Skin Like Silver - (Tom Harper Mystery) by Chris Nickson (Hardcover)

About the Book

Leeds, 1891. An unclaimed parcel at the Central Post Office is discovered to contain the decomposing body of a baby boy. At the same time, a woman's body is found at Leeds' railway station, stabbed to death. Was the dead woman's involvement in the local suffragist movement connected with her death? And is there a connection with the dead baby boy?

Book Synopsis

The third intriguing historical mystery to feature Detective Inspector Tom Harper

Leeds, England. October, 1891. An unclaimed parcel at the Central Post Office is discovered to contain the decomposing body of a baby boy. It's a gruesome case for DI Tom Harper. Then a fire during the night destroys half the railway station. The next day a woman's body is found in the rubble. But Catherine Carr didn't die in the blaze: she'd been stabbed to death - and Harper has to find her killer.
The estranged wife of a wealthy industrialist, Catherine had been involved with the Leeds Suffragist Society, demanding votes for women, the same organization for which Harper's wife Annabelle has just become a speaker. Were Catherine's politics the cause of her death? Or is the husband she abandoned behind it? But when her brother escapes from the asylum and steals a shotgun, Harper has to race to find the answers.

Review Quotes

"A riveting historical setting"-- "Library Journal"

"Chris Nixon writes with knowledge and love of the area, having been born and bred in Leeds. He has clearly done lots of research and the consequence is that the reader is transported back to the late 19th Century. The book is vividly atmospheric and I could smell the smoke and smog, and could see the grime and grubbiness of industry and the general population's fight against abject poverty."--Breakaway Reviewers

"I highly recommend this book for those that love a good Victorian mystery. In fact, I recommend the whole series. I have to give this one five stars, it's really that good."--A Milton, reviewer

"If you enjoy good characterization, good placement within a specific time period, and good police investigative processes, you will almost surely enjoy this novel."--J Lesley, reviewer

"Skin Like Silver is a fantastic murder mystery. I love the history and detail Nickson creates to make his story more real and authentic"--K Malott, reviewer

"Skin Like Silver is a good, interesting, well written novel and I don't hesitate to recommend it."--E Tomasso, reviewer

"Nickson's latest DI Tom Harper historical procedural is tautly written and highly engaging, with a keep-'em-guessing plot and plenty of late nineteenth-century period details"-- "Booklist"