Thursday 4 July 2019

Under the Dragon's Tail - Maureen Jennings - Detective Murdoch Book 2

Under the Dragon's Tail
Detective Murdoch Book 2
Maureen Jennings
McClelland & Stewart
An imprint of Penguin Random House Canada

ISBN 9780771095979
eISBN 9781551992815
ASIN B0035J5E5E


In the last seven weeks I have read seven novels by Maureen Jennings. I have been alternating Murdoch stories with book in three of her other series. There are currently 8 novels and prequel novella in the Murdoch series, and there are a total of 7 books in the other three series by Jennings. All of the books I have read have been good reads. And some of them have been great! My only regret is that by the end of the summer I will have read all of Jennings books, at the rate I am currently reading them. I have loved the Murdoch stories, and even though I was a long-time fan of the TV series, the differences are substantial. And yet the core is unchanged. Murdoch is a man of character and integrity. He is astute and determined. And in the end, he always seems to get his man, or women as the case may be.

The first Murdoch novel I read was Murdoch book 8, Let Darkness Bury the Dead, which is currently the final book in the series. Now I have gone back and, in a manner, atypical for me am reading them in order. Like many of the other books I have read by Jennings this novel was hard to put down. I read it in three sittings. Including staying up much later that I should considering my alarm goes off at 5am to get up and ready for work. It was well after midnight when I finished the book, and could finally go to sleep. 

This story was a little grittier than the other three Murdoch stories I have read so far. A little on the seedier side of town. And some very shady characters. And Some truly intriguing twists in the plot line. We also meet Dr. Julia Ogden first in a letter and then via a phone conversation with Murdoch. And we get to see a bit more of the variance between the novels and the show with the characters Brackenreid and Constable Crabtree. By the end pf the novel there are four bodies. We have gone through several suspects. And Up and down the societal ladder. A story with implied blackmail. A midwife not above reproach and known as an abortionist. A cabaret singer, with a heart softer than she lets on. And in the midst of it all Murdoch trying to get to the truth and help his squad in the Policeman games. 

This story is a page turner from the first to the last.it is incredible hard to put down. And as soon as you finish it you want to move on to the next Murdoch mystery. A good read in a great series! 

Books by Maureen Jennings:
Detective Murdoch Series:

0.5 Shipwreck
1.0 Except the Dying
2.0 Under the Dragon's Tail
3.0 Poor Tom Is Cold
4.0 Let Loose the Dogs
5.0 Night's Child
6.0 Vices of My Blood
7.0 A Journeyman to Grief
8.0 Let Darkness Bury the Dead
...

Detective Inspector Tom Tyler Series:
1.0 Season of Darkness
2.0 Beware This Boy
3.0 No Known Grave
4.0 Dead Ground in Between
...

Christine Morris Series:
1.0 Does Your Mother Know?
2.0 The K Handshape

...

Paradise Café Series:

1.0 Heat Wave
2.0 November Rain
...

Other books:
The Map of Your Mind: Journeys into Creative Expression
Investigating Murdoch Mysteries: The Official Companion to the Series – with Michelle Ricci and Mir Bahmanyar
...
 










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