Well done historical fiction. A clever mystery, good atmospherics, and a set of intriguing characters make this a good read. Thanks to netgalley for the ARC.

Arrowood and the Thames Corpses by Mick Finlay is a great historical book. I love the setting, the creepiness, and the authentic feel of this novel. Masterfully written with well-wrought characters and a clever plot, this book kept my attention until the end. Highly recommend.

One of my beliefs on series, as I've often mentioned in reviews, is that a book should be able to stand up on it's own regardless of it being part of a larger work. I received a lot of flack last year for reviewing book two in a series of which I'd never read book one. After all that grief, I shoved books to the side when I noticed I was sent books two or three in a series and made a mental note to possibly get back to them after reading the originals but with thousands of books at my fingertips, it was always unlikely.

Which is why I'm embarrassed it took me so long to get to Arrowood and the Thames Corpses. It's exactly the type of book that proves my belief correct, that you don't need the others. The book stands well enough on it's own. And it's a lot of fun.

One thing that really stood out is how well-constructed the mystery was. It made me give credit which I hadn't before thought of to people who write these types of novels. It was a well-designed puzzle. I went out and purchased the first two books in the series. I loved this!

DNF. I’m going to preface this by saying I’m a huge Sherlock Holmes fan, which has been a gateway into historical detective mysteries of all types. When Arrowood was described as an anti-Holmes who caters to the populous Holmes doesn’t, I was intrigued. The intriguing premise just wasn’t enough to overlook the unlikable characters and relatively slow paced plot. Not for me, unfortunately.

I really enjoyed this book! This author was a new to me author and I will definitely be looking for more!
It's filled with mystery,humor and very well written!

I enjoy reading this book. I don't read a lot of historical novel, but this is a genre that I would like to explore some more. The events were well placed and described. I like it and would recommend it for historical fiction amateur or those who, like me, might want to get into it.

William Arrowood may not quite be Sherlock Holmes, but he is still a force to be reckoned with in his own right. Obviously written by an ardent Sherlock fan, this novel was fun romp through the seedier parts of Victorian England to unravel a mystery that starts with a deceptively boring task of finding out who is damaging a particular ship. I was not expecting the twists and turns and absolutely enjoyed the tongue in cheek Sherlock references. This was the third book in a series but I didn't feel at all lost in not reading the previous two, though I will be looking for those first books. Definitely recommend this one.

Thank you to NetGalley and HarperCollins Publishers for the advance digital copy in exchange for an honest review!

Unfortunately, this one didn't capture and keep my attention or interest as much as I was hoping it would.
The writing style was difficult for me to stay engaged with and the verbiage, although probably being accurate to the times in which it was to have taken place, really pushed me away from the story.

The author did do a really great job of giving detailed descriptions of the scenes, and even though I didn't find any of the characters very likable, the author did a good job of portraying them and their personalities. At some points it was difficult to tell which character was speaking and I had to re-read some of the dialogue to be able to follow along in the scene.

Something that, in my opinion, sort of took away from the story is the reference to Sherlock Holmes and the comparison within the story between Arrowood and Holmes. I thought I would love that because I love a good Sherlock Holmes story, but this was lacking and sort of drew attention to how different they were - while also drawing attention to how they were trying to be similar.

Thank you to HarperCollins Publishers for access to a NetGalley ARC for this book.

I should preface my review by stating that I have not previously read the other two novels in the "Arrowood" series. I jumped into this book 3 without any knowledge of the characters, aside from what was provided in the blurb. Normally, I never read book series out of order, but in this case, I was actually surprised by how well is worked out. Even without any prior knowledge of the characters and the world I was walking into, it was very easy to fall in step with the events and the relationships. I never once felt lost, or that I had "missed out" by not having read the first two books in the series, which I feel is a huge feat by the author.

As to the story itself, "Arrowood and the Thames Corpses" is a grittier, darker version of a Sherlock Holmes mystery, and quite frankly, it has a unique charm in that regard. You get a sense of familiarity and shocking newness all in one package. The year is 1896, and we are shown the events of the case through the eyes of Norman Barnett, a "strong man" type that assists William Arrowood in his investigations. Arrowood himself is a poor man's Sherlock Holmes, more focused on the psychological aspects of casework, and is relentlessly plagued by his vehemence towards the famous detective, who in fact lives in this version of Victorian England, simultaneously solving his own famous cases as Arrowood works his. You get a Holmes & Watson dynamic between Arrowood and Barnett, but as previously mentioned, it's far more gritty and many dark secrets about their pasts are revealed along the way. In this installment, the pair must work together to help a river boating captain and his daughter when a string of 14 skulls and 3 corpses are found attached to their river boat...

The case was deceptively complex, and the reader is given a lot of insight into the painstaking process of solving it using the resources of the era. You really get to feel for the characters as they exhaust themselves in this perilous pursuit, and just when you think they've made progress, a new twist blows the case wide open. Even the final sentence of the book was a bombshell! Overall, I gave the book 4 stars, only missing out on that last star as I felt the descriptions could be overly vulgar at times, truly only for the sake of being vulgar (aka, do we really need to talk about the bodily functions of the characters? Or go into the more visceral elements with such detail?). There was some crude language along the way (but given the circumstances, it made sense) and some pretty graphic elements, so if violence, gore, or swearing upset you, this is likely not the crime fiction series for you.

I am going with a 4.25 for this book. Thank you to Netgalley and the publisher for the ARC so I could give my honest review. Whew, it was a wild ride through Victorian England!

Arrowood is the poor man’s Sherlock Holmes with his trusty right hand man, Barnett. He is constantly confounded by Holmes and jealous of his fame. Being a huge Holmes fan, I was intrigued by this premise.

Captain Moon arrives to give him a case. A rival boat owner is causing damage to his boat and he needs help sorting this. Of course, this becomes far more involved and leads to murder.

What makes this book so different from others set in this time period is the realistic view point. And by that I mean, the day to day life in Victorian England is not glossed over. The living conditions are very well researched and described. To the point where you stop reading and say, yuck! But it was also hugely informative with so many interesting characters. The author has a talent for taking you to the streets where Jack the Ripper roamed.

The ending was well done and satisfying. The letter to Arrowood from Holmes made me laugh out loud. I realized that this is third in a series. This does not detract from the story, but rather made me want to go back and read the first two books. Well done!

Mick Finlay has gifted us with a really rewarding read in 2020 as his private detective Arrowood returns. It may be the Sherlockian era of London, but there are many games afoot and room for more than one consulting detective. Thankfully, William Arrowood is one of them. Finlay excels at capturing Victorian England with his riveting blend of storytelling and dark humor. He also has the skill to give the reader a wholly satisfying conclusion. Plus, there are highly entertaining references to Mr. Holmes scattered throughout the book which are sure to delight any reader. Thank you for HarperCollins and NetGalley for the advanced reading copy! #ArrowoodandtheThamesCorpses #NetGalley

Arrowood, the poor man’s Sherlock Holmes, is back in his strangest case yet. Paid to catch the ruffians who were damaging Captain Moon’s ship, a string of corpses and skulls are found tied to the ship. Who they were and how they are related to the captain is the enigma within Arrowood and the Thames Corpses.

Knowing, after doing a DNA kit, that I am a likely descendant of both the time period and the class depicted within the book, I find it amazing that anyone survived. The poor back then were literally dirt poor. This book is the third in the Arrowood series and the best so far!

While the mystery was intriguing, it would be difficult to be solved by the reader. Once again, this series seems more likely to appeal to historical fiction fans than mystery readers. But the characters within Arrowood and the Thames Corpses seem to be bursting with life despite their life circumstances. Even minor characters have fully fleshed out histories, feelings, and motives. Like the Dickens’ tales to which I have compared earlier books in the series, this book’s focus is squarely on the people populating its pages. Have some fun walking around Victorian London with Arrowood, Barnett, and Neddy. 4 stars!

Thanks to HQ and NetGalley for a copy in exchange for my honest review.

There is nothing quaint or picturesque about Mick Finlay’s London in 1896. He writes a tale of desperate and brutal people committing ugly crimes to sustain themselves and get a toehold in the slums of South London. Arrowood and Norman are detectives, living on the margins, and trying to scrape together enough business to support themselves and their small family. When approached to find out who is destroying the business of a pleasure boat captain, they are eager to take on the case, but quickly find themselves in far more danger than they had anticipated.

This is a great, atmospheric historical whodunit, and works well as a standalone despite being third in a series.

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

"The Thames is liquid history." (John Burns)

And upon and beneath its murky waters are the dead who speak their secrets in voices no longer heard.

It's Summer in the South of London in 1896. Moored near the Victoria Bridge are multitudes of small boats vying for the attention of visitors wishing to be ferried to its outskirts for Sunday picnics and the like. Captain Moon and his fifteen year old daughter, Suzie, desperately depend on this daily business for their livelihood aboard the Gravesend Queen. The competition is mighty.

Soon the Gravesend Queen has been beset with the start of pranks to her decks. The mopping up of dead fish guts have turned customers away. Within time these episodes have escalated and have become more and more damaging. Moon and Suzie seek out help from William Arrowood and his assistant, Norman Barnett. They suspect a fellow boatsman, Polgreen, of sabotaging their business.

Arrowood is a big-boned lumbering man who takes to the drink readily when available. Age is getting the best of him with its aches and pains and limits. But Arrowood is still sharp and observant when it comes to unearthing clues. He holds grudges against his fellow detective, Sherlock Holmes, who seems to garner all the fame and accolades with less effort and far less sweat of the brow.

But the tide has turned aboard the Gravesend Queen, when at the end of a trailing rope, are 14 small skulls tied to one another. And the horror is not finished yet. Another rope is pulled onboard with the bodies of a man, a woman, and a child. Captain Moon and Suzie are sent into shock and the London police are called in. As the net is widened in the search, Arrowood and Barnett are caught tangled in its knotted trap.

Mick Finlay has captured a panoramic view of the waterfront of old London. As the miasma ladens the air with its putrid fumes, street urchins huddle in corners observing the comings and goings of those high and low on the ladder of life. It's Arrowood's quick-witted knowledge of those who roam the streets at night leaning in to accept a coin for information. We're taken into some very unsettling activities in London's alleys like the ratters who make a game of it for the onlookers. It gets real here, Folks. Finlay ponies out some very dubious characters who darkly define the era.

But if you like your mysteries lathered in realism, then Finlay will entice you with this one. The writing and the research are superb and the storyline is defined brick by brick. It is a complex plot all the way to the final pages where things are not always as they seem in jolly ol' London. And Oliver Twist and his gang are in charge with a bevy of twists happening inside, outside, and upside down.

I received a copy of this book through NetGalley for an honest review. My thanks to HQ (HarperCollins) and to Mick Finlay for the opportunity.

(NOTE: The following review will appear on CriminalElement.com the week of the title's publication.)


It all seems so straightforward at the beginning: Captain Moon and his teenaged daughter Suzie come to William Arrowood, private inquiry agent, and his partner Norman Barnett because someone has been vandalizing their riverboat. The Gravesend Queen is the Moons’ source of income, used to ferry day-trippers down the Thames, and the pair can’t afford to lose any more custom from damages, not with creditors sniffing at the door.

Suzie is sure the culprit is a competitor, Captain Polgreen, who wants to steal the Moons’ route. But Arrowood and Barnett both sense that Captain Moon isn’t as convinced…

Then the attacks on the Queen escalate, forcing the inquiry agents to maintain nightly watches onboard. But the night Barnett is forced to hold a solitary watch, things become even more dire:


The rope was slick, covered all over with a stinking, tarry mud. I pulled it hand over hand until something burst out the water. It was a brownish, yellowish thing like a big egg, the rope tied through a hole in the shell.
‘What the hell is that?’ asked Ken.
I kept pulling. Then, as the thing rose up the boat, another one appeared in the brown water, tied a few feet further down the rope. As it broke the surface, it rolled on its side.
Suzie gasped.
I stopped pulling and stared.
It was a skull. The eye holes were plugged with black mud, the teeth little and bright. The rope ran through where the nose should be. Only now could we see that the first one was also a skull.
‘Oh, Christ,’ murmured Ken.
Suzie stepped back, her hand covering her mouth. It was a child. I placed it on the deck and drew up more of the rope, feeling a cold fury fill me as skull after skull came up from the water…


Tied to the boat is a rope threaded with fourteen skulls. The skulls of fourteen small children. And to add to the horror, there’s a second rope. A rope knotted around three very fresh bodies…

Soon, Barnett and Arrowood are struggling to unravel a complicated frame-up, a multi-layered plot of revenge intended to destroy not just the Moons, but Barnett, too. The pair are in a race against time as the London police and other inquiry agents hunt them, and the only way to ensure Barnett has a future is to dive into the murky secrets of the past.

With the Arrowood series—Arrowood and the Thames Corpses is the third installment—Finlay has put his own spin on the “Sherlockian Victorian mystery”. In fact, Arrowood and Barnett are contemporaries of Sherlock and Watson, working in the same bustling city and often crossing paths. But Arrowood has a distinctly uncharitable view of his fellow investigator:


Belasco looked us up and down. ‘Like Sherlock Holmes only cheaper, that right?’
‘Not like Sherlock Holmes at all, sir,’ said the guvnor with a twitch of his nose.
‘That’s a shame,’ said Belasco. He leant back against the balustrade, folding his arms over his chest.
‘Holmes doesn’t always solve his cases, you know,’ said the guvnor.
‘He’s solved every one I ever heard about,’ replied Belasco as Moon handed him the jug.
‘They don’t report on the ones he fails to solve. He didn’t solve the case of the Stockbroker’s Clerk. Or the Adventure of the Yellow Face.’
‘I doubt that.’
‘Watson says it himself,’ said the guvnor.


Yes, Arrowood and Barnett are a pair of mismatched private inquiry agents (Arrowood is the brains, Barnett the muscle and minder) working in Victorian London. But there the comparisons to Conan Doyle’s most infamous creation end; this pair is decidedly rougher and more uncouth than Sherlock and Watson, often downright unappealing in their behaviors and dress. They traverse a much seedier London, one populated by beggars, brothel owners, and rat catchers. There’s no violin music or silk smoking jackets here.

Indeed, the one real flaw in this series is that Finlay is a little too enthusiastic with shining a light on the grime and gore of Victorian London. There’s a line between authentic grittiness for the sake of realism and outright grossness, and Arrowood staggers over it frequently.

The late 1800’s was, to be true, a disgusting time compared to today’s standards of hygiene, and there’s no doubt that disease and pests were common, especially in poverty-stricken areas. But the entirety of London wasn’t a plague pit in 1895, and to describe pus, vomit, sewage, rotting animals, public urination, etc. on nearly every page is overdoing it. At times, such descriptions detract severely from the plot and characters, making it hard to concentrate on Arrowood’s clever deductions and the machinations of the villains. Anyone with a weak stomach will find this story hard going, especially those who prefer more likable, palatable protagonists.

Which is a shame, because the story itself is a well-crafted one. The villains are colorful and their motivations are compelling. The full scope of the frame-up is impressive, and there are plenty of thrilling, unsettling scenes and shocking surprises. The resolution answers all of the lingering questions, and finds some justice for those who’ve been most wronged. Finlay unquestionably knows how to construct a mystery and move a narrative at an exciting pace; if only he also knew when to temper his more loathsome descriptions, Arrowood would be a far more enjoyable series.

Mick Finlay's Arrowood and the Thames Corpses is one of those gritty historical mysteries, populated by characters barely scraping by, rather than by good-looking, clever members of the upper crust with time on their hands. In the Victorian London of this novel, characters bite into onions as if they were apples. No one has a proper wash-up. Ever. The Thames is roiling with oil and garbage. If the pub has run out of spoons, you eat your eel jelly with your fingers.

The central character, Arrowood, is the son of a cleric who eventually went mad and is volatile like his father. He once worked as a newspaper reporter, but having lost that job, he has set himself up as a private detective. His sidekick Barnett grew up in a neighborhood both poor and violent and always seems to be just avoiding homeless by about tuppence. Despite the fact that these men are deeply attached to each other, there is still some class-based tension between them.

Arrowood's sister has moved back in with him, bringing a baby whose "provenance" she refuses to reveal. The cast includes street children, a murderous female rat-catcher, a father and daughter scraping by taking lower-class tourists out for trips on their aging paddle-wheeler. This pair hire Arrowood to investigate a rival boatman and his family who they accuse of sabotage. But sabotage turns to terror when the find two long ropes attached to their boat one morning: one training the skulls of fourteen children, the other attached to three dead bodies.

The central mystery increases in complexity as the book progresses, keeping readers engaged. The characters, both major and minor, also grow in complexity. With one exception, the book has no clear villains, and its heroes are not necessarily virtuous. In other words, these characters are people, not cut-outs.

The novel also offers some humorous moments: Arrowood is obsessed with Sherlock Holmes, who continually gets more respect, more publicity, and more money than Arrowood does.

If you enjoy historical mysteries, particularly those not populated by rich dabblers, this is a book for you.

I received a free electronic review copy of this book from the publisher via NetGalley. The opinions are my own.