Critics' Opinion:
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Published in USA
Sep 2010
368 pages
Genre: Mysteries
Publication Information
Christopher Fowler’s Peculiar Crimes Unit novels have been hailed for their originality, suspense, and unforgettable characters. Now Arthur Bryant, John May, and their team of proud eccentrics have been given only one week to hunt down a murderer they've already caught once - and who is now luring them down into the darkest shadows of the London Underground.
The young man they seek is an enigma. His identity is false. His links to society are invisible. A search of his home yields no clues. The Peculiar Crimes Unit knows only this: Somehow Mr. Fox got out of a locked room and killed one of their best and brightest. Facing a shutdown, Bryant and May learn that their man, expertly disguised, has struck again in the world’s oldest subway system. But as their search takes them into the vast labyrinth of tunnels that tie the city together, they discover a fresh mystery as bizarre as anything they have ever faced...
As the city blithely goes about its way, as tales of ghost stations and Underground legends emerge, Bryant and May, men of opposite methods, are each getting closer to what lies hidden at the heart of London's celebrated Tube- and to the madness that is driving their man to murder.
Sophisticated, fast-paced, and confounding until its final twist, Bryant & May off the Rails is Christopher Fowler dead on track and at the height of his power to beguile, bewitch, and entertain.
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"Starred Review. Fowler has few peers when it comes to constructing ingenious and intricate plots--or integrating contemporary technology into a golden age mystery plot." - Publishers Weekly
"Starred Review. Clever, comical, and suspenseful, this latest installment is great fun from page one." - Booklist
"... it is essential that readers read the previous book (Bryant and May on the Loose) to get a clear grasp of the plot, and newbies should start with earlier titles like Full Dark House." - Library Journal
"Bryant and May don't shine as detectives, and the unguessable solution depends on some whopping coincidences. But the culprit is well drawn, the PCU staff sterling company..." - Kirkus
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Photo: Martin Butterworth
Christopher Fowler is the award-winning author of over thirty novels and twelve short story collections, and the Bryant & May mystery novels.
His latest books are the sinister comedy-thriller Plastic, the Bryant & May novel The Bleeding Heart and the memoir Film Freak. Other recent work includes a graphic novel, 'The Casebook of Bryant & May', and a Hammer horror radio play under the Hammer Chillers label. He has a weekly column in The Independent On Sunday called 'Invisible Ink'.
He is a five-time British Fantasy Award-winner. His first thriller was the bestseller Roofworld. Subsequent novels include Spanky, Disturbia, Psychoville and Calabash. His books have been optioned by everyone from Guillermo Del Toro ('Spanky') to Jude Law ('Psychoville').
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