• click here to return to the homepage •
or 
Home > Categories > Books > Fiction > Oscar Wilde and the Candlelight Murders review
London, 1889. Oscar Wilde, celebrated poet, wit, playwright and raconteur, is the literary sensation of his age. All Europe lies at his feet. Yet when he chances upon the naked corpse of sixteen-year-old Billy Wood, posed by candlelight in a dark and stifling upstairs room, he cannot ignore the brutal murder. With the help of fellow author Arthur Conan Doyle, he sets out to solve the crime - and it is Wilde's peculiar genius and his unparalleled access to all degrees of late-Victorian life - from society drawing rooms and the bohemian demi-monde to the criminal underclass - that prove the decisive factors in their investigation of what turns out to be the first in a series of bizarre and apparently inexplicable killings.
Oscar Wilde and the Candlelight Murders is a gripping detective story that explores the secret world of Oscar Wilde - his surprising friendships, his complex marriage, and his unusual association with Inspector Aidan Fraser of Scotland Yard.
Set against the exotic backdrop of fin-de-siècle London and Paris, Gyles Brandreth evokes Oscar Wilde's trademark wit and brilliance with huge flair, intertwining all the intrigue of the classic English murder mystery with a compelling portrait of one of the greatest characters of the Victorian age.
Scarecrow
Talk to the Hand
Hannah Bandanna's Hair
Springman Brothers' Reality Repair
Haunters
How to Wash a Woolly Mammoth
My New Zealand Story - Canterbury Quake
The Last Thirteen #09 - 5
Scream #2: The Spider Army
Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 2: Sticker Activity Book
The Little Yellow Digger Goes To School
Rise of the Jain 3 - The Human
Ko Ihaka me te Manuwhiri i Puta Ohorere maiProduct reviews...
Review by: diogenes (Rob)
Dated: 9th of August, 2007
Oscar Wilde seems an unlikely choice as the hero of a murder mystery; Arthur Conan-Doyle and the great-grandson of William Wordsworth, Robert Sherard, make for unlikely crime-solving sidekicks in this ripping adventure.
Brandreth lovingly re-creates the atmosphere of the Victorian age: Hansome cabs, gentlemen's clubs, secret societies and street urchins are all there - somewhat reminiscent of Mayhew's Underground.
Liberally laden with some of Wilde's famous quotations, Brandreth cunningly weaves many of them into the dialogue of the book. It would seem trying to insert a famous quotation would look forced and clumsy in the dialogue; however, all are placed naturally, with the flow of normal speech.
I get a sense that Brandreth is trying to explain Wilde and to some extent rehabilitate his tarnished reputation; hence the many references to Wilde's wife and children and the regular emphasis on Wilde's love of beautiful things - including people.
That aside, this is an astounding first outing for Oscar Wilde, Sherard and Conan-Doyle as the super-sleuths of the Victorian age.
Random listing from 'Books'...
In AD 2329, humanity has colonised over four hundred planets, all of them interlinked by wormholes. With Earth at its centre, the Intersolar Commonwealth now occupies a sphere of space approximately four hundred light years across.
When an astronomer on the outermost world of Gralmond observes a star 2000 light years distant - and then a neighbouring one - vanish, it is time for the Commonwealth to discover what happened to them. For ... more...
All trademarks, images and copyrights on this site are owned by their respective companies.
KIWIreviews is an independent entity, part of the Knock Out News Group. This is a free public forum presenting user opinions on selected products, and as such the views expressed do not necessarily reflect the opinion of kiwireviews.nz and are protected under New Zealand law by the "Honest Opinion" clause of the Defamation Act of 1992. KIWIreviews accepts no liability for statements made on this site, on the premise that they have been submitted as the true and honest opinions of the individual posters. In most cases, prices and dates stated are approximate and should be considered as only guidelines.
"Quantum mechanics: the dreams stuff is made of."
anonymous
