A Gentleman’s Murder is about how Eric Peterkin, a lieutenant that served in World War I, who now reviews manuscripts for publication, turns detective. He’s a member of a gentleman’s club where he agrees to referee a bet between two other members. One of those men turns up murdered the next day inside the locked vault in the club. This club, The Britannia Club, is for those gentlemen that served their country in war, and one of Eric’s ancestors helped found it. Since “there had always been Peterkins at the Britannia,” Eric feels a sort of ownership of the club, and thus a responsibility to get justice for the victim. What follows is a thoroughly enjoyable journey of discovery through London’s dusty libraries and opium dens.
This book is a callback to the height of the detective novel. Eric is an interesting, well developed, three dimensional character, and he’s fun to follow. His father was British, while his mother was Chinese, and this leads to obstacles for Eric in post World War I London. This diversion from your typical white guy main character makes this book stand out from other detective novels. The book does a good job of making these men, who served in a most terrible war, feel real. They have traumas that they can’t talk about, and they hate fireworks and loud noises. I think it’s a great choice to show that these men were affected by what they experienced in battle, rather than just having them with a typical British stiff upper lip.
This was an excellent book, and I highly recommend it! I hope we get to see more of Eric Peterkin in the future!!