London Bridge is Falling Down

Bryant & May: Peculiar Crimes Unit #18

by Christopher Fowler

It was the kind of story that barely made the news.

When 91-year-old Amelia Hoffman died in her top-floor flat on a busy London road, it's considered an example of what has gone wrong with modern society: she slipped through the cracks in a failing system.

But detectives Arthur Bryant and John May of the Peculiar Crimes Unit have their doubts. Mrs Hoffman was once a government security expert, even though no one can quite remember her. When a link emerges between the old lady and a diplomat trying to flee the country, it seems that an impossible murder has been committed.

Mrs Hoffman wasn't the only one at risk. Bryant is convinced that other forgotten women with hidden talents are also in danger. And, curiously, they all own models of London Bridge.

With the help of some of their more certifiable informants, the detectives follow the strangest of clues in an investigation that will lead them through forgotten alleyways to the city's oldest bridge in search of a desperate killer.

But just when the case appears to be solved, they discover that Mrs Hoffman was smarter than anyone imagined. There's a bigger game afoot that could have terrible consequences.

It's time to celebrate Bryant and May's twentieth anniversary as their most lunatic case yet brings death and rebirth to London's most peculiar crimes unit.

Genres: Mystery, Fiction, Crime, Mystery Thriller, Audiobook, London, Detective

448 pages, Hardcover

First published July 22, 2021

About the author

Librarian note:
There is more than one author in the GoodReads database with this name

Christopher Fowler was an English writer known for his Bryant & May mystery series, featuring two Golden Age-style detectives navigating modern London. Over his career, he authored fifty novels and short story collections, along with screenplays, video games, graphic novels, and audio plays. His psychological thriller Little Boy Found was published under the pseudonym L.K. Fox.
Fowler's accolades include multiple British Fantasy Awards, the Last Laugh Award, the CWA Dagger in the Library, and the inaugural Green Carnation Award. He was inducted into the Detection Club in 2021. Beyond crime fiction, his works ranged from horror (Hell Train, Nyctophobia) to memoir (Paperboy, Film Freak). His column Invisible Ink explored forgotten authors, later compiled into The Book of Forgotten Authors.
Fowler lived between London and Barcelona with his husband, Peter Chapman.

Reviews

[Paromjit · Rating 4 out of 5]

It is looking as if it's the end of Christopher Fowler's Peculiar Crimes Unit (PCU) with the Home Office having given notice of its closure. Only the elderly Arthur Bryant, the oldest London detective, has no intention of letting it happen, so hits on finding a case that they are investigating, granting them a short term temporary reprieve to make their last stand. The team is back, although there is a question mark over whether they will be returning in the future, John May's cool temperament in direct contrast with the badly dressed, shambolic unpredicability, genius, and enthusiasm of Arthur, rude, mayhem following in his wake, with his treasure trove of arcane knowledge of London. The rest of the team includes DI Janice Longbright, Dan Banbury, crime scene forensics, DS Meera Mangeskar, DS Colin Bimsley, and the newest recruit, the young DC Sidney Hargreaves, Longbright's daughter. As always, at the heart of this offbeat and fun series, stands the city of London, a central character with its history and politics.

The investigation they take on is the apparent neglected death of the elderly Amelia Hoffman, dying in her home of starvation, slipping through the cracks of the run down care and social services system. What had been assumed to be a straight forward case turns out to be a well planned and organised murder. What's more, it turns out Amelia had worked with the intelligence agencies, and for the PCU in its earliest incarnation, and shockingly, was still being paid by the PCU through the years. Bryant struggles to remember her, but a photograph at her home leads them to two of her colleagues, Annie and Angela, all 3 women patriotic, determined to hold on to their secrets come what may. A young Latvian woman is killed by a drunk driver, Larry Cranston, a low level American Embassy worker, which has him turning to the CIA to escape the charges in return for a deal.

In a investigation that involves MI5 and the CIA, where all leads point to 'London Bridge', there are a rising number of deaths of the elderly, all connected, and which begin to include Bryant's legendary informants, the 'crackpot' genius academics, and it looks as if Bryant himself might be a target. It's a joy to see the return of familiar characters, such as the witch Maggie Armitage, and welcome new characters, like Bryant and May's encyclopaedia reading taxi driver, Ronda, driving them around in London. This is such an enjoyably entertaining read, although sometimes the information is delivered in a little too dry a manner, although that does not affect my affection and love for this incredible series and for Arthur Bryant in particular. Terrific addition to the series.

[Diane S ☔ · Rating 5 out of 5]

Twenty years. Twenty years I have been reading this terrific series. I finished with a sense of sorrow, awe and thankfulness. After this book the PCU will never be the same. Not a spoiler as it's in the book summary. Thankful to this author for the many years I've spent with Bryant, May and the rest of the PCU. For Fowlers creation of these wonderful, original characters, one of a kind. The many years of humor and history. I've seriously learned more or at least as much history reading these books than in nonfiction books covering the same. This outing provided the same, history of London Bridge and other places in London. us three elderly ladies that gave the unit a run for their money. A unique, entertaining series, that I highly recommend.

Now to wait and see where the author takes us from here.

Tim Goodman is the narrator and though at first I had trouble with his occasional sing song voice, he did Bryant's voice exactly as I pictured it would sound.

[Paula · Rating 5 out of 5]

Bryant and May FOR EVER.Thanks,Mr.Fowler,and I do hope you have plenty of surprises up your sleeve.

[Jill H. · Rating 4 out of 5]

I was thrilled to see that Christopher Fowler has released his latest Peculiar Crimes Unit (PCU) in the ongoing series and I was not disappointed.

The PCU is a collection of delightful odd-ball officers who tackle strange and seemingly unsolvable crimes. The Unit is headed by the two main characters, the aged DCIs Bryant and May, who are always in trouble with the "higher ups" of the Home Office for their non-traditional methods of detection.

In this, the 18th book of the series, women in their late 70s and early 80s are being murdered and seem to have no connection among them. Bryant and May soon discover that these women had once worked for the most secret of British intelligence agencies. Because of the secrecy of the files, they have to revert to some unlawful ways to obtain information which might lead them to the culprit(s). It also leads them into a complicated situation which might put their lives in danger.

As usual, the author keeps you wondering and this plot is complicated but entertaining. I felt that the author had painted himself into a corner with the story's ending but he added an afterward that says "I have a surprise up my sleeve". So I took it to mean that the denouement was not exactly what it appeared. This series is one of my favorites and I can't wait to see how Fowler keeps it going after this particular book.

[Sue · Rating 5 out of 5]

This twentieth anniversary Bryant and May novel opens with the inevitable threat of imminent closure of the PCU. In response, Bryant insists they can’t be closed if they are working on a case. So of course, they search for one. The team trolls through recent deaths looking for anything untoward and finds one possibility, an elderly woman, living alone, who apparently died of neglect. And surprisingly, on closer look, she had government ties, even to the old PCU. Well, the hunt begins!

The search and trail lead through London’s streets, buildings, bridges, parks, and back into 20th century history. Bryant’s fever dreams of London history bring the city of the past alive as they have before in the series. There is so much happening. This becomes the PCU case to top them all. Bryant & May are really in this together trying to save the unit, their team, the lives they love.

Such a wonderful book. Thanks to Christopher Fowler for this summation of where we’ve been and the promise of the future. As Fowler wrote: Bryant and May for ever.

A copy of this book was provided by the publisher through NetGalley in return for an honest review.

[Geraldine · Rating 5 out of 5]

A Dazzling Finale
It is hard to believe that Christopher Fowler has been writing about his elderly detectives - eccentric Mr Bryant and suave Mr May - for twenty years but he is as funny and inventive as ever. The early Bryant and May books were more like Horror than Detective Fiction. The series really took off with the fourth volume `Ten-Second Staircase', which I think is one of the most brilliant Mystery novels ever written. Over the years I've become very fond of the misfits who work for the London-based Peculiar Crimes Unit, including its hapless leader, the ever-present builders and the office cat. Fowler writes about ancient and modern London with great knowledge and affection but makes me glad that I don't live there.

In `London Bridge is Falling Down' the PCI is once again under threat of closure. To keep going they need an unfinished case so they start investigating the apparently natural death of an elderly lady who once worked in Intelligence. The victim turns out to have had links to the PCI itself and Mr Bryant's bizarre coterie of informants and advisors begin to be targeted by a ruthless assassin. This novel combines Spy and Detective fiction and the plot is full of startling twists and turns. As usual, the humour is balanced by compassion for the victims but be warned, this is a story with several stings in the tail. Can a novel be both dark and dazzling? Well this one is. `London Bridge is Falling Down' appears to be the last in the series but with an author as tricksy as Fowler, who can tell?

[Kathy · Rating 5 out of 5]

I have loved this Peculiar Crimes Unit series, enjoying this 18th book very much... but this one has many more somber tones than humour. There are many varieties of spooks within these pages and some very admirable older women who had been drawn into the fold during Churchill's times. It takes a bit for Bryant to discover how and when he knew them as they appear in present day as "little old ladies" of little import. It seems a desperate act to start investigation when their unit has been advised they no longer have jobs or paychecks.
The investigation appears to be the final act as the team knows the building they have worked from is on the chopping block. CIA has a presence, but then I have no wish to ruin this for other readers.
If you haven't had the pleasure of reading books from this series, I suggest you start at the beginning.

Besides the espionage, humour, brilliance and wonky relationships, I really enjoy the London historical nuggets, this time the focus being London Bridge.

[Tony · Rating 5 out of 5]

They just get better and better. 18 books in and superbly written.
Wonderful.

Or maybe that should be ‘they just GOT better and better’?

A bit devastated to be honest.

[Fran · Rating 5 out of 5]

London bridges

Christopher Fowler shows the same kind of courage that his characters do, facing things straight on, and this is him on top form. So funny as well, and the spy story makes a wonderful frame. Looking forward to the ‘bonus’ book and to rereading the complete series. Thanks for everything.

[Sivvy · Rating 5 out of 5]

Really hard to review this one without any spoilers so I’ll just say it’s a fitting and emotional ending to a phenomenal series. Beautifully done, Christopher Fowler - thank you for allowing us to share in the wonderfully quirky world of Mr Bryant & Mr May.

[Michael Reilly · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is a big Bryant and May novel. Big because it is longer then most of them and big because it about a big events in the series.

It starts, as many of them do, with a threat that the Peculiar Crime Unit (PCU) is being shut down. This time it seems as if it will happen. They are being thrown out of their office.

Arthur Bryant decides that they need to have at least one active case as an excuse to stay open for a little more. All they can come up with is the death of a very old woman who seems to have wasted away untended to in her apartment.

Of course, as always with Arthur, it turns out to be much more complicated then that. She was a former employee of the secret services and at one point long ago she actually worked as a secretary in the PCU.

A classic rich English twit who is trying to get diplomatic immunity from a vehicular homicide charge seems to be in the middle of things. Then the CIA and MI5 gets involved.

It turns into a classic Bryant and May huge conspiracy with long historical tentacles. London Bridge is also in the middle of things which gives Fowler the chance to add in London Bridge lore and history.

This has all of the good stuff we expect in the series. Witty dialogue; May suggests that Bryant "exercise some common caution" Bryant answers, " Two words which are entirely unknown to me. Three if you count "exercise". Historical nuggets: the site of every bar in the book has a interesting 200 year history. Old favorite recurring characters; Arthur's landlady Alma gets a great scene. New additions; Rita the Russian chauffeur is very funny.

The story starts to involve Bryant and the whole group of weird, anti-social, brilliant eccentrics who he uses as informants. Fowler brings back many of them from previous books.

As in the last few books, Bryant and May are getting old and struggling more and more with whether they can keep at it. That lends a certain melancholy to this story.

I don't recommend reading this as your first Bryant and May novel. Much of its pleasure comes from our familiarity with the recurring characters and themes of these books. I highly recommend reading a few of the earlier books, or, if you want a treat, all of the previous 17 in order, and then read this one.

[Laura Spira · Rating 5 out of 5]

A wonderful way to bring a brilliant series to a close. I shall miss B & M and the PCU tremendously but I shall also miss Christopher Fowler's evocation of London which becomes more than a backdrop, almost another character in the stories. To sustain this quality of writing, and plotting, through so many volumes is a great feat. We readers have been greatly blessed.

[Hugh Foley · Rating 5 out of 5]

The matchless duo.

Like John O'Hara said of Gershwin. I don't have to believe it if I don't want to. Bryant and May will go on forever. I wish Christopher Fowler a long and happy life.

[Maine Colonial · Rating 4 out of 5]

I received a free publisher's advance review copy, via Netgalley.

The little old lady known as Alice Hoffman is already dead when this book begins, but that doesn’t mean she’s not very much an active actor in the plot. When Arthur Bryant calls her natural-causes-attributed death suspicious, as a ruse to avoid the forced shutting-down of the PCU (for the umpteenth time), he stumbles on the perfect case for the unit. I don’t know why everybody has to be persuaded that Hoffman’s death actually is murder, given that Bryant is always right about these things, and the obvious clues from her apartment. But after awhile, the team is forced to go along, as they discover that Alice was a member of a secretive government group long ago, and her death may be connected to her work. The plot thickens, involving old colleagues of Alice, and a lurking threat from the CIA.

This is a long book, with a lot of the plot taken up with the team trying to find out about Alice’s past, which nearly everyone they talk to seems to want to deflect them from. It slogs a bit at times, with lots of lengthy exposition. But maybe also in part because this is the first in the series for a long time that I’ve read rather than listened to. Tim Goodman, who performs the audiobook narration for the series, is just so great, especially in his voicing of the odd and curmudgeonly Arthur Bryant, that the books feel lively and fast-paced.

As always in this series, the book is packed with fascinating bits of London history. And in this case, Fowler throws in some good stuff about New York as well.

Toward the end of the book, I came to realize that the plot in this case is less important than the opportunity it gives Arthur Bryant to look back on the history of the Peculiar Crimes Unit, the many eccentrics who form its irregulars, and the unit’s constant remit to protect the lives of Londoners—whether they appreciate it or not. There is a feeling of affection and warmth that wraps around the characters, despite the astonishing body count of this particular book in the series.

Though several reviewers have called this the last in the series, I have my doubts. Christopher Fowler himself says in the Author’s Note that he may have a surprise for us. And he once before closed a book in a way that made it appear to be the end, and that was several titles ago. Let’s wait a year or so and see what happens. But if there isn’t another book in the series, I am grateful for a truly enjoyable two decades of stories.

[Ben · Rating 4 out of 5]

> ‘You can’t smell that?’ asked PC Shamar, rubbing a hand across his nose. ‘I can’t smell anything,’ said PC Richards. ‘I fell off a trampoline when I was a nipper.’ ‘OK, I’m getting an uncooked-leg-of-lamb-left-out-of-the-fridge-for-a-month smell with top notes of pear drops. Eau de Dead Person.’

> The sky over Greenwich was determined to be interesting. There were bruised blue cumulonimbi above the red-ball pinnacle of the Royal Observatory, white cotton balls over the masts of the Cutty Sark, ripples of grey cirrus beyond the Isle of Dogs and patches of sunshine scudding across the sloping grasslands of the park. Nobody looked up. Changeable British weather was not news.

> The man never stopped eating. He ate so much seafood you could have used him as a thermometer.’ ‘What?’ ‘Mercury. Stay with me

[Emma Goldman · Rating 5 out of 5]

A tremendous end to the series. The plot goes way into the past and then comes up to the present day. Several 'loose ends' get tied up, and Arthur fights to save the PCU team from an ignominious death. As usual, strange facts and information are highlighted, informants with murky pasts are questioned, and Raymond is as confused as ever. The PCU is dead, long live the PCU.

[Sarah-Hope · Rating 3 out of 5]

I've been aware of the Bryant and May mystery series for quite some time, but London Bridge is Falling Down is the first one I've read. It's also, or so the ending suggests, the final volume in the series. I can happily report that, not only are 17 more volumes available for new-to-the-series people like me, this final volume is perfectly comfortable as a stand-alone read. So while one can search all the titles out to be read in order, starting from any random spot in the series is also a solid reading strategy for these books.

Here's what I enjoyed most about London Bridge is Falling Down: it offers both a compelling mystery and hilarious social commentary. Sort of like that old peanut butter cup commercial where guy-with-peanut-butter bumps into other-guy-with-chocolate and they realize that having both at once is genius. I like a laugh in my mysteries, but too often getting that laugh feels like an either/or proposition: laugh OR well-plotted mystery, but never both. Bryant and May are definitely a peanut butter cup quality team.

The story and the cast of characters are complex enough that they're not worth trying to summarize, but, trust me, you'll be able to follow what's going on and will enjoy doing it. When you need a bit of pick-me-up reading, Bryant and May are good folks to turn to.

I received a free electronic review copy of this title from the publisher via NetGalley. The opinions are my own.

[Susan in NC · Rating 5 out of 5]

First I must thank Random House Book Club for my copy of this mystery. I’ve read and enjoyed every Bryant & May mystery, so was thrilled after so many years on Goodreads to finally win a book giveaway. I’ve ordered the last several books directly from England, rather than wait for the US publication date, so this was a treat!

I’m not sure where Christopher Fowler might take my two favorite senior detectives after this adventure - the ending seems definitive, but we longtime fans have been fooled before. He says in his Afterword that he still has a surprise up his sleeve, so I will wait and hope for future books. This one had so much going on, between the threatened closing (again) of the Peculiar Crimes Unit, a DUI driver desperate to escape London under diplomatic immunity after killing a pedestrian, an elderly lady found dead in her flat, seemingly someone who “slipped through the cracks” of the care system and died alone. Bryant suspects there was a more nefarious reason for her death, and the PCU has to figure it out, and who else is at risk, and what is the connection to London Bridge?

As always, a fascinating, delightful roller coaster ride. As Fowler says, “Bryant & May for ever”!

[Catherine T · Rating 5 out of 5]

Bryant and May Forever.
GNOM

[Diane · Rating 5 out of 5]

I don't know if this is the last Bryant and May book, but I certainly hope not! I love the Peculiar Crimes Unit. What I like most about all the PCU books are the history and stories of London. Since I live in Mississippi, I've been to London only three times. It is my favorite city. Because of this book, I will definitely visit St. Magnus the Martyr church the next time I'm there! I can't wait to see the model of the old London Bridge!

[Robin Sloan · Rating 2 out of 5]

I have no idea what I just read. So so much slang and "big words". This was my first novel in the series, maybe that's part of the issue. This series may need to be ready in order. It was also hard to fully grasp the plot and characters, side from the jargon.

[R V Welch · Rating 5 out of 5]

Bryant and May

A brilliant ending to a wonderful series. Thank you Christopher Fowler for your love letter to London. Bryant and May Forever!

[Jill Meyer · Rating 5 out of 5]

It’s December and the new Bryant and May book by Christopher Fowler is out.The book, called “London Bridge is Falling Down”, is the 16th in the series and the characters, with the exception of a new “office cat”, have returned. I think it’s one of the best in the ongoing series.

Are you a new reader to the Christopher Fowler series? If so, you can jump into any book you choose, because they are basically standalones. This one follows Fowler’s tried and true gift to readers by having the city of London as one of the book’s main characters. Oh, we have Arthur Bryant and John May retuning as the alte cockers, still on duty after what seems to be millions of years in the PCU department. Bryant is older than May, but John May still has many years on the rest of the PCU. And there are the returning officers, including Sidney, who is the long-lost daughter of officer Janice Longbright. She’s joined her mother, bringing some GenX (or is it GenZ; I can never remember…) sensibilities to the Unit.

In “London Bridge is Falling Down” the PCU is in grave danger of finally being shut down. They happen on to the non-suspicious death of a woman in her 90s. They soon make it into a suspicious death when they find out the woman had ties to MI6 and to their own unit. Soon, other “old dears” come up dead and the PCU is in business. Funny business, that is…

One of the best features of the books are the letters the Unit chief, Raymond Land, writes to his odd staff. There’s always one near the beginning of the book, where “Raymundo” advises and knocks back his staff. Land is disliked and not listened to, but his staff letters (which also includes the “staff cat”) are hilarious reading and usually help set the tone for the rest of the book.

Anyway, this book is excellent reading. Hope you enjoy!

[Susan · Rating 4 out of 5]

Once more, the Peculiar Crimes Unit is under threat (and this time, they mean it!). But Mr. Bryant realizes that they can't close down if there's an open investigation, so he picks a dead body at random to investigate, only to find that the death is indeed suspicious. The old woman who died turns out to be a former employee of the PCU itself, and also involved in national intelligence work, which may be why the CIA is sniffing around. Fowler leaves some plot holes wide open even after Bryant gets the criminal, but seems to foreclose the series at the end. But, hey, we've been told of Bryant's death before now...

[Andrew Wesley · Rating 4 out of 5]

Perversely started with the last book in a long series (I guess it’s the last?) but enjoyed so have bought book one. Enjoyed the London stuff - assume it’s true but would need to read a history book to check? Weird mix of straightforward crime, spy, humour and strangeness…

[Chad D · Rating 5 out of 5]

Not perfect but as good as a book has any right to be.

I open the book randomly, and on that random page: "'Colin, please oblige us by dying.' Bimsley stood in as the murder victim while May attacked him in slow motion, a rugby tackle in an action replay. Raymond Land looked over at Bryant to see if he was paying attention. He was reading a book on bridges."

Another lucky dip, Bryant to his boss whom he hosted overnight: "How was the couch?" "The couch? Oh, er, very comfortable." "You'd never know anyone died on it." On the same page: "There's a hen under your TV set and a cereal bowl on your toilet cistern." "The hen is stuffed and I forgot to bring the bowl out."

The line that had me giggling last night: "'I'm not Brad Pitt,' said Joe, who could not have been mistaken for Brad Pitt by a partially sighted person in a heavy denim veil standing in the densest of twilight fogs."

Moments like this, practically every page.

There are other, deeper feelings too, appropriate to the end of a twenty-book series about a man in love with London and dying, by a man in love with London and (if I read that interview right) dying. The final few pages are as fine a gesture toward secular transcendence as I have ever read.

[Pat · Rating 2 out of 5]

A disappointment. Too much focus on cat and mouse chases around London and too little on the characters and relationships that made this series great. This is all Bryant's book; May's voice is muted and he is reduced to a puppet, simply following the old eccentric around. Janice is barely seen or heard from and the wonderful relationship between Meera and Colin is given short shrift. And don't get me started about Raymon Land and poor Stumpy. The whole mystery comes undone when the team realizes they have been gaslighted, and Fowler makes the reader feel like a fool for investing in the plot. What a shameful way to end the saga; it's as though the author couldn't be bothered to find heart and meaning in the end of the duo. Even the penultimate scene felt too brief and left me dry-eyed. I've gone the full distance with this series, all 18 books, and have enjoyed them all, until now.Bryant, May and the whole team deserved a better send off.

[Kyrie · Rating 3 out of 5]

I'll reread this one someday and possibly give it more stars. As it was, I couldn't keep three character's names attached to the right characters. So many minor characters! It was suspenseful and stressful to read. That ending?! Mr. Fowler, you had better have something up your sleeve! Grrrrrr

[L · Rating 5 out of 5]

Bryant and May forever!

[Jlnpeacock Peacock · Rating 4 out of 5]

The two detectives are as endearing as usual with lots of interesting historical data, but this was a sad book.