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Type of bind: Paperback
Dewey Decimal Number: 813
EAN num: 9780425201138
ISBN number: 0425201139
Label: Berkley
Manufacturer: Berkley
Quantity: 1
Page Count: 304
Printing Date: February 01, 2005
Publishing house: Berkley
Sale Popularity Level: 156833
Studio: Berkley
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Product Description:
Coronation Day, 1902. Charles and Kate Sheridan are pleased to be at the crowning of their king. But when an anarchist accidentally blows himself up with a bomb meant for their monarch, Charles and Kate turn up a number of intriguing--and disturbing--questions. For example, what is mysterious, beautiful Charlotte Conway--editor of the anarchist newspaper where the dead man was employed--doing in the arms of expatriate author Jack London?
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Rated by buyers 
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Fans of this series will already be very familiar with Queen Victoria's son, who is being coroneted Edward VII as this book begins. The new king has appeared in several of these books and has become very aware of Lord Charles and Lady Kathryn Sheridan's sleuthing abilities. On Coronation Day there is an explosion in Hyde Park and shortly thereafter the king asks Charles to determine the depth of the plot and the extent of the danger to the royal family in the future.
This is by no means a traditional murder mystery for there is no real murder. The explosion was caused when a bumbling young anarchist trips and falls on his own bomb, blowing himself up and injuring no one else. This book is really more of a fictional version of a true crime novel with a strong political message. Depending upon one's political leanings, the political message may or may not be welcome but it is a very strong thread that runs from cover to cover. The authors even go so far as to tag an inspector who is willing to break any law and violate any civil liberty with the name of Ashcraft.
Soon after the bombing an anarchist newspaper where the young bomber worked is raided and three men on the premises are arrested. One of the men is not an anarchist at all but is just there to take the paper's lovely editor Charlotte Conway to lunch. This young man is a Labor leader and has worked with Charles before so that his protestations of innocence fall on fertile ground. When bottles containing nitric acid are found in the living quarters of all three men Charles uses his vast knowledge of the new science of fingerprinting to find out just how those bottles got there. All three men of course say that they have never seen those bottles. The investigation then moves into a courtroom setting and the defense lawyer Charles has hired uses Charles' fingerprint evidence to great advantage. This courtroom drama is easily the most enjoyable part of the book.
As is normally the case with the books of this series, a real historical figure plays a major role in the story and in this case it is novelist Jack London. I really don't know that much about Mr. London's life but I dare say that his fans will not like the portrait of him that is painted in this book. Fans of this series may be a little put off by the fact that Kate does very little snooping in this story and mostly just presides over a tangle of sexual misconduct while comforting the victim left behind.
I found this book to be slow reading at times, although at other times it was a page-turner. What mystery there was seemed shallow and some of the characters came across as very one-dimensional. On the other hand, I just can't say enough good things about the court scenes, which saved this book from being very ordinary. While I tend to agree with the author's concern about our civil liberties in light of the current terrorist threat, I think that they may have gotten too caught up in their message, with the story suffering as a consequence. This is not my least favorite of the series, but its close.
Rated by buyers 
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This tenth book in the Kate and Charles Sheridan series deals with the problem of terrorists (or anarchists as they were called then) in England. Apparently in 1902, during the reign of Edward VII, there was fear of this type of violent action. England has just retreated from the Boer War, and they find that their "Jolly Old" is full of foreigners, and surely some of those foreigners must be dangerous! This book is not a mystery story at all. The only death is an accident when a bomb actually blows up the person who was carrying it. It appeared that the bomb was meant for the King and Queen on his Coronation Day. Charles is asked by his King to find out if there is a real anarchist threat, or whether or not this was an isolated incident. The characters are pretty good, and Kate and Charles are delightful as always. Also the writing team of Bill and Susan Albert (pseudonymously knows as Robin Paige) have done their homework. They do a good job of providing enough historical detail, and actual historical people (in this case the American author Jack London), to make the story interesting. This wasn't a bad effort in my mind.
Rated by buyers -
The husband and wife team who write under the pen name of Robin Paige are making wide inroads into the period thriller field. What a prolific pair - the duo have penned more than 60 books for young adults and she (Susan Wittig Albert) is also the author of the China Bayles mysteries.
Their last Victorian mystery, Glamis Castle, ranked high with readers, and "Death In Hyde Park" will undoubtedly do the same as the writers deftly explore turn-of-the-century methods of crime detection and create intriguing fictional characters who mix with actual persons of that time - in this case, Jack London.
The year is 1902 when Prince Albert is due to replace the exalted Queen Victoria on the throne to become King Edward VII. Just as it rains on many parades, there was a damp chilly rain falling on Coronation Day. However, there's more than inclement weather to mar what was meant to be a celebration. An anarchist, Yuri Messenko, believed that "Assassination was a moral response to the immoral institutions and governments that spawned" what he perceived as horrors. Further, he was desperately in love with the very mysterious Charlotte Conway, editor of the newspaper where he is employed. Thus, for these two reasons he intended to send the newly crowned king to his heavenly reward by detonating a bomb.
However, Yuri was an inept assassin - he tripped, fell on his satchel, and blew himself into pieces. Suspecting that there was more than one involved in the endeavor on his life the new King asks his friends, Lord Charles Sheridan and his wife, Kate, to investigate.
The Sheridans unearth many clues, all of which lead them in different directions. Their investigation takes a more intriguing turn when the beautiful Charlotte turns up in their home. She has been romantically involved not with Yuri but with American writer Jack London.
As always the Sheridans do manage to unravel this tangled mystery and emerge unscathed. For those who take their mysteries with dashes of period drama "Death In Hyde Park" should be on their list of must-reads.
- Gail Cooke
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