1913 Leeds, Crime and disruptions!

Tom Harper has two important aspects to his life. Deputy Chief Constable for Leeds police, and husband and father to two strong women, both heavily involved in the women’s suffrage movements.
It’s June 1913 and his women are knee deep in their suffrage pursuits. His wife Annabelle is intending to join a Suffragist rally (The Great Pilgrimage) journeying to London. Tom is involved in a policing capacity for the Leeds constabulary looking at safety and security issues. Mary has turned from the more radical Suffragette movement to training young women for office work. She runs a business school, The Harper Secretarial Agency and School.
Meanwhile Davey Mullen, a leading gangster from New York returns to Leeds to see his father. Murder attempts, and killings follow. Harper is in the middle, putting the puzzle together when gang violence erupts. When Harper’s family is threatened, the investigation takes on a more personal edge. The constabulary raids the gang controlled parts of Leeds in their bid to find the culprits. Harper has a list and he methodically crosses off missions accomplished. (I did hum “I have a little list” whenever that surfaced. Thank you Gilbert and Sullivan!)
Talk of war quietly surfaces and the Home Office is beginning to make plans. Just in case!
I enjoy Nickson’s ability to blend fact and fiction into a riveting historical mystery placed in the city he so obviously loves. I also enjoyed his brief but fascinating Afterwards.

A Canongate Severn House ARC via NetGalley ( )

Leeds 1913 Deputy Chief Constable Tom Harper's life is about to get busy. A suffragist march is arriving in Leeds and then travelling onto London, as suffragette Lilian Lenton is being released from jail to recover her health before her trial, under the watch of The Special Branch. Meanwhile several American gang members have arrived, resulting in a crime spree. Are any of them involved or is it the local gangs which are the cause. Harper and his team investigate.
Another entertaining mystery, a well-written story with its very likeable characters. A good addition to the series.
An ARC was provided by the publisher via Netgalley in exchange for an honest review. ( )

I follow many historical mystery series, and Chris Nickson's DI Tom Harper series is one of my favorites. Set in Leeds, England, the latest volume takes place in 1913. Brass Lives offers much to enjoy: Nickson's most twisted plot yet, violence following an American gang member's presence in Leeds, a cross country pilgrimage by women fighting for the right to vote, and changes in the lives of Harper and his family.

I love the mix of puzzle and people in this series. Nickson adeptly moves readers inside the mind of DI Harper and lays out the logic steering complex investigations. There's action a-plenty, but also lots of thought. Through depictions of the daily lives of Harper and his family, Nickson creates a bond between reader and character that makes each new volume in the series a welcome treat.

If you enjoy historical mysteries and don't know this series, you're in for a delightful surprise. If you do know this series, you probably won't have read this far because you'll have stopped reading already in order to track down a copy of Brass Lives.

I received a free electronic review copy of this title from the publisher via NetGalley; the opinions are my own. ( )