagers are laborers on the Squire’s farms and are poor, ignorant and angry; they seem to hate each other as much as they hate the “furriner” inspector and his aide, Graves. No one knows anything. The investigation is going nowhere. Can Bowman stay mostly sober and fight off his dark visions long enough to get to the truth?
This book as with the others I have read is a good one, with a solid presentation of the squalid existence fo laborers in the shires., which is far different from the idealized romances presented on Masterpeice Theater . “ The Body in the Trees” does keep the reader’s interest, mostly to see if Bowman will crash mentally before he finds the truth of the deaths in the village. The actual mystery story is good, a middle of the scale 6 out of ten. For me, I think the author has to get his primary character’s downward spiral stopped while he is still appealing. My opinion, read for yourself.
Cautions: nothing offensive.
Inspector Bowman is a seriously troubled man. Troubled in the sense that he suffers from a deep depression and self - hatred that began after the death of his wife from a runaway carriage which Bowman saw happen before his horrified eyes. His PSTD, as we would term it today, caused Bowman to spend some time in an asylum, before being cleared for work. But he still has visions of her death, and drinks heavily.
Now Bowman has been sent off to investigate a set of suspicious deaths in a farming village. A man was found hanging from a tree-suicide or murder? Bowman knows he is being given a last chance to prove he is up to the job.
The villagers are laborers on the Squire’s farms and are poor, ignorant and angry; they seem to hate each other as much as they hate the “furriner” inspector and his aide, Graves. No one knows anything. The investigation is going nowhere. Can Bowman stay mostly sober and fight off his dark visions long enough to get to the truth?
This book as with the others I have read is a good one, with a solid presentation of the squalid existence fo laborers in the shires., which is far different from the idealized romances presented on Masterpeice Theater . “ The Body in the Trees” does keep the reader’s interest, mostly to see if Bowman will crash mentally before he finds the truth of the deaths in the village. The actual mystery story is good, a middle of the scale 6 out of ten. For me, I think the author has to get his primary character’s downward spiral stopped while he is still appealing. My opinion, read for yourself.
Cautions: nothing offensive.
June 6, 2021
After reading the first two Bowman of the Yard books, The Head in the Ice and The Devil in the Dock, it was such a pleasure to read this third instalment of this late-Victorian crime thriller series.
This time, we find Bowman in a precarious place emotionally - still in deep trauma following the tragic death of his wife, and also in a different place geographically - sent with young Sergeant Graves to a rural village west of London to investigate the suspicious death of a man found hanged in the woods.
Bowman and Graves find a village divided by social class and suspicion, and is hampered in his enquiries by a largely unhelpful and feckless community. Two other suspicious deaths appear to be linked to the body in the trees case, and soon Bowman and Graves find that there's more to the what's going on than meets the eye.
As Bowman begins to close in on the perpetrator, his own mental health seems to unravel - will he be able to stay focused and strong enough to complete his dangerous mission?
Once again, Richard delivers a highly readable and compelling Bowman story - beautifully crafted, and rich in period detail and description.
The only slight problem was that my physical book copy appeared to have a formatting issue in some of the text - hopefully Richard has been able to solve this on subsequent issues.
But, this in no way detracted from this excellent addition to this enjoyable series, and I'm really looking forward to reading the next one.
This time, we find Bowman in a precarious place emotionally - still in deep trauma following the tragic death of his wife, and also in a different place geographically - sent with young Sergeant Graves to a rural village west of London to investigate the suspicious death of a man found hanged in the woods.
Bowman and Graves find a village divided by social class and suspicion, and is hampered in his enquiries by a largely unhelpful and feckless community. Two other suspicious deaths appear to be linked to the body in the trees case, and soon Bowman and Graves find that there's more to the what's going on than meets the eye.
As Bowman begins to close in on the perpetrator, his own mental health seems to unravel - will he be able to stay focused and strong enough to complete his dangerous mission?
Once again, Richard delivers a highly readable and compelling Bowman story - beautifully crafted, and rich in period detail and description.
The only slight problem was that my physical book copy appeared to have a formatting issue in some of the text - hopefully Richard has been able to solve this on subsequent issues.
But, this in no way detracted from this excellent addition to this enjoyable series, and I'm really looking forward to reading the next one.
March 27, 2025
In the first book of the series Inspector Bowman had been released from a lunatic asylum. In each book he has flashbacks to the event that caused his admittance there which is understandable. In this the third book his psychological issues are given too much prominence. Coupled with an elongated investigation and too much detail rather than actual storyline I found this book tedious, complicated and uninspiring. It's not a book that I enjoyed.
February 1, 2021
The body in the trees
I really like this series bowman of the yard. Bowman after loosing his wife is mentally so mixed up but he still has a detectives brain
he also has a great friend in Graves I cannot wait to read the next book in the series if you like Victorian era start reading Bowman of the yard .
I really like this series bowman of the yard. Bowman after loosing his wife is mentally so mixed up but he still has a detectives brain
he also has a great friend in Graves I cannot wait to read the next book in the series if you like Victorian era start reading Bowman of the yard .
April 18, 2021
Love these books. Thoroughly enjoyed this instalment in the series and really getting to know the main characters too.
Enough twists and turns to keep me awake past bedtime and glad to read more in the series.
Enough twists and turns to keep me awake past bedtime and glad to read more in the series.
May 13, 2021
Another great read in the Bowman of the yard series.
May 5, 2025
Amazing
3rd book in the series. Such a great series of books. 4th book about to be read ...
Wonderful characters & storylines.
3rd book in the series. Such a great series of books. 4th book about to be read ...
Wonderful characters & storylines.
February 22, 2021
Full Review Here
The Body in the Trees is the third instalment in the Bowman of the Yard series by Richard James. As with the previous books, this one had a mystery that left me guessing and characters that don’t fail to give you an emotional connection to the book.
Although The Body in the Trees opens with a death – just like previously – from the very start of the book there is the sense that this is going to have more of an emotional impact than the previous. It’s not a fast-paced, tension-building opening but one that sets up the mystery in a solid and intriguing manner.
The past two books have witnessed Bowman trying to recover from the loss of his wife. There’s positivity in the first book, the fear he is slipping in the second, and the heart-break of seeing it all get too much in the latest. Bowman is losing his grip – he’s turned to drink and surviving every day without his beloved Anna is getting too much. Given a mystery to unravel in a small village is his chance to prove that he can still handle the job, albeit with devastating consequences.
It’s impossible not to have an empathetic attachment to Bowman in this book. There’re not many series where you witness the main character spiral rather than recover, and it’s powerful. You root for Bowman throughout, wanting him to find his path again and a breakthrough on the case feels like it might just do that – until it doesn’t.
The case is intriguing, as much because it’s not entirely clear which event involves foul play and which is unfortunate circumstances taking their toll. While Bowman and Graves are met with hostility and danger at every turn, it becomes clear there is far more at stake than first assumed. One of the things I love about this series is I haven’t yet been able to guess the perpetrator – and the same is true here. With Bowman’s slip on his sanity, it’s hard to piece together what may be an unreliable narrator, and what is a hint that something is going on.
There’s not the fast-paced tension of the second book found here. It’s gentler – and more deadly because of it. It’s Graves and Bowman themselves who are in peril as they start to uncover the truth – it’s not facing down adversaries per se, but trying to win the trust of locals that puts them in danger. I liked this change of pace: it didn’t feel there was a repetition of the previous books just with a different crime as I’ve often found in mysteries, but something different.
The Body in the Trees is a gripping mystery that will leave you guessing. But it’s also an emotional book, dealing not only with grief and the effect it has, but how we react when everything gets too much. There’s a strong undercurrent to this one which makes it engaging, even if not upbeat.
I’m thoroughly enjoying this series and definitely recommend!
The Body in the Trees is the third instalment in the Bowman of the Yard series by Richard James. As with the previous books, this one had a mystery that left me guessing and characters that don’t fail to give you an emotional connection to the book.
Although The Body in the Trees opens with a death – just like previously – from the very start of the book there is the sense that this is going to have more of an emotional impact than the previous. It’s not a fast-paced, tension-building opening but one that sets up the mystery in a solid and intriguing manner.
The past two books have witnessed Bowman trying to recover from the loss of his wife. There’s positivity in the first book, the fear he is slipping in the second, and the heart-break of seeing it all get too much in the latest. Bowman is losing his grip – he’s turned to drink and surviving every day without his beloved Anna is getting too much. Given a mystery to unravel in a small village is his chance to prove that he can still handle the job, albeit with devastating consequences.
It’s impossible not to have an empathetic attachment to Bowman in this book. There’re not many series where you witness the main character spiral rather than recover, and it’s powerful. You root for Bowman throughout, wanting him to find his path again and a breakthrough on the case feels like it might just do that – until it doesn’t.
The case is intriguing, as much because it’s not entirely clear which event involves foul play and which is unfortunate circumstances taking their toll. While Bowman and Graves are met with hostility and danger at every turn, it becomes clear there is far more at stake than first assumed. One of the things I love about this series is I haven’t yet been able to guess the perpetrator – and the same is true here. With Bowman’s slip on his sanity, it’s hard to piece together what may be an unreliable narrator, and what is a hint that something is going on.
There’s not the fast-paced tension of the second book found here. It’s gentler – and more deadly because of it. It’s Graves and Bowman themselves who are in peril as they start to uncover the truth – it’s not facing down adversaries per se, but trying to win the trust of locals that puts them in danger. I liked this change of pace: it didn’t feel there was a repetition of the previous books just with a different crime as I’ve often found in mysteries, but something different.
The Body in the Trees is a gripping mystery that will leave you guessing. But it’s also an emotional book, dealing not only with grief and the effect it has, but how we react when everything gets too much. There’s a strong undercurrent to this one which makes it engaging, even if not upbeat.
I’m thoroughly enjoying this series and definitely recommend!
January 29, 2020
Another case for flawed Inspector George Bowman as he is called into a village where the body in the trees, triggers a series of investigation and crimes amongst the villagers, the unwanted travellers, and secret societies along with a touch of class wars!
This is third in the series written in a nice easy and readable style by Richard James. I have read ‘The Head in The Ice’ but somehow missed the second novel ‘The Devil in the Dock’ (That I will read soon), but I don’t think this mattered too much as Richard carefully feeds you just enough information allowing you to get up to date fairly quickly.
Richard writes with an unique visual and descriptive style that makes it easy to emersh yourself in Bowman’s Victorian world. His characters are well defined and believable and the plot twists and rolls along at a pace that pulls you into the story and is very much a page-turner.
As I’m said I’m looking forward to catching up on the second in the series and I do hope there are more thing in more different places that Bowman need to investigate.
This is third in the series written in a nice easy and readable style by Richard James. I have read ‘The Head in The Ice’ but somehow missed the second novel ‘The Devil in the Dock’ (That I will read soon), but I don’t think this mattered too much as Richard carefully feeds you just enough information allowing you to get up to date fairly quickly.
Richard writes with an unique visual and descriptive style that makes it easy to emersh yourself in Bowman’s Victorian world. His characters are well defined and believable and the plot twists and rolls along at a pace that pulls you into the story and is very much a page-turner.
As I’m said I’m looking forward to catching up on the second in the series and I do hope there are more thing in more different places that Bowman need to investigate.
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