The Quasimodo Killings

Vance and Shepherd Mysteries #1

by John Broughton

Detective Inspector Jacob Vance and his assistant, Detective Sergeant Brittany Shepherd, are called upon to prevent a series of murders across London.

The Metropolitan Police Commissioner has provoked a psychopath with her inaugural speech. Soon later, the commissioner receives a letter threatening a series of nine killings, culminating in "the big one", unless the police chief retracts her speech with a public apology.

To disprove her statements, the killer adds colour and poetry to the murders, all committed in the name of the mysterious Lord Robert. As the death toll mounts, Vance and Shepherd struggle to identify the victims in advance, and there seem to be no clues of the killer's identity.

With time running out, can the detectives capture the perpetrator and prevent him from killing again?

Genres: Mystery, Crime, Ebooks, Thriller, British Literature, Fiction, Mystery Thriller

264 pages, Kindle Edition

Published January 7, 2022

About the author

John Broughton was born in Cleethorpes in Lincolnshire, studied at the local grammar school and went on to take an honours degree in Medieval and Modern History at the University of Nottingham, where he also studied Archaeology.
John retired in January 2014 and chose the period that fascinates him most – the Anglo-Saxon period – as the setting for his first historical novel. Since then, he has had 28 novels published by Next Chapter Publishing. Most are historical novels, but he also writes murder mysteries, fantasy and sci-fi.

Reviews

[Tony · Rating 1 out of 5]

No stars awarded as seemed a bit unfair as I read so little of it.

I say read but more like run away from. Plenty of people enjoyed this but it wasn’t for me, didn’t like the style.

Edit: Gave it a second chance because I’m nice like that. Can I score it a negative?

[Pat K · Rating 1 out of 5]

DNF There was nothing about this book i liked

[Eric Adam · Rating 4 out of 5]

Good story with final twist

[Danika · Rating 3 out of 5]

This could have been a great read. Unfortunately, two things let it down. Firstly, whomever proofread this book before releasing needs to spoken to. The number of errors throughout is astonishing! It took me way longer than necessary to get through this book due to having to put it down after multiple errors. Please proofread your book properly before release.
Secondly, it simultaneously is drawn out and crammed with detail. It's like you couldn't really decide how the book was going to go or when it was going to end.
In all, the basis of the story is great though.

[Cidney · Rating 2 out of 5]

This was a strange book, I alternated between liking it and disliking it. I found the speech a bit hard going at times, initially I took the book to be set in the 1950s/60s because of the strange speech patterns, I haven't met anyone who talks like that today.

The story is of a demented serial killer on a rampage because the newly appointed crime commissioner spoke in terms the serial killer disliked and decided to punish her by commiting 9 murders using a colour palette, ie finding scenes with the words red, blue, green, orange, white, yellow etc, poems with colours in them and by using a syringe filled with a toxin which is extracted from a poisonous fish from a Japanese sushi restaurant. I did dislike the end scenes whereby they use inappropriate dialogue towards the victim and threats of putting him now into a cell with a paedophile, this book doesn't fit comfortably in today's society or policing policies. And I still feel it uses speech from anther era. But I did like the toeprints!

[Tricia Neville · Rating 1 out of 5]

I struggled to finish this tedious book. The characters were like cardboard cut-outs, the plot was awful and preposterous, and the author displayed a profound ignorance of how London police operate. The mistakes in this book were too numerous to list them all. His lack of knowledge of police procedure was the worst: not only did the author seem to think that police had ready access to firearms, but that they can both terrorise a suspect and lay hands on him to inject a tranquilliser (and without having discovered the suspect's medical history or any allergies beforehand) to acquire evidence from his body that he was unwilling to give - and all without the presence of a solicitor. I stayed with the story to see if the author would redeem himself by revealing an imaginative reason for the killings or produce a surprise twist at the end, but I was let down rather badly. What a waste of time!

[Jillian · Rating 3 out of 5]

I had read the second in the series before this. The writing, I think, improved between the two. I enjoyed the concept and the detection. I don’t think we needed more than 2 murders to establish the premise, motivation and modus operandi. The rest were extraneous for the reader, and slowed the detection narrative down. The detection team work was the strength of the book. The techniques, technology and teamwork were the main threads of my interest and the repeated murders an interruption to an otherwise engrossing narrative.
I will read more, in the hope they are better honed as they progress.

[R. M. · Rating 2 out of 5]

The Quasimodo Killings, by John Broughton

A series of murders leave corpses, poems and sums across London.

This book isn't as clever as it tries to be. When I got this, I was hoping for something drawing inspiration from Victor Hugo, which was maybe setting it up for failure, but I found the mystery surrounding the poems referencing different colours rather arbitrary.

I also didn't like the revelation of the killer. I'm torn about spoiling it, because I found the 'twist' rather obvious, and I thought it was badly handled. The detectives are hostile towards the killer in a way that simply wasn't necessary, not to mention that this trope is misused in crime and horror plot twists, despite protests and mythbusting from the community that this trope directly affects.

Overall, I'm really not impressed by this book. 1.5/5.

[Black Butterfly · Rating 2 out of 5]

2 1/2*stars REALLY or a low 3*star
THIS WAS EXTREMLY DETAILED WITH A LOT OF HISTORICAL STUFF THROUGHOUT THE BOOK. THE AUTHOR SAYS WRITING HISTORICAL NOVELS ARE HIS FIRST LOVE WHICH YOU CAN TELL. I THOUGHT MANY PARTS OF THIS BOOK READ LIKE ONE. I WOULD HAVE LIKE IT MORE HAD IT NOT BEEN LIKE THAT, IT OVERSHADOWED THE STORYLINE TOO MUCH. I REALLY LIKED TRYING TO FIGURE OUT THE COMPLEX MURDERS IT WAS VERY INTERESTING. ;D

[Pete Ffrench · Rating 5 out of 5]

It takes them long enough but they get there eventually. Vance and Shepherd catch the little hunchback tranny serial killer but I didn't quite get the link where Shepherd spotted the alternate title was Quasimodo but then they thought to look for failed applications to join the Met. Anyway they got there in the end.

[Antigone Walsh · Rating 2 out of 5]

Painfil

This was a painful read. Overly bombastic, the writing is as tedious as it is antagonizing. Little suspense is generated as all is bogged down by the tiresome prose. The characters, including the vilkain, are boring. Did not enjoy.

[patricia sendelbach · Rating 5 out of 5]

WOW! The best pair of detectives in this beginning series. Shepherd uses her intuition to help solve the identity of the serial killer. Women's intuition is the ability to identify small subtle information to solve a particular problem.

[Claire Rackett · Rating 4 out of 5]

Really good book to read with plenty to think about. Characters were strong and interacted well. It was well written and there was plenty of suspense. Really good book to read if you enjoy that sort of story.

[Alicia Huxtable · Rating 4 out of 5]

Fantastic

Great story that had me turning pages like a word addict. I loved the way this author dragged out the suspense and drew me in, just to throw another twist my way. Great reading. Highly recommend

[Vickie Woodard · Rating 2 out of 5]

CONFUSING

At least it was to this American. I've never been so glad my Kindle links to both dictionary and Google.
Occasional archaic treatment of female characters. Think the author should stick to his Viking stories.

[Melissa · Rating 3 out of 5]

Plot was clever enough but no big surprise s

I didn't care for writing style. The mystery plot was okay, but this was not a book in couldn't put down. Evidently part of a series.

[Josephine Pizzimenti · Rating 5 out of 5]

Page turner

What an interesting read. The criminal mind can be so very bizarre making the rights to a great book. Recommended

[Brian · Rating 2 out of 5]

I was unimpressed. The characters of Vance and Shepherd are poorly developed. This is obviously Broughton's first novel.

[Kerry · Rating 4 out of 5]

Gripping Read

Mr Broughton: you owe me a night's sleep, sir, due to not being able to put down your excellent yarn!

[carol curtis · Rating 5 out of 5]

A great read

I enjoyed the book it was fairly fast paced and kept me interested and wanting more. Very good book and story

[Ray · Rating 3 out of 5]

3.5

[Viragored · Rating 5 out of 5]

Good story - right up my street!
A well-written police procedural delving into psychological disorders.
I'll be looking forward to more Vance and Shepherd mysteries.

[Kathleen Hempstock · Rating 1 out of 5]

Did not finish

[Fancy]

dnf. proofing errors + oddly flat style.

[Glyn Evans · Rating 1 out of 5]

Sorry not for me i was listening to the audiobook version and the story was very weak and narration was possibly the worse i,ve heard in a long time. So no more j broughton books and bye ,bye.

[Prof C Harrison · Rating 5 out of 5]

Good read with interesting twists

[Bryngel · Rating 2 out of 5]

This was an ok read. Not thrilling nor gripping. It was, eh, it was very, beige, and thankfully it was short.

[Pam · Rating 5 out of 5]

Riveting!

Could not put this down. It’s an edge of your seat mystery that will keep you on your toes until the very end!

[Saba Sitter · Rating 1 out of 5]

Dnf found too boring personally

[Mary G. · Rating 3 out of 5]

It was just ok. I had hopes for the book.