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Oscar Wilde and the Candlelight Murders (Oscar Wilde Mysteries 1)
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Product Description
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 across the naked corpse of sixteen-year-old Billy Wood, posed by candlelight in a dark stifling attic room, he cannot ignore the brutal murder. With the help of fellow author Arthur Conan Doyle he sets out to solve the crime - but it is Wilde’s unparalleled access to all degrees of late Victorian life, from society drawing rooms and the bohemian demi-monde to the underclass, that will prove the decisive factor in their investigation of what turns out to be a series of brutal killings.
The Oscar Wilde Murders is a gripping detective story of corruption and intrigue, of Wilde’s growing success, of the breakdown of his marriage, and of his fatal friendship with Aidan Fraser, Inspector at Scotland Yard…. Set against the exotic background of fin-de-siecle London, Paris, Oxford and Edinburgh, Gyles Brandreth recreates Oscar Wilde’s trademark sardonic wit 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.
Product Details
- Amazon Sales Rank: #49103 in Books
- Published on: 2007-05-03
- Original language: English
- Binding: Hardcover
- 352 pages
Editorial Reviews
Review
‘One of the most intelligent, amusing and entertaining books of the year. If Oscar Wilde himself had been asked to write this book he could not have done it any better.’ (Alexander McCall Smith )
‘Genius …Wilde has sprung back to life in this thrilling and richly atmospheric new novel . . . The perfect topography for crime and mystery . . . magnificent . . . an unforgettable shocker about sex and vice, love and death’ (Sunday Express )
‘Brandreth has poured his considerable familiarity with London into a witty fin de siecle entertainment, and the rattlingly elegant dialogue is peppered with witticisms uttered by Wilde well before he ever thought of putting them into his plays’
(Sunday Times )
‘Classically twisty' (Observer )
‘Gyles Brandreth and Oscar Wilde seem made for one another . . . the complex and nicely structured plot zips along.’ (Daily Telegraph )
‘An amiably enjoyable Victorian murder mystery' (Sunday Times )
‘This is to be a series and if they’re all as enjoyable as the first, they’ll all be surefire best-sellers . . . The plot races along like a carriage pulled by thoroughbreds . . . So enjoyably plausible’ (The Scotsman )
‘This bounces along with vim and wit. Beautifully packaged’ (Bookseller )
‘Both a romp through fin-de-siècle London . . . and a carefully researched portrait of Oscar Wilde . . . Very entertaining’ (Literary Review )
‘Brandreth has the Wildean lingo down pat and the narrative is dusted with piquant social observations. A sparkling treat for fans of Wilde and Sherlock Holmes alike’ (Easy Living )
'Wilde as detective is thoroughly convincing. …The period, and the two or three worlds in which Wilde himself moved, are richly evoked . . . Oscar Wilde and the Candlelight Murders is an excellent detective story. I’m keenly looking forward to the rest of the series’ (The District Messenger, Journal of the Sherlock Holmes Society of London )
‘Brandreth knows his Wilde . . . Candlelight Murders is an excellent read, and it seems the scene may be set for others in the same style — and with the same lead character’ (Gay Times )
‘This is not only a good piece of detective fiction in its own right, it is highly entertaining, spiced as it is with Wildean sayings, both real and invented and the imagined conversations and intellectual sparring between Wilde and Conan Doyle. Future tales in the series are something to look forward to’ (Leicester Mercury )
‘Brandreth's accomplishment is evident in the force of Wilde's personality, which fairly leaps off the page . . . readers will delight in the effortless characterization and deft portrait of late Victorian England.’ (Stephanie Barron )
‘I always wanted to meet Oscar Wilde and now I feel that I have done, and shared a terrific, bizarre and frightening adventure with him. I recommend the experience.’ (Anne Perry )
‘This excellent novel . . . I’d be staggered if, by the end of 2007, you’d read many better whodunnits. Brandreth demonstrates supremely measured skill as a story-teller.’ (Nottingham Evening Post )
‘The rollocking tale…a witty and gripping portrayal of corruption in late Victorian London,a nd one of which Wilde and Sir Arthur would be proud’
PRAISE FOR GYLES BRANDRETH
‘Not merely, like all the best after-dinner speakers, does he know how to spin a yarn; unlike most politicians, he has a touching access to the secrets of the human heart’ (The Times )
‘A fine and sympathetic writer’
(The Times Literary Supplement )‘He can tell a story in the way Daphne du Maurier could . . . He creates a world and keeps you there’
(Sunday Express )
About the Author
Gyles Brandreth is a writer, broadcaster and former MP. He currently writes for the Daily Telegraph and Mail on Sunday.
Customer Reviews
Oscar Wilde as Sherlock Holmes!? It's elementary..
Brandreth's research leads him to the discovery that Oscar Wilde and Conan Doyle had been friends. That discovery has lead to a really engaging novel where Oscar Wilde is, in effect, playing Sherlock Holmes.
Wilde has a mysterious appointment to keep at a house in London's Cowley Street. It is there that he discovers the body of a beautiful sixteen year old boy, surrounded by candles, with his throat cut. To make the situation even more complicated, as Wilde knew the young man and the 'lunch club' which he used to frequent.
Scotland Yard are reluctant to investigate, despite a word from Conan Doyle, so Wilde (and his faithful sidekick Robert Sherard) decides to investigate for themselves. Their investigations mean they cross paths with some very colourful characters.
I loved this book. Not only is it a great murder mystery, it also portrays vividly the characters of Wilde and Conan Doyle and also attempts to illuminate the nature of Wilde's marriage to Constance.
Fictional murder stories involving investigations by real historical figures appear to be in vogue at the moment, but this is one of the better ones.
Recommended.
Oscar Wilde makes a brilliant Sherlock Holmes
This book is fabulous. Starting with the front cover - it's vibrant mix of colours and patterns represents the characters excellently. It was actually the cover that caught my eye rather than hearing about the book. I think this has done Gyles Brandreth a favour as most people won't know this side of him; instead they'll know him for his more dryer material!
The plot is quirky and sucks you straight in. Arthur Conan Doyle and Oscar Wilde are friends (this is confirmed in the notes at the back of the book), Doyle is in the middle of having one or two books published and Wilde enjoys the character of Sherlock Holmes. Thrown into the mix is the great-grandson of Wordsworth, Robert Sherard. Documented information is filtered throughout the novel and it is narrated by Robert.
It is written in the tradition (from the blurb) of Dorothy Sayers (whom I am not familiar with) and Arthur Conan Doyle. An easy read which will have you looking for clues as the novel progresses. Enjoyable characters and superbly written prose - I can't wait for the next one!
Evocative and engaging
I love a good crime novel with a historical setting so this sort of thing is right up my street.
As far as I can tell it has been meticulously researched and I found London and Wilde to have been beautifully evoked. Obviously with Oscar Wilde as your lead character it is hard to avoid peppering the book with bon mots and aphorisms. For me that simply served to bring the character of Wilde to life. I was also fascinated by all the little details of Wilde's life and by the take that the narrator has on the great scandal that is to come - heavily foreshadowed in the book.
Can Brandreth be blamed for taking advantage of the wealth of Wilde's Wit? I don't think so - in fact the prospect of getting a little Wildean wit in the world of Sherlock Holmes was what drew me to the book in the first place. That's what I wanted, that's what I got and I hugely enjoyed it.
