BY GASLIGHT By Steven Price

by-gaslight
By page 500 of Steven Price’s mammoth (731 pages) novel, I was tempted to give up. The story of William Pinkerton hunting down a master thief, Edward Shade, through the alleys and sewers of London over a 100 years ago frustrated me with its slow pace and frequent flashbacks. The best character, Charlotte Reckitt, disappears from the novel for hundreds of pages at a time. I grew tired of the chase and the endless digressions. Yes, Price captures the foggy menace of London in 1885, but the demands of his lengthy story makes the trip an exercise in boredom. GRADE: C

16 thoughts on “BY GASLIGHT By Steven Price

  1. Wolf Böhrendt

    A bit OT:

    London must have been a terrible place in winter with all those coal burning chimneys. And even in the 20th Century it was bad – maybe you’ve heard/read about this (1952):
    https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Great_Smog_of_London

    Several thousand people died in the smog …

    I still remember my first visit in the 60s when I saw that very room in the houses had their own chimney – of course they were no longer in use then!

    Reply
  2. Jeff Meyerson

    I’ll pass on this one. I’ve read some Victorian-era fiction and I like the setting, but the length alone would have put me off.

    Reply
  3. Jeff Meyerson

    I’ve read some Anne Perry books set in 19th Century London. It was great if you were rich. Otherwise, not so much. Ask Dickens and his father.

    Reply
    1. george Post author

      Steve, I could have read three books in the time it took me to read BY GASLIGHT. I kick myself for spending so much time on a mediocre book.

      Reply
  4. maggie mason

    I agree the length would put me off, though I have “read” long books on audio.

    re: audio books: Have listened to J L Burke’s books recently. Will Patton reads them and totally captures (for me) what Dave Robicheaux and Clete Pursell sound like.

    Reply
      1. Steve Oerkfitz

        I’ve been put off Neal Stephenson’s books because of the length. They sound interesting but my TBR pile is just too big. Wish I could listen to audio books but I find my mind drifting after a few minutes and keep having to rewind.

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *