Christopher Fowler novels

 Full Dark House. Book 1. Christopher Fowler

I’m re-reading this series, a fun, informative journey with two elderly detectives. The first book in the series goes back and forth in time. Arthur Bryant, one of the two detectives, has been found dead in their office due to an explosion and fire. John May, his partner, is trying to find the source of the explosion; he’s also reminiscing about their first case together, in which the murderer was discovered but escaped. Their unit is the Peculiar Crimes Unit, and both the crimes and the officers in the unit are a bit peculiar. The old case involves multiple murders in 1940 in the only open theater at the time. Bombs are being dropped on London every clear evening, but the owner of this theater has gotten permission to mount a scandalous production of Orpheus in the Underworld. It’s a fascinating look at an older theater — and it totally reminded me of what it looked like backstage in a current Broadway theater, which I was fortunate enough to see after a performance of Cat on a Hot Tin Roof.

The Water Room. Book 2. Christopher Fowler 

This case revolves around the rivers that run under the city of London, a fascinating tidbit that I never knew. Callie and her partner, Paul, end up buying the home of an elderly woman who died there under weird circumstances. There were no signs of a struggle, but she had what looked like river water in her mouth. The case leads Bryant and May to the tunnels and waterways that crisscross London below ground. Even with little in the way of forensic evidence, the detectives use their peculiar talents to solve the crime.

Seventy-Seven Clocks. Book 3. Christopher Fowler

Always on the edge of being dissolved, the Peculiar Crimes Unit becomes enmeshed in a series of bizarre events, beginning with the destruction of a painting on exhibit from Australia. The perpetrator of the crime is a member of the upper crust Whitstable family, whose members eventually become targeted by unknown assailants. And then there’s Jerry Gates, who is trying to escape the same life being lived by her poser parents — she’s currently working at the Savoy Hotel, much to her mother’s chagrin. Somehow she becomes involved with Bryant and May and their investigation, going so far as to go it alone when she’s rebuffed by the team. The solution to this one is sooooo unusual and fun. 

White Corridor. Book 4. Christopher Fowler 

It’s winter, and Arthur Bryant has talked John May into accompanying him to Cornwall for a psychics convention. At the same time, their PCU pathologist Oswald Finch is found dead in the morgue. The rest of the team works to solve the mystery of Finch’s death in the locked morgue while Bryant and May are caught in a massive snowstorm, complete with a dead body and a woman and child seeking shelter from an obsessed acquaintance. Another romp with these quirky characters.

The Victoria Vanishes. Book 5. Christopher Fowler 

On his way home after pathologist Oswald Finch’s wake at a local pub, Bryant sees a woman go into the Victoria Cross pub; he soon discovers that she was killed within minutes of his seeing her and that the pub he saw doesn’t exist. It seems that someone is targeting middle-aged women by luring them to pubs and then killing them. What do the women have in common? There’s also a letter of resignation from one of the team and a cancer diagnosis for another. Lots of pub history in this one. 

Bryant & May on the Loose. Book 6. Christopher Fowler 

The PCU has been disbanded, and the team has moved on — sort of. Then a man dressed as a stag shows up near King’s Cross, now a huge construction site. There’s also a body locked in a freezer, which happens to be headless. And somehow the team finds itself back in business, with new offices in a decrepit King’s Cross warehouse. Pagan rites and ancient wells are part of this unusual case.

Bryant & May Off the Rails. Book 7. Christopher Fowler 

The team is still based in the decrepit warehouse. Mr. Fox, who killed one of their own, remains on the loose. The London Underground becomes a sinister setting for a crazy game, which takes a murderous twist. The detectives need to solve a growing number of murders to keep the Tube safe.

The Memory of Blood. Book 8. Christopher Fowler 

As cast members celebrate the opening of their play at the director’s home, his infant son is thrown out of his bedroom window, and a Punch puppet’s wooden “fingerprints” are found on the baby’s neck. Thus begins a bizarre tale of scary puppets and a government official’s wild child daughter, who was a guest at the party. So many suspects, so little time. As always the team’s nemesis and big boss, Oskar Kasavian, is trying to amass evidence in order to close down the Peculiar Crimes Unit. 

The Invisible Code. Book 9. Christopher Fowler

A young woman's death occurs in St. Bride’s Church -- with no obvious cause of death.  Bryant and May eventually find a connection with this death and big boss Oskar Kasavian’s wife, Sabira, who has been acting strangely over the last few weeks.  The elderly detectives, with Bryant’s odd way of detection, lead their team through a myriad of symbols and codes while trying to discover a murderer or maybe a traitor to their unit.

The Bleeding Heart. Book 10. Christopher Fowler

While trying to woo his new girlfriend by showing her the stars, teenager Romain Curtis sees a ghost rise from a grave in the park where they are stargazing.  At the same time, the ravens that are a mainstay of the Tower of London go missing.  Feeding off ghost stories and myths from the Victorian Age, Bryant and May explore dark magic, evil, and resurrection men in a plot that never fails to spring surprises on them and on the reader.

The Burning Man. Book 11. Christopher Fowler

It’s almost Guy Fawkes Night, a time of bonfires and famous figures burned in effigy.  There’s also major unrest in the streets of London as banker Dexter Cornell has bankrupted a bank in London, causing riots and burnings. Simultaneously, someone is killing people with fire in a number of different ways.  The race is on to find the killer and to curtail the growing unrest before it becomes totally uncontrollable.

Strange Tide. Book 12. Christopher Fowler

Bryant’s brilliance has become tempered by his moments of total confusion, and there’s no way to tell when that confusion is going to occur. But without him, the PSU loses its heart, and this time there is real fear that the unit will have to disband.

Wild Chambers. Book 13. Christopher Fowler

A child is killed in a bizarre accident as a result of a crime scene road closure. Forester, his father, has lost his money and is hiding from Chinese loan sharks. His now ex-wife is living elsewhere, and he goes to her to try to confess his financial problems. She is murdered, their dog goes missing, and Bryant and May pick up the case because there’s a plot spurred on by their hated boss Faraday to privatize the parks of London. More murders occur, each related to the other by that tragic accident.

Hall of Mirrors. Book 14. Christopher Fowler 

As Arthur Bryant works on writing another memoir, he tells his editor about a case that should sate the public’s desire for some sex and violence. Back in the Swinging Sixties, Bryant and May must act as security for a witness in a bribery case, punishment for Bryant’s part in sinking a barge while on the trail of a criminal. Monty Hatton-Jones, their charge, decides to go to Kent for a party — the host is wealthy, and Monty hopes to get some money from him. The weekend gathering becomes a crime scene in short order while at the same time there’s a raging storm, which keeps anyone from leaving the party.

The Lonely Hour. Book 15. Christopher Fowler 

An unlicensed taxi, an after-hours club, mistaken identities, and a 4:00AM murder on Hampstead Heath send the Peculiar Crimes Unit on a race against time. After the initial bizarre murder, the detectives look for a connection among random occupants of a taxi — the driver was the murder victim. In short order another murder occurs at 4:00AM, and the team has limited time to solve the two murders to hopefully prevent a possible third crime. And there’s a mole in the unit, working to undermine the team at every turn.

Oranges and Lemons. Book 16. Christopher Fowler 

Due to a bizarre accident involving crates of fruit, speaker of the House of Commons Michael Claremont ends up unconscious in the street in front of his home. At the same time, the PCU has been “permanently” dismantled — May is in hospital recovering from a gunshot wound, and Bryant is MIA.  However, a call to action because of the aforementioned bizarre incident eventually brings the team back together to solve what has become a series of crimes related to the nursery that begins, “Oranges and lemons say the bells of St. Clement’s….” Cleverly plotted with a major twist a the end, this novel is another wild and crazy race to the finish.