At the turn of the last century, sleek steam liners carried a fortune in silk from the Orient to Vancouver. The costly material, insured by the day, was rushed to New York in specially designed silk trains, which became the target of every crook across the continent. Finding a body on the railroad docks sends John Lansdowne Grenville racing to uncover a killer in a frontier town where he knows no one. Having failed to strike it rich in the Klondike, Grenville has taken a job guarding the silk trains, along with his friend and fellow gold-hunter Sam Scott. When Grenville and Scott come across the body of a gangster on the wharf one snowy morning, Scott is quickly arrested for murder. Grenville is determined to clear his friend, and his hunt for the real killer takes him to the seedy side of the city; to burlesque halls, gambling joints and down along Dupont Street two blocks of brothels and opium dens along the reeking mudflats. Can Grenville sort out silk trains, smuggling rings, opium dealers, houses of ill repute, power struggles, blackmail and betrayal in time to trap a killer and save his friend?
Did you know you can trade in your old books for an Amazon.co.uk Gift Card to spend on the things you want? Visit the Books Trade-In Store for more details. Learn more. |
Book Description
Product details
Would you like to update product info or give feedback on images?
|
More About the Author
Discover books, learn about writers, and more.
Sell a Digital Version of This Book in the Kindle Store
If you are a publisher or author and hold the digital rights to a book, you can sell a digital version of it in our Kindle Store.
Learn more
Customer Reviews
There are no customer reviews yet on Amazon.co.uk.
5 star
4 star
3 star
2 star
1 star
Most Helpful Customer Reviews on Amazon.com (beta)
Amazon.com:
4.0 out of 5 stars
2 reviews
5.0 out of 5 stars
Great character, interesting setting and historical detail
8 Feb 2011
By Roberta A. Rich
- Published on Amazon.com
Format:Hardcover
This is one of those rare books- an historical mystery set in the 1890's in Vancouver- that does not hit you over the head with how much the author knows about the place and period. Not that Rowse hasn't done her homework. She has, but the details are introduced subtly without fanfare, or any attempt to show off.
Characters are well drawn and sympathetic. The exotic fan dancer is one of my favourites. And then there is the bored society girl, Emma. We know she is not going to be bored for long. Nor are we as readers. The whole concept of the silk trains is an interesting one and one I knew nothing about until picking up this book.
I look forward to reading a sequel.
Roberta Rich
Characters are well drawn and sympathetic. The exotic fan dancer is one of my favourites. And then there is the bored society girl, Emma. We know she is not going to be bored for long. Nor are we as readers. The whole concept of the silk trains is an interesting one and one I knew nothing about until picking up this book.
I look forward to reading a sequel.
Roberta Rich
0 of 1 people found the following review helpful
3.0 out of 5 stars
interesting
6 April 2010
By Rojogaix
- Published on Amazon.com
Format:Hardcover
This is a first novel of an intended series by Ms. Rowse. That silk was more valuable than gold produced an interesting arena for the author, which she handles quite well. The prose is good and flows nicely, revealing an author competent to manipulate her characters in their environment. I found two problems with the book. First, the plot features three siblings: two sisters and a brother. Both the brother and one sister believe the younger sister might be guilty of the murder of a bad guy. Oddly, when the innocent brother is jailed for the crime, neither he nor his sister will say or do anything to help his cause. Oh Please! To my way of thinking this is absurd. Second, toward the end where the plot really moves to a happy conclusion, the book becomes wordy in a special way. Things don't happen, aren't described as action/events in real time. Instead the movement of the plot is through conversation. Events are only talked about, not experienced, hence the sequencing toward conclusion feels hurried and lacks a sense of reality. Conversations, words, are poor substitutes when events are needed. Lastly, I think Ms. Rowse did not make the most of a very interesting environment. For example, she could have described a trainjacking by thugs, thereby engendering a respectful fear of the bad guys. And more could have been done with the business of transporting silk from Vancouver to New York. All in all, I'm glad I read the book. I found the subject matter novel and interesting. With her considerable writing skills and a tincture of boldness, I'm sure Ms. Rowse will create success in her series.
›
Go to Amazon.com to see both reviews
4.0 out of 5 stars
Were these reviews helpful?
Let us know
Customer Discussions
Listmania!
Look for similar items by category
Feedback
- Would you like to update product info or give feedback on images?
- I am the Author, and I want to comment on my book.
- I am the Publisher, and I want to comment on this book.
