Well researched Victorian era mystery with plenty of action and a collection of interesting characters. This 3rd episode stands well alone, despite a long running story arc. Those who have followed this series in order will have additional insights, but I started here and found it a satisfying read.

This is the third installment in the Victorian mystery series. Sara, Hugh and Mick have been hired to photograph corpses at crime scenes.. One particular corpse they photograph is a hangman. Who would want to kill the hangman? The chase is on between the police and our threesome to determine the killer. Twists and turns abound, and Sara takes a serious hit to her credibility to solve the murder. But she persists, in spite of Inspector Reid trying to trip her up, losing her job, and in spite of Barrett's pleas for her to leave it alone.
Sara and Barrett's relationship is becoming clearer, and Sara's distrust of him is crumbling. Sara also continues her quest to find her father, and she learns some surprises along the way.
I like this book more than #2. The pacing was tighter, and the characters are growing in depth and feeling. The series continues to grow as well, and the plots are tricky and well thought out. I look forward to the next installment.
I received this book in return for an unbiased review from Net Galley.

This is my first Laura Joh Rowland book and the third in the series. I did not find it necessary to have read the other two books. Victorian mystery is not the genre of book that I would usually read but the book description appealed to me and I’m glad I did. I liked her main characters - Sarah Bain and her friends Hugh Staunton and Mick O’Reilly. Crime Photographer Sarah has been sent by the Daily World newspaper to take pictures of the crime scene. Then she’s told by Sir Gerald, the owner of the paper, that she is to investigate the murder in a sort of contest with the police. And winning the contest is everything to Sir Gerald because he still holds a grudge against the police at how they handled his son’s kidnapping. Also, they can run a series of follow-ups in the paper which will generate sales. There’s lots going on in this book - from personal relationships to gruesome murders. Ms Rowland’s characters are well developed and likeable - I enjoyed her description of 19th century London. An enjoyable read.

Thanks to NetGalley for a copy of this book in exchange for an honest review

London in the 1890s is damp, dark and smoky. The perfect setting for a villainous mystery. Sarah Bain is a photographer, quite an unusual occupation not only in that time, but especially for a woman. Sarah works for the local paper, the Daily World, and is at the beck and call of its editor, Sir Gerald Mariner. Sir Gerald likes to publish stories that sell, or the early edition of today’s tabloids. Sarah is often sent to grisly scenes of murder that would cause even the strongest of men to cringe. Yet Sarah is one plucky woman. She isn’t daunted by much.

Sarah lives in a house with Mick O’Reilly, a fourteen year old former street urchin; Lord Hugh Staunton, one dashing gentleman; and Fitzmorris, Lord Hugh’s valet who also stands in as cook, housekeeper and anything else needed. Mick is supposed to be going to school, but he prefers to hang out with Sarah and Lord Hugh carrying equipment and solving crimes.

In this book, Sarah is awakened by someone calling her to a crime scene of one Harry Warbrick, a hangman who is hanged by his own rope. Harry also runs a local pub below his residence. Sarah records the scene of the crime, but is not convinced of the guilt of the man they arrest. Sarah decides to investigate her own leads, along with Hugh & Mick. With this they are off on a dangerous mission to unearth the truth.

This is the third book of the Victorian Mystery series by Laura Joh Rowland. I had not read the previous two books, and this book can definitely stand on its own. Once you’ve enjoyed one of the series, my bet is that you would probably enjoy the others. I am looking forward to catching up with Sarah, Lord Hugh and Mick in the other books.

I received an ARC from the publisher and NetGalley in exchange for my honest review. First off - I didn't realize that this book was part of a series but this didn't seem to hinder my enjoyment of the book. I felt the book started off just a bit slow but then it picked up and I enjoyed it. I liked the characters - i found that they were interesting and intriguing. This book was a good murder mystery.set in the late 1890's. and I liked its storyline. I haven't read this author before but I would certainly be inclined to read her other works.

This is my first experience with Sarah Bain and her friends Lord Hugh and Mick. They are working for Sir Gerald of the Daily World newspaper. They are called to photograph the murder of The Hangman Harry Warbrick’s body, himself hanged and decapitated. The newspaper introduces a contest to find the murderer but they have competition in ruthless reporter Malcolm Cross. They are lead on a chase of many red herrings but it always comes back to the haunting place of Newgate Prison and the secrets it keeps. This is a fast paced thrilling mystery with even some of the horror of places in Victorian Britain brought to life. It will be well worth following the life of our three musketeers.
I was given an ARC of this book in exchange for an honest review.

I am enjoying this series and look forward to more. This is the second I've read and after reading it I went out and got the one I hadn't read. I like the 3 main characters, as well as Sarah's boyfriend. I also like the Victorian England setting. They mystery is well done. Sarah and friends believe the hangman's death is tied to a hanging he had done earlier and so they investigate that as well. While I don't think you need to read the other books in the series to enjoy this one, I think you'll get more out of it.

I received an eARC from the publisher via NetGalley for an honest review. - A good read.

I didn't realize when I started this book that it was third in a series. Consequently, some of the backstory was missing for me, but I think it can be read and enjoyed as a stand-alone.

The book begins when a hangman is found murdered. Daily World reporters race the London's police force to see who can capture the killer first.

I like the author's writing style and I'm interested in reading the first two books in the series! This will be great for readers who enjoy historic mysteries!

Fabulous book. I couldn’t wait to pick it back up and carry on reading. I loved the characters and became completely immersed in the story. The story line was was interesting and very well written. It was easy to visualise the scenes and characters without being over the top. I don’t want to spoil anything but based on the ending of this book I hope there will be another book to follow on from this. Would absolutely recommend this book to everyone

LOVED! This book was well thought out! The plot and characters are imaginative and drove the story along well. A definite one click read

When I first read the blurb for The Hangman’s Secret, I was undecided if I wanted to read this book or not. While I like mysteries, I have to be in the right mood to read them. But, seeing that the book was set in one of my favorite time periods (The Victorian Era), I decided to take a chance on reading it. While I am glad I took the chance on reading it, I was unimpressed with the book. It didn’t surprise me or astonish me. I was a little disappointed in it.

The plot for The Hangman’s Secret was a good one. Sarah and her friends are dispatched to a crime scene by the paper’s owner, Sir Gerald Mariner. There has been a gruesome murder. Sarah, a crime scene photographer, arrives on the scene to find out that the victim was a hangman. Pushed into solving this murder before the police, Sarah finds out that the victim was the hangman for a notorious baby murderer. She also finds out that something happened at that hanging. Whatever that was, someone was willing to kill the people who were at the hanging to keep them quiet. Can she solve it? Or will her reputation, her relationship, and friendships be ruined? Also, will she be able to finally track down her father? Or will she discover something about her past?

While I enjoyed reading The Hangman’s Secret, I felt that it dragged in spots. Mainly in the middle. I was mentally urging the characters to do something to bring the plot out of its lag. Which happened but I almost DNF’d the book before it happened. Also, the beginning was slow. There was too much time discussing the characters backgrounds and storylines from the earlier books. I am here to read this book, not to read about Sarah, Mick and Hugh’s adventures with Jack the Ripper and kidnappers. If that could be cut back a bit, the beginning wouldn’t be so slow.

Sarah bothered me. Because this is Victorian England, I get that she should have been a little reserved. But she wasn’t. She was determined to be an independent woman. Which was unheard of in those days. She was the one that Sir Gerald talked to when he wanted something done. She was the one that took on the job of finding her father. She called the shots in her relationship. It was unheard of in those days for a woman to have as much power as she did. I hate to say this (because I am all about girl power) but I wished she was more like women of that era. Because it was not realistic the way she was.

I liked the mystery angle of the book. The author did a great job at keeping the identity of the killer hidden until the end of the book. I did think it was going to be one person and I was surprised at who it was. I did feel that all the red herrings and false leads weren’t needed. The whole Cross angle of the mystery didn’t do it for me. It actually made me aggravated that one person could be so nasty. As for the mystery of Sarah’s father, it was well done. But there were more questions than answers.

The romance between Bennett and Sarah screamed of dysfunction and took away from the story. While I appreciated that Sarah had someone to love her, I didn’t like that it became a focal point in the plotline towards the end. I also didn’t like how Sarah was judged on her looks. It wasn’t even other people, she put herself down.

The author tied the storylines up nicely at the end of the book. I thought that the ending went on a little longer than I thought. There was no big twist. I also had questions about DCI Reid. Where did he go? There was no mention about him at the end of the book. Seeing that he was Bennett and Sarah’s nemesis, I would have thought there would have been a mention about it. I did like that the author left enough room for another book.

What I liked about The Hangman’s Secret:

The plotline. I enjoyed it
Being set in Victorian England
The end of the book
What I disliked about The Hangman’s Secret:

It dragged in spots and was slow to start
Sarah. She didn’t match the stereotype of women of that era
Sarah and Bennett’s romance
I gave The Hangman’s Secret a 3-star rating. The plotline and the mystery angle of the book was enjoyable to read. I also liked how the book was ended. But, the story was slow to start and the plotline lagged in spots. Also, I didn’t think that Sarah fit the stereotype of women of that era. I also thought that Sarah and Bennett’s romance was dysfunctional and brought no added depth to the story.

I would give The Hangman’s Secret an Adult rating. There is sex but it is not graphic. There is violence, sometimes graphic. There is no language. I would recommend that no one under the age of 21 read this book.

I am on the fence if I would reread The Hangman’s Secret. I am also on the fence if I would recommend this book to family and friends.

I would like to thank Crooked Lane Books and NetGalley for allowing me to read and review The Hangman’s Secret.

All opinions stated in the review of The Hangman’s Secret are mine.

**I chose to leave this review after reading an advance reader copy**

<span style="color: #000000;">The Hangman's Secret <em>A Victorian Mystery </em>is written by Laura Joh Rowland and published by Crooked Lane Books.</span>
<h1><strong><span style="color: #33cccc;">Description:</span></strong></h1>
<span style="color: #000000;"><b>From award-winning author Laura Joh Rowland, a story about the darkness that lurks within and the deadly secrets that beg to be revealed.</b></span>

<span style="color: #000000;"><i>Intrepid photographer Sarah Bain and her motley crew of friends are back to hunt criminals in the dark, seedy underbelly of Victorian London, but little do they know, the darkness may lurk closer than they first divined.</i></span>

<span style="color: #000000;">Photographer Sarah Bain and her friends Lord Hugh Staunton and sometime street urchin Mick O’Reilly are private detectives with a new gig—photographing crime scenes for London’s Daily World newspaper. The Daily World is the latest business venture of their sole client, Sir Gerald Mariner, a fabulously wealthy and powerful banker.</span>

<span style="color: #000000;">One cold, snowy January morning, Sarah, Hugh, and Mick are summoned to the goriest crime scene they’ve ever encountered. A pub owner named Harry Warbrick has been found hanged and decapitated amid evidence of foul play. His murder becomes a sensation because he was England’s top hangman and he’s met the same fate that he inflicted on hundreds of criminals.</span>

<span style="color: #000000;">Sir Gerald announces that the Daily World—meaning Sarah and her friends—will investigate and solve Harry Warbrick’s murder before the police do. The contest pits Sarah against the man she loves, Police Constable Barrett. She and her friends discover a connection between Harry Warbrick’s murder and the most notorious criminal he ever executed—Amelia Carlisle, the “Baby-Butcher,” who murdered hundreds of infants placed in her care.</span>

<span style="color: #000000;">Something happened at Amelia’s execution. The Official Secrets Act forbids the seven witnesses present to divulge any information about it. But Harry had a bad habit of leaking tips to the press. Sarah and her friends suspect that one of the other witnesses killed Harry to prevent him from revealing a secret related to the execution. What is the secret, and who hanged the hangman?</span>

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<span style="font-weight: 400; color: #000000;">The Hangman’s Secret is a thriller which kept me interested till the end. This book is in a series but LAURA Joh ROWLAND writes it in a way that is easy to read and it does not matter if you haven’t read the previous book. In fact, I am now interested in reading previous books and any future books in this series.</span>

<span style="color: #000000;"><span style="font-weight: 400;">Sarah Bain is a photographer and works at </span><i><span style="font-weight: 400;">Daily World. </span></i><span style="font-weight: 400;">She is telling us the story.</span></span>

<span style="font-weight: 400; color: #000000;"> Although in some places I found her annoying. For more than 10 pages she would be telling that she is worried about how Barrett will be thinking and feeling and she needs to tell him this or that and when he would arrive, she would be fighting with him. I mean come on. You are not in a YA Novel!!!!!</span>

<span style="font-weight: 400; color: #000000;">But she is actually a strong woman and sometimes, um... I mean most of the time, stubborn.</span>

<span style="font-weight: 400; color: #000000;">The protagonists of this story are Sara Bain, Mike O’Reilly, Hugh and Police Constable Thomas Barrett. </span>

<span style="font-weight: 400; color: #000000;">I liked Mike and Hugh.  Mike is a teenager and he did behave like one. </span>

<span style="color: #000000;"><span style="font-weight: 400;">Sara, Mike and Hugh are friends and work for Sir Gerald who himself is a dangerous person and also the owner of the newspaper </span><i><span style="font-weight: 400;">Daily World.</span></i></span>

<span style="font-weight: 400; color: #000000;">The story was a bit slow paced at first but it wasn’t that slow paced after half of the book. The last 50 pages were awesome. And they were fast paced too.</span>

<span style="color: #000000;"><span style="font-weight: 400;">The book is set in 18</span><span style="font-weight: 400;">th</span><span style="font-weight: 400;"> century London.</span></span>

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<span style="color: #000000;">I highly recommend it.</span>

<span style="font-weight: 400; color: #000000;">If you want to read a book which matches any or all of the following criteria, then this book is just for you:</span>
<ul>
<li style="font-weight: 400;"><span style="font-weight: 400; color: #000000;">Mystery and Thriller</span></li>
<li style="font-weight: 400;"><span style="font-weight: 400; color: #000000;">Suspense</span></li>
<li style="font-weight: 400;"><span style="font-weight: 400; color: #000000;">A book set in  18th century London</span></li>
<li style="font-weight: 400;"><span style="font-weight: 400; color: #000000;">A book featuring different people working together. </span></li>
<li style="font-weight: 400;"><span style="font-weight: 400; color: #000000;">Somewhat police drama.</span></li>
<li style="font-weight: 400;"><span style="font-weight: 400; color: #000000;">And more…..</span></li>
</ul>

Loved this book, slightly out of the ordinary, great characters and was very well written.

Would happily recommend and would read more by this author.

The Hangman’s Secret by Laura Joh Rowand is a Victorian Mystery of deadly secrets and crimes. I love all the plots and sub plots woven together with plenty of action throughout the entire book. The main characters, the mystery and intricate plots become deeper in each successive book. I look forward to reading more books by Laura Joh Rowland. I received a complimentary copy in exchange for my honest review from Crooked Lane Books through Netgalley. The opinions expressed in this review are my own.

This was a great book, I loved reading it. It gave me chills reading it!!

I voluntarily read and reviewed an advanced copy of this book. All thoughts and opinions are my own

At first, I didn’t like the writing because of its form, as it didn’t capture the style and mood of the Victorian Era. In other words, it read like a modern-day novel. As this was my own personal opinion on how a Victorian novel should be written, I initially disregarded my feelings and continued on. It wasn’t long before I realized what was really bothering me about the author’s prose and dialogue.

The writing in the earlier chapters sounds forced, and the author takes every opportunity to introduce backstory, though each time it is with the force of a sledgehammer rather than neatly inserting the information. Ms. Rowland’s characters barely show their emotions, but they are capable of bursting out with the most outrageous statements, thus lending an air of unbelievability to the story. Reporter Malcolm Cross stops to tell the heroine Sarah Bain exactly what he thinks of her, something that could have been accomplished through his actions during a meeting with their boss a few moments previous to this encounter. Inspector Reid, upset when Cross blurts out that his newspaper is in a “contest” with the police to solve a murder, publicly tells his subordinate Barrett that he (Reid) has been blocking Barrett’s promotion. Knowing that Barrett is dating Sarah, Reid then states “If you want a promotion, you’d better dump Sarah Bain.” I was still reading the opening chapters and already was dreading the rest of the book.

The statement by Reid was engineered in an attempt to insert tension between Barrett and Sarah. This could have happened naturally, but use of a heavy hand in this and other scenes destroys the reality the author is trying to create. This was not the only example of excessive explaining, and as the book progressed, more instances appeared. Even though the dialogue and emotions were now showing the interaction between characters, Ms. Rowland would also tell us what we were supposed to think. At the very least, this slowed the pacing of the book.

Characterizations were another issue. Sarah’s partner Hugh Staunton acts more like a rash young teenager than the adult he is. Her other Partner Mick is 14 and in love with a 19-year-old actress, who for some reason keeps him around as a conduit to a newspaper publisher (as if she couldn’t form an alliance with the many suitors seeking her favor). Sarah is the voice of reason, and in another dimension, she may question the author’s reasons for the continued presence of two males who don’t have that much to add (at least, not the way they are presented). The motivation for Sarah’s boss stems from his son’s disappearance, making “…his need for revenge…so insatiable that he’ll exact it from a stranger who killed a stranger.” Possibly, but yet another stretch at the fabrics of reality.

The plot throws red herrings in Sarah’s path, outlandish suspects that readers instantly realize nothing to do with the murder. On the other hand, Hugh and Mick are ready to lock them up and Sarah is swayed enough to keep them on her suspect list. Alas, at times it appears there is no mystery to the mystery.

Somewhere around the middle of the book, Ms. Rowland began exhibiting the skills that explained why she has sold so many books. The pace picked up and I found myself becoming more absorbed in the story. Sarah solves a few of the minor plot issues that travel throughout the books in this series, and the major plot comes to a satisfactory close.

Bottom line: This is a book Ms. Rowland’s fans will devour, and she may gain some new readers. While the second half of the story saved the book, it would have had to be incredible to overcome the slow start caused by muddled characterizations and unnecessary explanations. Three stars.

My thanks to NetGalley and Crooked Lane Books for an advance complimentary ebook of this title.

“The Hangman’s Secret” is the second in a series set in Victorian England by Laura Joh Rowland, who also pens the Sano Ichiro books set in ancient Japan. This one’s backdrop is obviously a different part of the world, but frustrations and conflicts abound in both, a hallmark of the writer’s style.

There’s a lot going on in this book, perhaps too much. First, my pet peeve – I really, really dislike books written in present tense. It’s supposedly “the thing” these days, but I find it just too twee.

Quickly – Sarah Bain and her friend Hugh Staunton (who have definite secrets of their own), along with their young friend Mick O’Relly, have been summoned to the scene of a terrible murder. This arises out of their work for Sir Gerald Mariner, who as a newspaper publisher employs Sarah to take photographs of crime scenes. It’s is ascertained that the murder of Harry Warbrick is all tied into his work as a hangman, specifically the hanging of the “baby butcher” Amelia Carlisle. This murder begets another, and Sarah and her crew soon begin to realize that whatever happened at Amelia’s execution is the catalyst for all that comes. The ending finds them all in peril.

Thwarted at every turn by the authorities, at conflict eventually with the newspaper, and traipsing from London to Leeds and back, it’s not easy going. In fact, it got to the point where I just wanted Sarah and Barrett, her policeman/paramour, to get on with it already. These are characters I could never warm up to, and I found nothing appealing about the plot to warrant any deep interest.

Caught up with all this is Sarah’s search for her long-missing father, which occupies much of her thoughts and emotions. Got pretty tired of that, quickly, too.

The middling stars point solely to the author’s ability to conjure up a setting that captures the timeframe. Unfortunately, I won’t be reading another.

Thanks for the publisher for a copy ahead of publication.

A fantastic read filled with suspense and action. The relationship between the characters, Sarah, Lord Hugh, and Mick, was well done. This reader had a sense of what they meant to one another. I am particularly critical when it comes to pacing, this book did a wonderful job at maintaining the steam throughout the novel, masterfully moving it forward. I enjoyed the setting and the mystery does keep one guessing up until the end. A Net Galley book.

This is the third in the series by Rowland - the previous two Victorian mysteries being 'A Mortal Likeness' and 'The Ripper's Shadow' which brought us into the lives of intrepid photographer Sarah Bain and her friends undertaking investigations into local crimes (usually murders). Their involvement in the Jack the Ripper links to the role of Inspector Reid still being involved with the police alongside PC Barrett who is also the lover of Sarah.
Sarah and her team of Sir Hugh Staunton (in a homosexual relationship with a Roman Catholic priest) and young street urchin Mick O'Reilly who has a hankering after a theatre actress Catherine when he's bunking off school work for London's Daily World - owned by wealthy banker Sir Gerald Manner.
On a cold January morning - a lot of the plot is covered with foggy London town and rain in the criminal underbelly of the city - Sarah, Hugh and Mick are called to a very gory scene where pub owner Harry Warbrick has been found hanged and decapitated. He was previously England'stop hangman - so who has turned the tables on him?
Sir Gerald hopes to scoop not only the story but solve the murder in a competition against the police force. When they dig into Harry's past they find a disturbing story unfolds about his execution of Amelia Carlisle -the 'Baby Butcher' who murdered 100s of babies she'd 'farmed' from mothers eager to give them up for adoption.
Based in Whitechapel it brings all the evocative life of that time in Victorian England. There are some good scenes described at Newgate Gaol and also at a Lunatic Asylum (two classic locations for Victorian novels of this genre)
The plot goes along well leading to an exciting conclusion and a list of suspects has to narrowed down by much undercover investigation and cunning work amongst Sarah and her team.
There is a sub plot around Sarah's past personal life - some of which it appears had been expanded in previous novels. Overall I would have felt better to have read the first two before this one to set the scene, particularly about Sarah setting up her business as a crime photographer (although I am aware many women were at this time exploring many sides to the growing popularity of photography and its use in murder investigations).
There are some great characters in the story such as Mick and the cunning Sir Leonard Hargreaves seeking to be Lord Mayor alongside many a pub of ill repute, theatre and coffee houses. The workings of the police and the Old Bailey also gain important mentions as the plot evolves.
Overall an entertaining read. If you've already discovered the previous two novels you'll slide easily into the plot but my only criticism was the hints at back stories which sometimes I couldn't understand.

Absolutely enjoyed reading the book. I could not put the book down. I wish I could have read the 1st 2 books first to better understand the context of the other crimes solved. Overall, I loved the context that assisted in the plot to flow as Sally and her team investigates the crime of the hanging.