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    Instruments of Darkness: A Novel
    Instruments of Darkness: A Novel
    Instruments of Darkness: A Novel
    Audiobook11 hours

    Instruments of Darkness: A Novel

    Written by Imogen Robertson

    Narrated by Wanda McCaddon

    4/5

    ()

    About this audiobook

    In the year 1780, Harriet Westerman, the willful mistress of a country manor in Sussex, finds a dead man on her grounds with a ring bearing the crest of Thornleigh Hall in his pocket. Not one to be bound by convention or to shy away from adventure, she recruits a reclusive local anatomist named Gabriel Crowther to help her find the murderer, and historical suspense's newest investigative duo is born.

    For years, Mrs. Westerman has sensed the menace of neighboring Thornleigh Hall, seat of the Earl of Sussex. It is the home of a once-great family that has been reduced to an ailing invalid, his whorish wife, and his alcoholic second son, a man haunted by his years spent as a redcoat in the Revolutionary War. The same day, Alexander Adams is slain by an unknown killer in his London music shop, leaving his children orphaned. His death will lead back to Sussex and to an explosive secret that has already destroyed one family and threatens many others.

    Instruments of Darkness combines the brooding atmosphere of Anne Perry with the complex, compelling detail of Tess Gerritsen, moving from drawing room to dissecting room, from coffee house to country inn. Mrs. Westerman and Mr. Crowther are both razor-sharp minds, and their personalities breathe spirit into this gripping historical mystery.
    LanguageEnglish
    PublisherTantor Media, Inc
    Release dateMar 9, 2011
    ISBN9781452670461
    Instruments of Darkness: A Novel
    Author

    Imogen Robertson

    Imogen Robertson grew up in Darlington, studied Russian and German at Cambridge and now lives in London. She directed for film, TV and radio before becoming a full-time author and won the Telegraph’s ‘First thousand words of a novel’ competition in 2007 with the opening of Instruments of Darkness, her first novel. Her other novels also featuring the Georgian detective duo of Harriet Westerman and Gabriel Crowther are Anatomy of Murder, Island of Bones, Circle of Shadows and Theft of Life. In 2013 she published The Paris Winter, a story of betrayal and darkness set during the Belle Époque. She has been short-listed for the CWA Historical Dagger three times and once for the Dagger in the Library Award. Imogen was one of our judges for the Solstice Shorts competition and provided us with Time travel/ ghost story, Grange Lodge Which she read for us at the festival and is published in Solstice Shorts, Sixteen Stories about Time.

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    Reviews for Instruments of Darkness

    4/5

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    • 4/5
      Terrific first mystery. Set in 1780 Sussex and London with Gordon riots as backdrop.
    • 3/5
      This is an interesting historical mystery that spans five years and an ocean. The main story takes place in 1780 in England when a man is discovered murdered on the property of Mrs. Westerman, the wife of a naval captain. A local reclusive man known to be very familiar with human anatomy, Mr. Crowther, is asked to aid in investigating the cause of the death. What follows is a gradual exposure of the local lord's family secrets.The author takes us between three locales. The first is the country site in West Sussex, the site of Thornleigh Hall, the second is London in the midst of riots against Papists and the home of an Alexander Smith and his two young children. The third locale is in Boston, five years previous to the present setting. The reader is taken back and forth between the three as a sordid story emerges.Mrs. Westerman had spent time on her husband's chip and is quite unlike the frail females of her time. Mr. Crowther is also rare in his fascination with the inner workings of the human body and how evidence of wrong doing can be found by study of a corpse. They make and unusually effective pair to solve this mystery and prevent more deaths from occurring.
    • 5/5
      Harriet Westerman, a young gentlewoman living in the tranquil village of Hartswood in rural Sussex, discovers the body of a man on her lands, his throat cut. Rather than calling on the local constable, she addresses herself to Gabriel Crowther, a recluse and known anatomist, for help. As the body count rises, the two form a friendship and discover the reasons behind the murders.Set in 1780, this is the first in a historical crime fiction series featuring the rather impulsive and unconventional Harriet Westerman and her partner in crime Gabriel Crowther, a gentleman with a secret past and the polar opposite to Harriet in character. Divided into six parts, each covering the span of a day, the plot is centred on the village of Hartswood where Harriet and Crowther live, London and Boston during the American Revolutionary War some five years previously. The prose is fluent and memorable in places, the atmosphere of time and place acute, but the great strength of this novel is its vivid portrayal of the characters, so much so that I felt I knew them as the novel progressed, and cared for them deeply. Even though some might criticise that the plot is too sedate in places (I don’t agree, there are three murders in three days), the author is clearly more concerned about characterisation than driving the action forward just for its own sake. (Saying that, the most memorable scenes detail the carnage after the Battle of Breed’s Hill near Charlestown and the chaos and confusion during the London riots as some of the protagonists have to cross the city to a place of refuge; the writing is incredibly tense in these places.) Here the consequences and repercussions after a violent crime has been committed ripple through the affected members of the family, friends and neighbours, and even the wider community, and Imogen Robertson makes it clear that some acts of violence are committed for personal gain, while others have a personal tragedy of their own at their heart. This is historical crime fiction at its best, and I can’t wait to get my hands on the second volume in the series, Anatomy of Murder.
    • 4/5
      In semi-rural England in 1780 Mrs Harriet Westerman discovers a body and persuades her reclusive neighbour, anatomist Gabriel Crowther, to become involved in an investigation into the man’s death and his possible relationship to nearby Thornleigh Hall, seat of the Earl of Sussex. At almost the same time a London shopkeeper, Alexander Adams, is killed on the first night of the Gordon Riots and it soon becomes clear that his orphaned children are in danger themselves. The book tackles the question of what unites these two killings in an old-fashioned battle of good versus evil.

      This is an absolutely absorbing read with all the best features of good historical fiction. Domestic events such as the happenings at Thornleigh Hall and surrounds are depicted against the backdrop of real events in a very engaging way. At several points in the novel for example there are flashbacks to a period several years earlier when the second Thornleigh son, Hugh, was a captain in His Majesty’s Army during the American Revolutionary War. Meanwhile the parts of the story which take place in London occur during the Gordon Riots and while these events do not form a major part of the story using them as a backdrop adds interest and authenticity to the fictional events. Though complex the plot never gets muddled or confused and I was impressed by the way this debut author maintained interest in all the threads and wrapped them up cleverly.

      Though the plot is excellent it is the characters that are the real stars of the novel, offering something for everyone’s taste. Harriet Westerman is practical and intelligent and just the sort of woman you’d want nearby in times of crisis. She runs the family estate while her husband is at sea with the Navy and looks after her children and younger sister as well as getting caught up in local events. Importantly though she doesn’t step over the boundary into incredibility. Gabriel Crowther is also believable and watching him become embroiled in local events against his better judgement, due to his own family’s dark secret, is a treat. There are too many smaller characters to do justice to here but they really do keep the reader’s interest and attention.

      Ultimately this is a book about family. For some it is about doing whatever is necessary to protect the and for those with more sinister intent it’s about trying to smash family bonds and take advantage of people’s perceived weaknesses where their families are concerned. The combination of a gripping plot, engaging characters and fascinating historical detail is highly recommended.
    • 4/5
      An enjoyable historical detective story set in 18th Century England. Harriet Westerman and Gabriel Crowther form an unlikely partnership to investigate murder and mysteries. An engaging and entertaining novel - I'm certainly going to buy more in the series.
    • 4/5
      First Line: Friday, 2 June 1780, West Sussex, England. Gabriel Crowther opened his eyes.If Crowther had known what was in store for him, he just might have pulled the covers back over his head. Harriet Westerman, the unconventional mistress of Caveley Park, has found a dead man on her property, and she insists that reclusive anatomist Gabriel Crowther help her find the killer. Their search will take them from country walks to drawing rooms to grimy London streets to dissecting rooms, and by the time they're done, there will be no more secrets at neighboring Thornleigh Hall.Harriet Westerman is the kind of amateur sleuth that I want to know more about. The wife of a sea captain, Harriet went to sea with her husband during peace time and in war-- and she misses it. The only reason why she's taken up residence at Caveley Park is because her husband has always wanted a big house and property. If left to her own devices, she'd still be at sea.Gabriel Crowther on the other hand is an anatomist, which isn't a very popular occupation in eighteenth century England. He prefers solitude for many reasons, only one of which concerns his work. Having removed himself from polite society, he finds himself out of step when Harriet drags him back into it. This pair of self-appointed sleuths both have courage and razor-sharp minds, which bodes well for a series.However, the author has also populated the book with several other well-drawn and memorable characters, one group of which is chased through the dark streets of London by a very scary murderer. Whether trying to track down the notes of a magistrate or attempting to protect the next people on the killer's list, I never knew when I'd run into another of the author's marvelous characters.The only thing that kept me from raising this book to the ceiling and shouting, "Hallelujah!" is that the pace tended to be glacial until the last quarter of the book. But Robertson has now set up a world that I want to revisit again and again. Mrs. Westerman? Please set another place at table. I am coming to dine!
    • 4/5
      Definitely a superior murder mystery novel. Set in Georgian times it uncovers family secrets and folows two parallel naratives plus we are given information in the form of snipopets about the past at the end of each main section of the book. The two detectives are intriguingly matched and also hold their own secrets. The novel builds tension well, but I couldn't help thinking towards the end that it perhaps didn't deliver on the ending as it could have done. Still I lok forward the next one indeed!
    • 2/5
      I had many problems with this book, and I'm so disappointed because I wanted to love it. My first problem was being unable to connect to the two main characters. Another problem was the constant shifts between the three stories; I can usually handle two different story threads, but three just breaks my attention and makes me want to put down the book and not pick it back up again. Also the murderer was very obvious to me and it was frustrating that no one else in the book seemed to see it.

      From the other reviews I have read, my complaints with this book are not the norm so if you enjoy historical mysteries you may want to still give this one a go. As for me, I won't be reading further books in the series.
    • 5/5
      Very good Georgian set mystery. First book by this author, looking for more.
    • 4/5
      I really like this investigative pair! Harriet Westetman, the wife of a ship captain who is absent, and the inquisitive, quirky Mr. Crowther. Set in the1700s, the two protagonusts use their wits and varied life experiences to bolster one another in a murder investigation. The story has interesting intrigue and engaging characters. I will definitely read the next installment of this series.
    • 3/5
      An engaging mystery set in late 18th-century England. Instruments of Darkness features grisly murders, a lost heir, and family secrets. The case is pursued by Harriet Westerman and Gabriel Crowther, an unlikely pair but who complement each other well. Imogen Robertson does an excellent job of portraying the time period and developing two engaging characters who are likely to be featured in a number of books to come.
    • 4/5
      Harriett Westerman is a woman who is alone but married, her husband is captain on a ship. Her sister lives with her, and she has to manage the house and the family there. This makes her more independent than most women of her time. When she encounters a body she goes directly to reclusive anatomist Gabriel Crowther to get his assistance to discover the truth about the murder. At the same time you see a murder in London and you wonder where the connections are, (though I have to admit that I did get the links quite quickly once certain clues were given)Still I liked the characters and the way they coped with the situations and the fact that there's no romance between the two main characters. They may be male and female but it never occurs to Harriet that she should find Gabriel attractive. He's a partner, a companion in the solving of the murder mystery but nothing more. I do want to read more in this series.
    • 4/5
      Tension builds from the moment Mrs Westerman, genteel proprietress of Caveley Park, forces her acquaintance on reclusive anatomist Gabriel Crowther, wealthy man of secrets and possessor of many strange and distasteful objects, in search of his help in dealing with the death of a stranger in her copse.It doesn't let up. It ratchets up every time Mrs Westerman or Mr Crowther are on stage. There are flashbacks to Mrs Westerman's neighbor, Lord Hugh Thornleigh, in combat during the American conflict...these aren't immediately obviously relevant to the story, and I think I'd've recommended the author introduce them differently than her editor did, but have patience...and introduce us to Claver Wicksteed, then an Army procurement officer and now steward of Thornleigh, the seat of the Earls of Sussex. Then we meet the Countess of Sussex, and our central cast is complete.The body count rises, as it must in a mystery, and the characters begin to see that they're engaged in a grisly gavotte around one central puzzle: How low can a human being sink, regardless of high birth, and how can justice seem so far from just?Like all good mystery writers, Robertson takes us round the houses by changing the angle of view several times. She's very good at this. What seems awful becomes right and good; what seems reliably good stinks like old fish before she's done with us. Fear not: The wise and the just are rewarded! Just that they're also made to get dirty in the process.There are first-novel issues with the book, of course, like the Parthenon being described as a round building in Rome (PANTHEON!) and the persistent misunderstanding of how one addresses Earls, Countesses, and their offspring (Earls are "Lord {Name of earldom}", their wives "Lady {Name of earldom} unless that countess is the daughter of a fellow earl or higher, in which case she's ALWAYS "Lady {Firstname}" no matter who she's married to, sons and heirs of earls are Viscounts and addressed as "Lord {Name of viscounty" even when very young, younger sons are "Lord {Family name}" and daughters of earls are "Lady {Firstname}" all their lives, etc etc). Most of this is the editor's fault. The author should be able to rely on him or her to catch these sorts of factual oopsies.Still and all...the pleasures of reading this book are many, and *evil chortle* you'll all have to wait until at least 2011 to find out 'cause the book ain't available here yet! I borrowed mine from our own Suzanne/Chatterbox, so there nyah!But it's recommended. Really and truly. Too good to miss.
    • 4/5
      Imogen Robertson's debut novel, Instuments of Darkness is a good historical mystery, set in rural Sussex in June, 1780. When Lady Harriet Westerman discovers the body of a murdered man on her property, she turns to her reclusive neighbor, anatomist Gabriel Crowther, for assistance. When the unlikely duo begin looking into the circumstances of the man's death, they quickly discover that it was no isolated event. Well paced, with some memorable characters and a few nice plot twists; makes for a good afternoon's read.
    • 4/5
      I normally tend to read mysteries set slightly later (say, Victorian through pre-WWII), so I like the change of pace. The characters are well fleshed-out and interesting in themselves, not just as aids to move the story along.

      I have three quibbles so far, two technical and one more substantive. First - the book flips back and forth between different stories, two in 1780 and one a few years earlier. The way it's structured on the page is what looks like two em-dash between two line breaks. There's just not physical separation on the page that I prefer when the multi-viewpoint technique is used. Obviously, it's not hard to tell what story you're in, but it would be easier if it was immediately visible. I've been slighly irritated at having to regroup so suddenly and return to another story.

      The second is, I think, an editing issue. More than once, a character says or notices something in a way that makes you think "oh, he said something about this before and that's why he's mentioning it again." But then when you go back to find that reference, nothing was ever said - this is actually the first time it's noticed. It seems to me like this might be the result of items being edited out without being careful to make sure that it doesn't leave later items hanging. For example:

      The older fellow that Graves had noticed had come to a halt, and watched the burning like a child whose favorite toy has been destroyed by some act of adult carelessness.
      But there was no earlier mention of Graves noticing the fellow. Now, this isn't relevant to the story (at least so far as I can tell), but it is irritating and makes me wonder if it occurs in other places where it would have more impact.

      The substantive issue is that although, as I said, the characters are well-drawn, there is occasionally a vagueness about something they do. By this I don't mean a kind of obvious confusion, like "why did Lassie suddenly maul Timmy? Lassie loved Timmy!" but rather, the kind where a character will say or do something that clearly makes perfect sense to the author, but as a reader I get the feeling that I've missed a step. I suspect that as complex as the characters are on paper, the author may have an even more complete picture in her mind that informs her writing but leaves me hanging a little.

      Overall though - looking forward to finishing it and will definitely read more.

      Edit: very pleased with the ending and the entire book. I've got the next one and will start it soon!
    • 4/5
      It was quite good read. I liked the characters and the plot.
    • 5/5
      A really good narrative that held my attention throughout. Desertves to be better known.The central character is Harriet Westerman. Harriet is a capable woman and manager of her family's estate in Sussex, while her husband (a naval Commodore) is away at sea. Her neighbours at Thornleigh Hall are a titled family in decline: the owner is crippled, his heir is missing, and his second son is an alcoholic. Against this background Harriet finds the body of a dead stranger holding a ring displaying the Thornleigh arms. Meanwhile, in London, a young father is murdered in his music shop. Harriet's actions uncover a link. She turns for help to Gabriel Crowther, an anatomist and reclusive recent arrival in the area. Their enquiries allow the author to paint a wide ranging picture of life in Georgian England, and to tell a rollicking good tale reminiscent of C S Forester . Imogen Robertson uses her knowledge of the period with a light touch: the level of detail advances the plot without overcomplicating the story. She has not been well served by her publishers in terms of publicity . I had to check my Shorter Oxford English Dictionary for the use the use of psychological in conversation and found to my surprise that it was just about possible.
    • 3/5
      Set in rural England and the Americas @ 1740 it brings together two main characters, Harriet and Crowther who try to uncover the murderer of a stranger to there town. A good solid historical thriller with great characters and well written.
    • 2/5
      It took me forever to read this book. I liked it but would not rush out to get more int the series. The mains characters I found rather annoying. They way they played off of each other was uncomfortable and didn't carry my interest.
    • 3/5
      While I liked the book in general--in particular the two main characters, I found the way it was written rather annoying in the constantly changing point of view. I know it was done to build up tension, but irritation was what it built up.
      I would rather have had things worked out by those two, rather than having it revealed bit by bit on the side, with two other parallel stories.
      I also found the starting point of the whole thing from years in the past rather unbelievable, given the station and usual relative balance of power between the two initiating characters. On the other hand, I suppose a claim could also be made that the force of personality of the one and lack of personality of the other might explain the initial basis of the story.
      I would give this author another go. She writes well and seems to know her historical period.
    • 5/5
      I picked this up in Heffers in Cambridge and was forced to buy because the prose style was just so good.It's set in the 1700s in England, and makes good use of the setting, including the Gordon Riots as a plot point. The story is perhaps more Gothic (in the 1700s sense) than mystery, with Missing Heirs, Good-hearted Commoners, and Vicious Aristocrats preying upon Village Maidens. Robertson manages, despite the occasionally highly-coloured plot, to make her characters rounded and believable, often touching, and for the most part not 21st c. people in period dress. Pacing is strong, with two storylines echoing each other and giving the reader more information than the characters have, which raises the suspense but still leaves the reader guessing.Plot - a sea-captain's wife, somewhat frustrated by her daily round of maintaining their new house and lands in a small village while her husband returns to sea, discovers a throat-slit corpse on her property. Worried that it may be that of the long-missing heir to the troubled local nobility, she asks for the help of mysterious recluse and anatomist Gabriel Crowther - not his real name, for he has his own secrets.And on from there. She and Crowther become friends, and I was pleased that the author didn't go for the easy complication of having them fall in love.Recommended. I did notice perhaps half-a-dozen words or terms that I would question for the time, but all minor, and only noticeable really because the rest was so appropriate.
    • 4/5
      A Dickensian thriller set in Georgian England during the American Revolution, [Instruments of Darkness] by Imogen Robertson is clever, fair to the reader, and wholly involving. Like Dickens, Robertson weaves her plot from many threads, but they all converge in 1780 in London and in the Sussex countryside.Her sleuths are the wife of a British Navy Commodore who is currently at sea and her eccentric scientist/neighbor. If all this seems a little trite, I can assure you that the execution of her plot is excellent, her writing crystal clear and atmospheric. Indeed, the tension rose so high towards the end that I often put the book down to walk around the room. I recommend this book to everyone who enjoys 18th and 19th century historical fiction, to mystery lovers, and to anyone who enjoys a good tale.
    • 5/5
      The time is 1780 in a small village outside of London. The wife of a local landed gentry (literally landed - he is a naval commodore) finds a body on her land with its throat cut. She turns to the local recluse, who has an interest in cutting up dead bodies, for help. And off they go, delving into local politics and the hidden past to figure out who was murdered and why. A few more murders and a couple of plot twists later, they of course succeed, but the journey to the solution is a worthwhile one.This was fun for many reasons. First, the style is appropriate to the setting - relaxed and giving a flavor of the writing of the time. Second, the characters are fun, if perhaps a tad too modern. Mrs. Westerman, our heroine, is an independent, no-nonsense, competent woman. Crowther, our hero, is somewhat Darcy-like though much less prideful (or is he the prejudiced one?). Other woman are probably a little more independent than the times might find appropriate, but that's OK with me. Third, the history is good. The American Revolution plays an important role in the story and is well painted (from the British side), and the time in England is well described (there are anti-papist riots going on in London, for instance). Both events are portrayed accurately (I assume - I know it's true for the American events and assume it's true of the British events too), yet realistically. Fourth, it's fresh. One of the wonderful things about Mrs. Westerman and Crowther's partnership is that there is no romantic interest at all. They respect each other and end up trusting each other, but she is happily married (though her husband is away) and he shows no interest in crossing that boundary. For some reason, it just seems so very grown up that, in a novel, two people of opposite sex can actually be friends but not lovers.Not to worry though. There are other romantic possibilities. The other half of the story takes place in London with a different cast of characters. Their story, is of course, related (I'm not giving away any spoilers - the relationship is obvious early on) and there are the possibilities of love and family there, though also tragedy.A lovely book. There are a couple of more in the series and I will probably go find them, though with a little hesitation: I don't think this was meant to be the first of a series, and I worry that follow-ups will therefore be disappointing. But I'll take the chance ...
    • 3/5
      Fun quick mystery.