Blue and the Grey, The

Matthew Grand saw enough bloodshed during the War between the States. As a Yankee captain he was privy to things no man should see, including the assassination of Abraham Lincoln. Now looking for a quiet life, Matthew is in London, but he won;t find peace and quiet there. A man has been garroting women in the streets. With no leads on the killer’s identity, Matthew and reporter James Batchelor team up to try to take down the killer before he can strike again.

A well written historical mystery with a fascinating twist that involves the death of Lincoln, Ingenious

I have to admit that I have never been a fan of the American Civil War era in books. For whatever reason, I much prefer mysteries that take place in Victorian England. This book may have changed my mind, just a little bit. There are parts of the story that take place in England and have all the trappings of a Victorian mystery, but I found myself more drawn to the action that took place on American soil. I enjoyed the transplanted American in London details. World travel was much more uncommon back then, so the experience for Grand must have been nearly overwhelming.

The first few chapters, describing Lincoln’s assassination, were well written. Having recently visited Washington D.C., I found myself remembering the street that contains both the theater and the boarding house that are now so famous in history. All of the activity that surrounded Lincoln's assassination, the murders and attempted murders of other in the cabinet, was an education to me. I must have learned about it in school, but I was taken by surprise reading about it in this novel. They mysteries in the book were interesting and kept me wanting to read to find out who was responsible. An education inside a novel that you can't put down, hooray for M.J. Trow!

First Sentence: “I don’t believe it!” Arlette Ross McKintyre’s eyes flashed fire as she looked up at the Presidential box.”
Captain Matthew Grand happened to be attending the play at Ford’s Theater when Lincoln is shot. He attempted to apprehend Booth, but failed and is sent to London undercover to track down one of the co-conspirators. In London, newspaper report Jim Batchelor has been investigating a series of garrottings by the Haymarket Strangler but is hired to do an article on Grand and the assassination. The unlikely pair team up when there are signs the two cases may be related.
The story begins with an opening which starts out light but quickly turns much darker and tragic. What is interesting is that one never thinks of Lincoln’s assassination from the perspective of a bystander, yet Trow does an excellent job of making you feel as though you were there. The characters are fully drawn. Grand’s fiancée is catty, ambitious and highly annoying; yet her butler is delightful. Grand has the confidence of a former military captain, yet you feel his overwhelm in coming to London. Batchelor is canny and a survivor who believes in what he does. The interchanges between Grand and Batchelor are wonderful and the characters are an interesting mix.
Trow provides fascinating references to historical characters and events, most of which may have been previously unknown to readers, yet their inclusion adds extra dimension to the story. For all the grimness of the situations, Trow’s voice and touches humor, of situations and the dialogue.

“The Blue and the Gray” is a very good read introducing two wonderful characters. How delightful to find a new series to follow.

THE BLUE AND THE GRAY (Hist Mys – Capatin Matthew Grand/James Batchelor – Washington D.C., London – 1865) - VG Trow, M.J. – 1st in series Severn House – April 2015

This is a very creative, well-researched and exciting book, telling dual stories and pulling this feat off well. If you are a Lincoln fan, this book will 
doubt appeal to you. In general, as a Victorian fiction novel, this is one of the best that This I have had the pleasure of reading. 

The characters are interesting and have the kind of depth that allows you entry into the world of the story so you feel as if you are part of it. The language is appropriate for the chosen time period and setting and the author was careful not to reveal too much too soon. 

I liked the way this story unfolded. I was never sure if things were going to go as I expected or take a different course. The pages turned quickly and I was sorry to reach the end, but happy with the way the author chose to end this story. 

Overall, I thought this was an excellent book and would definitely recommend it to other readers. 

This review is based on a complimentary copy from the publisher and provided through Netgalley. All opinions are my own. 

Ford’s Theatre, Washington DC, April 15, 1865. The date and location may be familiar to you. Captain Matthew Grand is in attendance as President Abraham Lincoln is assassinated by John Wilkes Booth. Grand pursues Booth into an alley, where he is knocked unconscious by an associate of Booth. Determined to seek justice, Grand follows his only lead to his assailant’s identity – a cufflink that leads to London.
Jim Batchelor is a journalist – albeit a not too successful one - working in London. On the same night that Lincoln is murdered, Batchelor stumbles upon a corpse. Effie was a prostitute who he had met earlier that evening, now a victim of the Haymarket Strangler.
As Grand and Batchelor’s paths cross, they find themselves hunting two killers. But can the men work together to catch them before they kill again?
M J Trow is a prolific writer, with three series under his belt. One featuring a certain Inspector Lestrade, one with a teacher as the sleuth and one featuring Elizabethan playwright Christopher Marlowe – the most recent of which, Crimson Rose, I reviewed a while ago. This marks the start of the Grand and Batchelor series (which does telegraph the final scene just a tad) and it’s a set-up with potential. With Grand as an American visiting London for the first time, it provides a rich contrast between the two cultures in this era. The down-on-his-luck Batchelor provides an alternative voice as he struggles to find work – and money – before being picked to find out more about Grand’s intentions in London.
As with the Marlowe book, the mysteries aren’t really clued ones – like many mysteries, it’s more of a guessing game. That is to say, if there were clues, then I missed them, and our sleuths weren’t nice enough to tell me what I’d missed. But the story moves along nicely with an air of menace from both the killers.
I don’t think it’s a spoiler to say that the two murderers have very little to do with each other. I did think initially that it would take something impressive to link an accomplice to a Presidential assassin to a prostitute murderer in London but it rapidly becomes clear that there is no intention to even suggest a link. But the two stories dovetail well, Victorian London (and Washington) are brought to vibrant life and keep the reader entertained to the end.
So a promising start to a series – I look forward to reading more. Well worth a look.

After witnessing Lincoln’s assassination on April 14, 1865, Matthew Grand pursues John Wilkes Booth into the alley behind Ford’s Theatre, only to be thwarted by a mysterious Englishman. Undeterred, Grand continues to investigate until crossing paths with the head of the National Detective Police, who suspects that Grand may be one of the conspirators. The only way for him to prove his innocence is to go to London and track down the Englishman.
The same evening the president is slain, James Batchelor meets a prostitute whose body he later stumbles upon in a nearby alley. Arrested as a suspect, he’s eventually released by Inspector Tanner of Scotland Yard who believes it’s advantageous having a journalist beholden to him. Tired of writing society-page stories, Batchelor sees the murder as his ticket to fame. Instead, his editor at the Telegraph fires him. Then two more women are garroted, a wealthy stranger is murdered on a ship bound for London, and Batchelor is hired to discover what Grand knows and why he’s in England. Grand refuses to discuss the night at Ford’s Theatre, but asks Batchelor to help him with his investigations. They soon realize there’s a connection between the Englishman in Washington, the murder on the ship, and the killer in London.
The murders of this intricately woven whodunit keep the reader guessing, but the plethora of characters make it difficult to keep track of who’s who. This first book in a new Victorian mystery series vividly recreates the sense of loss and shock that permeated Washington after the assassination, while providing a vibrant glimpse into the seamier side of 19th-century London.