Status
Available
Call number
Collection
Publication
Mandarin (1995), Edition: New Ed, Paperback, 281 pages
Description
NOW AN UNMISSABLE FILM STARRING BILL NIGHY, DOUGLAS BOOTH AND OLIVIA COOKE. 'Mesmerising, macabre and totally brilliant' Daily Mail Before the Ripper, fear had another name. London, 1880. A series of gruesome murders attributed to the mysterious 'Limehouse Golem' strikes fear into the heart of the capital. Inspector John Kildare must track down this brutal serial killer in the damp, dark alleyways of riverside London. But how does Dan Leno, music hall star extraordinaire, find himself implicated in this crime spree, and what does Elizabeth Cree, on trial for the murder of her husband, have to hide? Peter Ackroyd brings Victorian London to life in all its guts and glory, as we travel from the glamour of the music hall to the slums of the East End, meeting George Gissing and Karl Marx along the way.… (more)
Media reviews
Die Mechanik des Romans knirscht jedoch vernehmlich, auch wenn das Pastiche-Getriebe mit etwas Melodram und Schauerroman, etwas Sozialkritik und Lokalkolorit geschmiert wird
User reviews
LibraryThing member isabelx
I took this book with me to London to read there while staying with my brother for the weekend, since Peter Ackroyd's books are evocative of the history, mystery and atmosphere of the capital.
I know how absurdly gullible newspaper reporters can be; no doubt they now believed in the Limehouse Golem
A sinister and atmospheric tale of musical halls and murder in the foggy London night. Elizabeth Cree is on trial for poisoning her husband. The respectable housewife married to a well-off journalist and playwright started life in squalor as sail mender Lambeth Marsh Lizzie, before becoming a music hall artist working with Dan Leno under the names 'Little Victor's Daughter' and 'The Older Brother'.
Dan Leno, George Gissing and even Karl Marx are suspects in the dreadful murders happening in Limehouse, just eight years before Jack the Ripper's reign in Whitechapel.
Londoners love a good killing, on stage or off, and two of the wittier gentlemen were comparing the Limehouse Golem with Bluebeard himself. I was longing to approach them and introduce myself. 'I am the Golem. Here is my hand. You may shake it.'
I know how absurdly gullible newspaper reporters can be; no doubt they now believed in the Limehouse Golem
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with the same fervour as everybody else, and willingly accepted that some supernatural creature was preying upon the living. Mythology of a kind has returned to London - if indeed it ever really left it. Interrogate an inhabitant of London very carefully, and you will find the remnants of some frightened medieval churl. A sinister and atmospheric tale of musical halls and murder in the foggy London night. Elizabeth Cree is on trial for poisoning her husband. The respectable housewife married to a well-off journalist and playwright started life in squalor as sail mender Lambeth Marsh Lizzie, before becoming a music hall artist working with Dan Leno under the names 'Little Victor's Daughter' and 'The Older Brother'.
Dan Leno, George Gissing and even Karl Marx are suspects in the dreadful murders happening in Limehouse, just eight years before Jack the Ripper's reign in Whitechapel.
Londoners love a good killing, on stage or off, and two of the wittier gentlemen were comparing the Limehouse Golem with Bluebeard himself. I was longing to approach them and introduce myself. 'I am the Golem. Here is my hand. You may shake it.'
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LibraryThing member dczapka
Imagining a semi-fictional Victorian-era England that is awash in prostitution, theatre, and bloodshed, Peter Ackroyd's novel The Trial of Elizabeth Cree is a brief but vivid murder mystery that is compulsively readable though convoluted, a novel whose journey is, sadly, somewhat more satisfying
Melding the real-life Ratcliffe Highway murders with Jack the Ripper's crimes, Ackroyd opens the book with the execution of Elizabeth Cree before establishing, with unflinching graphicness, a killer fond of dismemberment and disembowelment. As the murders develop and the history of the hanged Cree is explored, Ackroyd uses multiple perspectives, including journals and first-person narratives, to advance the plot and deepen the mystery.
Ackroyd's handling of these different perspectives is his strength, as he is as comfortable in a journal as he is in a court transcript. He is also highly skilled at revealing just enough information to make the reader think that there is something else developing -- a skill that, by the novel's middle, opens up a wealth of red herrings and potential directions that could explain the plot. Unfortunately, the result of such detailed off-roads is that the true resolution is both simpler than expected and yet potentially fraught with complications of its own. If it was Ackroyd's intent for us to challenge even his given answer, he has succeeded, but it's not clear that he has.
What is clear is that Ackroyd has a great passion for history and for London specifically. His exploration of the Limehouse region makes the city come to life, as if the region asked for the murders to happen. His implementation of such true figures as Dan Leno, George Gissing, and even Karl Marx lend an air of legitimacy to the fictional tale. In fact, the British Library Reading Room ends up becoming a key location in determining the outcome of the mystery.
The tale is unflinching and surprisingly explicit, and though its conclusion does not match the intensity of its development, The Trial of Elizabeth Cree remains an intriguing and exciting read that is sure to have you hooked and keep you guessing until the end.
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than its destination.Melding the real-life Ratcliffe Highway murders with Jack the Ripper's crimes, Ackroyd opens the book with the execution of Elizabeth Cree before establishing, with unflinching graphicness, a killer fond of dismemberment and disembowelment. As the murders develop and the history of the hanged Cree is explored, Ackroyd uses multiple perspectives, including journals and first-person narratives, to advance the plot and deepen the mystery.
Ackroyd's handling of these different perspectives is his strength, as he is as comfortable in a journal as he is in a court transcript. He is also highly skilled at revealing just enough information to make the reader think that there is something else developing -- a skill that, by the novel's middle, opens up a wealth of red herrings and potential directions that could explain the plot. Unfortunately, the result of such detailed off-roads is that the true resolution is both simpler than expected and yet potentially fraught with complications of its own. If it was Ackroyd's intent for us to challenge even his given answer, he has succeeded, but it's not clear that he has.
What is clear is that Ackroyd has a great passion for history and for London specifically. His exploration of the Limehouse region makes the city come to life, as if the region asked for the murders to happen. His implementation of such true figures as Dan Leno, George Gissing, and even Karl Marx lend an air of legitimacy to the fictional tale. In fact, the British Library Reading Room ends up becoming a key location in determining the outcome of the mystery.
The tale is unflinching and surprisingly explicit, and though its conclusion does not match the intensity of its development, The Trial of Elizabeth Cree remains an intriguing and exciting read that is sure to have you hooked and keep you guessing until the end.
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LibraryThing member shirley8
Excellent story,really loved this one! I enjoyed reading this book from the the very first page! It tells the story of Elizabeth Cree or Lambeth Marsh Lizzie as she was known previously, a murder mystery set in pea soup foggy Victorian London in the 1880s.
The story is told in parts by Lizzie
Elizabeth comes from a poor background in South East London,she lives with her mother ( who behaves like some one not quite right in the head) in a hovel where they sew sailing cloths for fishermen. The mother is very ill and slowly getting worse,Lizzie gets her a doctor but nothing can be done for her so Lizzie just walks off and leaves her to die in the hovel on her own. While her mother is slowly dying she goes off to the theatre to see Dan Leno on stage where she is offered a job working in the theatre, later Lizzie returns to her mother and finding her now dead she arranges for her burial in a pauper's grave and then goes off to work in the theatre with Dan Leno. Lizzie is a cold hearted *** (obviously inherited from her mother) the story goes on to tell you about the things that Lizzie gets up to (nasty,dark things)which leads to her husband's and her own eventual demise.
George Gissing and Karl Marx also appear in the story as they were frequent visitors to The British Museum at the same time as John Cree.
I was also a frequent visitor when young (what does that mean?)
I think you will enjoy reading this book.
The story is told in parts by Lizzie
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herself or her husband John Cree.Elizabeth comes from a poor background in South East London,she lives with her mother ( who behaves like some one not quite right in the head) in a hovel where they sew sailing cloths for fishermen. The mother is very ill and slowly getting worse,Lizzie gets her a doctor but nothing can be done for her so Lizzie just walks off and leaves her to die in the hovel on her own. While her mother is slowly dying she goes off to the theatre to see Dan Leno on stage where she is offered a job working in the theatre, later Lizzie returns to her mother and finding her now dead she arranges for her burial in a pauper's grave and then goes off to work in the theatre with Dan Leno. Lizzie is a cold hearted *** (obviously inherited from her mother) the story goes on to tell you about the things that Lizzie gets up to (nasty,dark things)which leads to her husband's and her own eventual demise.
George Gissing and Karl Marx also appear in the story as they were frequent visitors to The British Museum at the same time as John Cree.
I was also a frequent visitor when young (what does that mean?)
I think you will enjoy reading this book.
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LibraryThing member the.ken.petersen
This is a cracking good read. It is one of those books where one constantly thinks that one is ahead of the plot and is constantly proved to be wrong!
This is Charles Dickens meets Jack the Ripper country. As one would expect from Peter Ackroyd, it is very well written and effortlessly purveys the
This is Charles Dickens meets Jack the Ripper country. As one would expect from Peter Ackroyd, it is very well written and effortlessly purveys the
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feel of the age. I will not say more about the plot so that, were someone foolish enough to read this tripe, it will not be spoilt: suffice it to say, that having told the reader what is going on, Ackroyd still manages to throw one more feint into the mix. Show Less
LibraryThing member williemeikle
The play's the thing.
I'll admit it, I'm a sucker for Victorian London fiction, whether it be fiction written at the time by Conan Doyle or Robert Louis Stevenson, or modern takes on it by the likes of Tim Powers, Dan Simmons, Kim Newman or, in this case, Peter Ackroyd.
As in all Ackroyd books, the
Reality and fiction are both at play, and they too are intertwined, as bloody murder is mimicked on pantomine stages, and grotesque pantomine is played out in the streets of Limehouse when the Golem walks abroad.
It's a tour-de-force throughout, and Ackroyd keeps all his balls juggling in the air like one of his music hall performers.
A fine addition to the ranks of Victoriana. I loved it.
I'll admit it, I'm a sucker for Victorian London fiction, whether it be fiction written at the time by Conan Doyle or Robert Louis Stevenson, or modern takes on it by the likes of Tim Powers, Dan Simmons, Kim Newman or, in this case, Peter Ackroyd.
As in all Ackroyd books, the
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city itself is a character, and in this one the cast and crew enact a drama while their lives and fortunes intertwine over a period of years. As ever Ackroyd's literary mechanics are flawless, switching between voices seamlessly, whether it be in the form of trial transcripts, diary entries, or the over-arching, all seeing eye of the city itself. The plot moves along equally seamlessly, each cog in the clockwork moving as it must. At times I was greatly reminded of The Strange Case of Dr. Jeckyll and Mr Hyde in the way matters unfolded.Reality and fiction are both at play, and they too are intertwined, as bloody murder is mimicked on pantomine stages, and grotesque pantomine is played out in the streets of Limehouse when the Golem walks abroad.
It's a tour-de-force throughout, and Ackroyd keeps all his balls juggling in the air like one of his music hall performers.
A fine addition to the ranks of Victoriana. I loved it.
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LibraryThing member DinadansFriend
Peter Ackroyd had a real hit with this wonderful who-dun-it?. The setting is 1880 in London, of course but a great number of real historical persons dance on and off the stage as we try to understand who may have committed a series of awful crimes. The Whitechapel murders were a pre-cursors of the
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"Ripper" cases of the following decade, and PA just plays with us magnificently, like Dan Leno the comedian played with his audiences. well done! Show Less
LibraryThing member bibliobeck
Oooh I love a Victorian murder mystery - the pea soupers, the squalor set against the finery, the madness and the scheming and this didn't disappoint. I missed this the first time around, so I was thrilled to get the chance to read it before seeing the film. It took a while to get into the way the
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book was written - there's movement across time and place, but it quickly falls into place, The Golem of the title is a ripper-like shaddow, stalking the good people of Victorian London and wreaking terror amongst the populus. No spoilers here - if you enjoy a good Victorian murder mystery pastiche, then made this your next read as the Autumn mists roll in. Show Less
LibraryThing member bcquinnsmom
I have to say that this is one of the finer Victorian mysteries I've read and it kept me on the edge of the chair until the end. Once in a while I would get this idea that something is dreadfully wrong here, but couldn't quite put my finger on it. However, the true beauty of this novel is the
Set in 1880s London, the story begins with the hanging of a woman, Elizabeth Cree, who has been found guilty of the murder of her husband, but only a few pages are devoted to this act; the story begins in earnest with a murderer whose works are detailed within the pages of a diary. As the murderer does not confine himself to one killing, and as the killings all seem to take place in a part of London known as Limehouse, the panic spreads and the murderer gains a name from the press: "The Limehouse Golem."
But Victorian London itself, or at least its somewhat darker denizens, is as much the topic of this book as is this series of murders. Author and essayist George Gissing and Karl Marx both turn up as themselves here, analyzing the suffering of those on the streets and the society which causes this to happen. Ackroyd's description of London is so incredible that you'll start imagining the darkness of the fogs, the smells, the poor and all of their sufferings, the theaters that Karl Marx proclaims are the true opiate of the masses. Simply wonderful all around.
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atmosphere -- London during the Victorian period -- the darkness tends to overwhelm you while you read it. It is quite good (I love Ackroyd's works) and one in which the true mystery aficionado will not be disappointed.Set in 1880s London, the story begins with the hanging of a woman, Elizabeth Cree, who has been found guilty of the murder of her husband, but only a few pages are devoted to this act; the story begins in earnest with a murderer whose works are detailed within the pages of a diary. As the murderer does not confine himself to one killing, and as the killings all seem to take place in a part of London known as Limehouse, the panic spreads and the murderer gains a name from the press: "The Limehouse Golem."
But Victorian London itself, or at least its somewhat darker denizens, is as much the topic of this book as is this series of murders. Author and essayist George Gissing and Karl Marx both turn up as themselves here, analyzing the suffering of those on the streets and the society which causes this to happen. Ackroyd's description of London is so incredible that you'll start imagining the darkness of the fogs, the smells, the poor and all of their sufferings, the theaters that Karl Marx proclaims are the true opiate of the masses. Simply wonderful all around.
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LibraryThing member m.a.harding
I wish all Ackroyd's books were like this. A masterwork in how to write a thriller, a twist, a horror story, a historical novel, a social critique, a sociological study, a study of madness. Gore, wit, beauty.
LibraryThing member smik
DNF - It took me about 60 pages to decide that I did not want to read this. Probably a case of one man's feast is another man's poison. I had seen it listed in somebody's recommended reads, which is why I tried to read it. I couldn't decide whether I was reading tarted up fact or fiction, and that
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annoyed me to start with. There were supposed "extracts" taken from diaries, "extracts" from the trial of Elizabeth Cree, parts that were plain narration, and then sections where the reader is supposed to decide who the narrator is. I drew the line when the murderer was sitting next to Karl Marx in the British library, and then followed him home intending to kill him. I dislike writers riding piggy back on well-known historical characters. Also off-putting were the descriptions of prostitutes in London in 1890s being disembowelled or similar. Show Less
LibraryThing member MelmoththeLost
"Here we are again".
OK so "Dan Leno etc" is the second work by Ackroyd I've read this year but this phrase is pertinent to this novel as anyone else who reads it will discover. And a fun bit of camp, gothic and gaslight hokum it is too, with which to while away a few hours.
Set amongst the music
Although relatively short at around 280pp, the novel weaves together a variety of voices - the reminiscences of the former variety girl turned respectable middle class wife; her husband, a former journalist and would-be dramatist who has come into money; the former university student who has married an alcoholic whore in an attempt to "redeem" her; the gay detective and his engineer boyfriend; and of course the voice of Ackroyd himself providing a documentary voice and commentary upon his fictitious non-fictitous fictitious 'orrible murders - all ably supported by a cast of thousands including assorted persons of the stage, East End whores, down and outs, cab drivers, a pornographic photographer with a taste for being spanked, surly waiters and audiences satisfied or otherwise.
Hokum from beginning to end but a novel to lose oneself in on a winter's evening.
OK so "Dan Leno etc" is the second work by Ackroyd I've read this year but this phrase is pertinent to this novel as anyone else who reads it will discover. And a fun bit of camp, gothic and gaslight hokum it is too, with which to while away a few hours.
Set amongst the music
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halls or low variety theatres of the East End of London between the mid-1860s and 1880, Ackroyd not only invents a splendid fictitious series of murders which echo a series of shockers of the early 19th century but also introduces legendary comedian Dan Leno as major player and rounds up Karl Marx and Oscar Wilde as walk on parts (and Charles Babbage and his "Analytical Engine" as defunct and very stationary bit players respectively) to boot.Although relatively short at around 280pp, the novel weaves together a variety of voices - the reminiscences of the former variety girl turned respectable middle class wife; her husband, a former journalist and would-be dramatist who has come into money; the former university student who has married an alcoholic whore in an attempt to "redeem" her; the gay detective and his engineer boyfriend; and of course the voice of Ackroyd himself providing a documentary voice and commentary upon his fictitious non-fictitous fictitious 'orrible murders - all ably supported by a cast of thousands including assorted persons of the stage, East End whores, down and outs, cab drivers, a pornographic photographer with a taste for being spanked, surly waiters and audiences satisfied or otherwise.
Hokum from beginning to end but a novel to lose oneself in on a winter's evening.
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LibraryThing member john257hopper
A grim story of a series of Jack the Ripper style murders in 1880, with a twist at the end. Mostly fairly gripping, though some of the chapters about stage life dragged a bit for me. The author's love and knowledge of London come through here as elsewhere.
LibraryThing member SharonMariaBidwell
I like how each chapter within the book jumps from one perspective to another, told in various styles. Alas, the parts that were far more tell than show made portions of the book less interesting, in particular because some information made me feel as though I was undergoing a lesson. I also feel
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having previously seen the film somewhat diminished my experience. Still, this is a wonderfully woven Victorian melodrama, perfectly historically blended. Both an excellent book and film, but not one needs to revisit. Show Less
LibraryThing member AliceAnna
OK, just really not my cup of tea. Kind of Dickens meets Jack the Ripper, but without the art of Dicken's narrative skillsor the suspense and horror of a Ripper story. It just didn't work for me on any level.
LibraryThing member John
I like Ackroyd. His biography of Dickens was wonderful because he brought to it a novelist's instincts, insights, and imagination. He uses those qualities again to good effect in Dan Leno, a literary, murder-mystery that evokes the sights and smells of Victorian London and particularly the colour
Ackroyd leads the reader down an entirely wrong path until the final, startling revelation. Looking back, there are signposts to the true path, but they are subtle. The story is strong and well-told, switching back and forth in perspectives, but not losing the reader. I also really enjoyed the introduction and tangential involvement of real persons, particularly Karl Marx, whom most people would recognize, and George Gissing, whom a much smaller number would know, but whom I know quite well. Some readers might think him an imaginary character in Dan Leno, but he is certainly not, and Ackroyd has him and his life very accurately. I first met Gissing through The Private Papers of Henry Ryecroft which I read 20 years ago. I became quite a fan and now have almost all, if not all, of Gissing's books (some good finds in second-hand book shops). I like his social-conscience writing and descriptions. A classic case of someone who is able to write with great sensitivity and insight of the human condition and relations, but who made such a mess of his personal life which seemed to be completely at odds with his literary perceptions.
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and activity of the low theatre halls. It is hard for those of us who live in a society of social nets, medicare and pensions to understand just how desperate live was for the majority of people in an era and place such as Victorian London. Ackroyd leads the reader down an entirely wrong path until the final, startling revelation. Looking back, there are signposts to the true path, but they are subtle. The story is strong and well-told, switching back and forth in perspectives, but not losing the reader. I also really enjoyed the introduction and tangential involvement of real persons, particularly Karl Marx, whom most people would recognize, and George Gissing, whom a much smaller number would know, but whom I know quite well. Some readers might think him an imaginary character in Dan Leno, but he is certainly not, and Ackroyd has him and his life very accurately. I first met Gissing through The Private Papers of Henry Ryecroft which I read 20 years ago. I became quite a fan and now have almost all, if not all, of Gissing's books (some good finds in second-hand book shops). I like his social-conscience writing and descriptions. A classic case of someone who is able to write with great sensitivity and insight of the human condition and relations, but who made such a mess of his personal life which seemed to be completely at odds with his literary perceptions.
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LibraryThing member nmele
For some reason I have never been able to finish a Peter Ackroyd novel, but I finished this one. It is an interesting mystery set in Victorian London involving music hall performers, journalists and some historical figures as diverse as Karl Marx and George Gissing.
LibraryThing member lisahistory
Wonderfully detailed Victorian London is portrayed here, with Marx and Gissing at the British Reading Room, a killer roaming the streets, and music halls. While I found the last chapter a little disappointing, the horror aspect was fitting, the characters well-drawn, and the specifics spot-on (not
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surprising given that Ackroyd writes books about English history). Show Less
LibraryThing member Vesper1931
London, 1880 and a murderer terrories London and which the newspapers call the Golem. It is for Inspector John Kildare to solve as his investigation leads himinto the world of the theatre.
Very enjoyable, well-written story
Very enjoyable, well-written story
LibraryThing member LisaMLane
Wonderfully detailed Victorian London is portrayed here, with Marx and Gissing at the British Reading Room, a killer roaming the streets, and music halls. While I found the last chapter a little disappointing, the horror aspect was fitting, the characters well-drawn, and the specifics spot-on (not
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surprising given that Ackroyd writes books about English history). Show Less
Subjects
Language
Original publication date
1994
Physical description
281 p.; 4.96 x 0.75 inches
ISBN
0749396598 / 9780749396596