Ten-Second Staircase: (Bryant & May Book 4)

Like the other books in this series there is a mixture of humour, horrific murder and weird plots with a lot of old London lore. Mr Fowler was a prolific writer, but he avoids becoming formulaic in this long series.

This fourth volume n the Bryant and May series about the quirky detectives is set a month after the events of The Water Room, still my favourite in the series. I found this one more convincing than the predecessor, The Seventy Seven clocks, but also more predictable. The detectives find themselves fighting for the existence of their unit and trying to solve an old cold case with definite similarities to the latest murders committed by someone the media dubs the Highwayman. Although there is a red herring that caught me out for a while, I was spot on with the perpetrator of the earlier crimes and not far off the ultimate solution if the present day murders. I find it a bit unsatisfactory when I seem to be ahead of the characters who are both smart cookies. So an interesting read in places, but not up to the standard of The Water Room.

Marvellous!! Here the intrepid B&M and the PCU find themselves faced with a murderer who appears to be dressed as a Highwayman and to top it all he seems to appear from nowhere and comit the most bizzare murders right in front of their noses. The unit are still reeling from the threat of closure and the L. Square Vampire has risen his ugly head once more. Armed with a host of historical information courtesy of Bryant's whacky friends, lots of boiled sweets and a lot of devious doings, the team set out to catch their foe. Another winner in this incredibly witty series, recommended.

Another intriguing installment in the series, quirky, clever and as always different to anything else in the detective genre. A great series of books- if you've yet to read the Bryant & May books you're in for a treat!

Starts quite poorly, trying a bit hard and some awful philosophising and psych babble from the characters but turns into a nice paced detective yarn. Glad I stuck with it

This book was somewhat of a relief in that I thought the previous one was not quite up to the standard that I have come to expect. Here though there was intrigue and confusion and danger and of course the ever present threat of closure to the PCU. I did actually have an inkling about the solution to this one but it didn't in any way spoil the read as there is always so much more to the plot than actually who did what to whom.Yes back on form, entertaining and gripping. I enjoyed it very much. Now on to the next one.

I always thoroughly enjoy Christopher Fowler’s Bryant & May novels, and this one is no exception. And I always increase my vocabulary at the same time...

I'd love to think the police really do have a Peculiar Crimes Squad - I'm not going to dissect the novel, invest a few pounds and discover the fun yourself!

Fantastic books, great storylines and best of all plenty of nonsical history about London, I simply could not put these down and was somewhat sad when I had finally completed the whole series.

When in comes to the classic British locked room mystery, the stuff that we associate with Sherlock Holmes and Dr. Watson, there is no contemporary writer more adept than Christopher Fowler. And "Ten Second Staircase" is one of his best.While the aging and eccentric detective duo of John May and Arthur Bryant are no Holmes and Watson, they are certainly more unusual, at least as entertaining, and in many ways more interesting given the depth and complexities of Fowler's multiple story lines which transcend and sometimes overpower the core mystery. Cleverly conceived and elegantly written, "Ten Second Staircase" delivers a head-scratching whodunit while plumbing deep issues of morality, vigilantism, and restless youth. If this seems like a lot to swallow for a simple mystery, the talented Fowler pulls it off while maintaining his patented British tongue-in-cheek humor balanced with genuine suspense.In this installment, an obnoxious artist is found dead, floating in her own piece of outrageous "art". The only eye witness to the apparent murder is a young teenager, visiting the gallery with his private school class. But the lad's description of the killer - a man on horseback dressed in the garb of an early 18th Century highwayman - stretches credibility and leaves the May/Bryant team with scant evidence and little to go on. When other minor - and annoying - celebrities start meeting grisly demises of their own, with reports of the "highwayman" in the vicinity, it appears a serial killer is on the loose. But rather than cowering in fear, Londoners view the killer more like a rock star, a modern day Robin Hood-like figure doing the city a service by clearing out some of the human vermin. Meanwhile, the improbable crew of May and Brant's "Peculiar Crimes Unit" are again under attack, sabotaged by their oily leader, Leslie Faraday, and highly in risk of being shut down at the hands of a heavy-handed thug hired by the home office.Through a complex series of plots and subplots, Fowler shows no impatience - much like his cranking protagonists - in weaving his way to another satisfyingly bizarre conclusion. Intelligent, savvy, and insightful, Fowler's May/Bryant series in one which deserves more acclaim and a broader following. If you haven't discovered these guys yet,do yourself a literary and entertaining favor and make the acquaintance here.

Excellent novel. Fowler weaves the history of London into this miser mystery. He produces a fascinating joyful account. Bryant and May's jousting interplay and friendship makes the story a delight. Read the entire series. It's brilliant.

Bryant and May is an acquired taste. Two elderly police detectives, one a brilliant curmudgeon the other his elegant other half, solve unusual crimes. However, if you are an Anglophile or simply love esoteric facts and history, you'll love Christopher Fowler. His books are chock-a-block full of unusual and interesting bits of English history and lore, all of which he swears is true.The plot of this book is bit stretched. It's hard to keep a steady flow of "peculiar crimes" through more than a dozen books, but well-worth the time.

This series of mysteries are perfect for those of us who enjoy murder, (as long as it's not violent and graphic). The theme of every book is different and in a way the crime is almost eclipsed by the underlying puzzle. These are books to savour and are positively addictive.