I haven't read thriller/mystery book in a while and The Hangman's Secret made me want to read more! I really enjoyed the story and I loved the characters. I loved how strong Sarah Bain is, especially for a woman of her time. This book makes me want to read more of Laura Joh Rowland's books as well! x

A fun read, but not very 'Victorian'. I enjoyed reading it, but was a little taken aback by the descriptions of Victorian London, Ely and Leeds, and the people. Also in Britain we open a box of chocolates and eat a chocolate - not a candy, that's an Americanism. If you know very little about Britain - and/or the Victorian era then it will be just a ripping yarn, but don't look to it for historical accuracy.

This was a decent cozy mystery set in Victorian London. I liked the characters and the book was a quick read. One plus is that you don't necessarily need to read the other 2 novels in the series to understand the what was happening in this book.

This is the first book i read in this series and it was a happy discovery.
I liked the relatable cast of characters and the well researched historical background.
The plot was engaging and keeps you guessing till the end.
Even I didn't read the other books in this series I had no problems in understanding the plot and the characters.
I look forward to reading the next instalment.
Recommended!
Many thanks to Crooked Lane Books and Netgalley for this ARC

I received a copy of this title from the publisher for an honest review. The Hangman's Secret is the third title in the series and may work as a stand-alone, but there are multiple references throughout the book to the first two titles. The Hangman's secret finds Sarah Bain, Mick, and Lord Hugh working for Sir Gerald at the Daily World; Sarah takes crime scene photographs. Called to a crime scene, the three are shocked by the gruesome site of the decapitated victim. It quickly comes to light that the victim (Warbrick) was one of a handful of men authorized to work as hangman responsible for presiding at hangings for criminals condemned to death. Warbrick was hanged and the event resulted in his decapitation; at first thought to be suicide, Sarah, Mick, and Hugh have a hard time believing that a hangman would so thoroughly botch his own hanging.

It appears that Warbrick's murder is somehow related to a recent hanging of a notorious baby farmer, but all the witnesses at the execution are bound from talking by the Official Secrets Act. Sir Gerald uses his pull to get the trio interviews with the witnesses at Newgate Prision. Although insistent that nothing happened, Sarah knows they must be on the right track when someone attempts to harm her and Hugh.

After Sir Gerald insists on publishing a story that Sarah doesn't think is ready to publish, when it turns out to be false, Sarah becomes a scapegoat and the trio is fired by Sir Gerald. Unable to let the murder remain unsolved, Sarah, Hugh, and Mick continue to investigate with some help from Sarah's beau Barret who is a member of the London police force. As they draw closer to the reason for the murder and the murder's identity, the danger continues to grow. Will the three all survive this investigation?

There is also a lot of progress made on the mystery surrounding Sarah's father who she believed to be dead, but is in fact alive. After being accused of the rape and murder of a neighborhood girl, her father disappeared and she was eventually told by her mother he had died. Sarah learns some very unexpected information on both her mother and her father that casts the allegations against him in a whole new light.

I really enjoyed this title and love the characters and the support they provide each other. The mystery was well done and kept me guessing until the final reveal. This book is perfect for finds of historical mysteries that enjoy series that allow the reader to follow the same characters as they continue to grow and develop. I'm looking forward to the next title in this series.

I enjoyed Laura Joh Rowland’s mystery series set in 17th century Japan featuring samurai detective Sano Ichiro, so I was certain I’d enjoy this story as well.

This is the third in her Victorian mystery series with photographer Sarah Bain, her gay friend Sir Hugh, and a street urchin, Mick. Ostensibly they work for the London’s Daily World newspaper which is headed by Sir Gerald Mariner, a wealthy former mariner and banker, but on the side they solve murders.

A criminal named Amelia Carlisle, given the sobriquet of the “Baby Butcher” for taking in infants for adoption, then killing them, was hanged by Harry Warbrick, who was later murdered—ineptly hanged. Sarah and her friends discover a tie between those two and the actor/nobleman who wishes to become the next Sheriff.

The relationship between the three (Sarah, Hugh, and Mick) is touching. They have disparate lives but form a family with ties strong enough that when Sarah must choose between them and her boyfriend, Barrett, a cop, she has a hard time deciding.

Their struggle to solve the mystery endangers all of them, their occupations, and Sarah’s love for Barrett.

Rowland, as always, does a superb job in capturing the time and place of her stories. The seedy underbelly of London comes to life in her capable hands, and her descriptions of the crime-scene photographs that Sarah makes are realistic.

Rowland continues her “Victorian Mystery” series with “The Hangman’s Secret.” We get to continue the story of Hugh, Mick, Sarah as they investigate a crime that seems to have links to Sarah’s lost father. The atmosphere and plot of this story are engaging, and I particularly enjoyed getting to watch the three individuals’ stories develop.

Sarah Bain is a photographer who is hired by a newspaper to photograph crime scenes. Her friends, Lord Hugh Staunton, once a highly respected member of society, and Mick O’Reilly, a fourteen-old street urchin who wants to be a grown up now, join her in her latest assignment. The three of them are disliked by most of the people who meet them, Sarah because she’s a woman working in a man’s world, Hugh because he’s a disgraced and disowned homosexual, and Mick because he’s uncouth. This unlikely trio get caught up in another murder investigation for which Sarah took the photographs. In this book, they’ve been pitted against the police by the owner of the newspaper who pays them. He wants them to solve the murder of the retired hangman who was, himself, decapitated in a botched hanging. So who killed him and why?

This is a well-written mystery featuring three likable characters and a well-plotted mystery. Rowland takes her time setting up the investigation and her characters investigate the crime one clue at a time. An interesting byline is the fact that Sarah is seeing the detective who is investigating the crime and he’s not happy with either Sarah involving herself in his investigation or the contest they’re both involved in.

This is the third book in the Victorian mystery series. Not to worry though, this book reads like a stand-alone with the author giving just enough information about the characters so as not to bog down this book with information from the previous two books.

This is the third installment in the Victorian Mystery series.

The trio of house-mates, Sarah, Hugh and Mick, need to solve the murder of the hangman who was hanged in his own pub. The story leads them around London and England, and into Newgate Prison. They make enemies and friends and eventually solve the murder, of course.

I liked that the main characters are a motley crew, a female photographer, a homosexual lord, and a schoolboy in love with a much older actress.

What I didn't like about the story, how the three friends came together is never really explained. It is hinted at and will certainly make sense if you have read the first two books. Since I didn't read the first two books in this series, I would have liked a little more background information.

I was skeptical at first - it's the third book in a series, about Victorian London, and about a female protagonist, which are three things that are out of my normal reading comfort zone. However, I gave it a try and I am glad I did! It was a very intriguing mystery with plenty of twists, turns, and action. All the characters were well-developed and I honestly did not feel like I was at a deficit for not reading the rest of the series. Even though the book took place about 200 years ago, I did not feel like it was super "old timey." I recommend this book to any fan of mysteries.

A well written addition to Rowland's Victorian mystery series. I would not recommend coming to this title without reading the first two books in the series. The characters background is quite established by this point, and small details would be missed if you have read the rest of the series. A dark and complicated mystery that holds your interest until the last page. I came to this book without the benefit of the other books in the series, and now I must read them.

Sarah, Hugh and Mick get their next case when they are called to a gory crime scene. A man - Harry Warbrick - is found who was decapitated after hanging. Sarah, Hugh, and Mick are quick to see that it was a murder. Their boss Sir Gerald tasks them with solving the crime which puts a new, hot-shot reporter's nose out of joint and doesn't endear them to the police department either. It especially causes trouble with Sarah's boyfriend PC Barrett and his boss Inspector Reid who already carries a grudge against them.

The case gets complicated when they learn that the victim was the hangman who executed Amelia Carlisle, the baby-butcher, who murdered hundreds of infants left in her care. The gang is sure that Warbrick's death had something to do with that hanging but happenings at hangings are covered under the Official Secrets act and they can't get anyone to talk.

This story was filled with twists and turns. All of the lead characters' romances were under pressure. Sarah and her police officer boyfriend are stressed because they are working as rivals on solving the crime. Hugh's relationship with Sir Gerald's son is not only stressful but also illegal according to English law. Mick's crush on an older actress is tested when she becomes the lover of one of the prime suspects in their case.

Sarah is also busy trying to find the father who abandoned her mother and her 20 years earlier when he was accused of raping and killing a young neighbor girl. Inspector Reid is determined to bring the whole case back into prominence to get his revenge on Sarah because she's a better detective than he is. In Sarah's quest to find her father, she learns some things about her parents' past which explains why her mother treated her the way she did.

This was an engaging mystery with a great setting and strong characters.

While working for the Daily World, photographer Sarah Bain with her two friends and co-workers, Lord Hugh Staunton and Mick O’Reilly, are called out to a crime scene. That of the hangman, Harry Warbrick. But is it suicide or murder. And if murder why? While working to find the guilty partner Sarah is still trying to find her father and so disapprove that he may be guilty of murder some years previously.
Throughout the book some of the dialogue seems a bit too far-fetched. While some of the relationships between the characters seemed somewhat forced. Overall a satisfying mystery even though I didn't take to any of the main characters.

I arrived late to the party for this series. The Hangman’s Secret is the third book in Laura Joh Roland’s Victorian Mysteries series. Fortunately, there are enough callbacks and exposition for me to feel like I wasn’t missing too much to understand the characters in this fair to middling mystery. There are problems with the writing in this book that almost put me off (discussed below), but the mystery itself was interesting enough that I just had to keep reading.

Protagonist Sarah Bain, with her partners Lord Hugh Staunton and the very-much-ragtag Mick O’Reilly have become semi-official investigators by The Hangman’s Secret. Sarah has been hired to provide crime scene photos for the ambitious owner of a London newspaper, Sir Gerald. Hugh helps as bodyguard and investigative partner, while Mick keeps his ear to the street to sniff out gristly murders and useful information. Neither Sarah nor Hugh is very happy with this arrangement, but it does pay the bills. As The Hangman’s Secret kicks off, Sarah and Hugh have been summoned to the particularly messy death of a local pub owner and hangman. It might look like the man hanged himself if not for the fact that everyone knows that he was a consummate professional who would never have botched his own hanging. (The details of the botching are definitely not for the squeamish.)

Sarah et al. are not allowed to treat the hangman’s death as just another job. Sir Gerald, in a fit of inspiration, declares that Sarah’s team and his new hire, a sexist reporter, will solve the mystery before the Metropolitan police. Sarah doesn’t want to be a detective. Her policeman lover definitely doesn’t want her to be a detective, either. But when the man with the purse strings gives an order, it has to be obeyed. Fortunately for Sarah and her partners, the people she interviews are generally willing to cough up all kinds of useful information. The ones who don’t go straight to the top of the list of suspects.

The way witnesses repeatedly give up information so easily was one of the things that bothered me about this book. It didn’t seem realistic to me the way that characters in late 1880s London would trust Sarah or that they all had such good memories. I was also bothered by Rowland’s missteps in the dialogue. There are a lot of too-modern phrases and sentences that a British English speaker would not say. The wrong notes irritated me. I stuck around because I had my own theories about what happened that I wanted to see confirmed. If nothing else, after reading the complicated Vita Nostra, The Hangman’s Secret was a chance for my brain to cool off.

I’m not interested enough to go back and read the first two books in the series and I doubt I will be keeping an eye out for future entries. I feel let down by The Hangman’s Secret because I know Rowland is a better writer and researcher than this. I really enjoyed her Sano Ichiro series, which is set in Shogunate Japan.

Set in 1890 London this novel features Photographer Sarah Bain, a photographer for “Daily World” newspaper though she usually ends up like a detective solving crimes even before the police do. She do this with her friends Lord Hugh Staunton and Mick O’Reilly. The books opens with Sarah called to a gory crime scene. A hangman named Harry Warbrick somehow died hanged and decapitated. The police, which includes Sarah’s boyfriend Barett, believes it’s a suicide but they can’t ignore the clues. Someone has hanged the hangman. And

Sir Gerald Mariner, owner of the Daily World, wants Sarah and her crew to find out what really happened. But suddenly, a name Amelia Carlisle, a “Baby-Butcher” showed up in their investigation and Sarah, Hugh and Mick never thought that they might be solving the most dangerous crime they ever encountered so far.

First, when I requested this book on Netgalley, I wasn’t aware that this is third in a series. But it didn’t affect my reading and comprehension at all. In fact, the author did an amazing job on inserting past information to give the reader more understanding.

Second, I was fascinated by the concept of this book. A hangman murdered by hanging and I haven’t really read anything with a hangman before. And then as the story goes on, I realized, I got more than I bargained for. There are plenty of twists and turns I didn’t see coming. I love how layered the mystery is. And it was well done. Even more complex because of Sarah’s personal problems in the way. The pacing is good and I’m usually entertained.

Third, the characters are unique and diverse with their various backstories. I love the friendship between Sarah, Hugh and Mick. It’s fascinating how much they love their job. 🙂 I also enjoyed the character of Barett. The romance between him and Sarah is shadowed by the mystery and crime aspect of the book and I think the author did a good job for doing so.

Now why I rated this a star short? There’s one character that I don’t understand the purpose except for antagonizing Sarah and her crew. The writing though overall is okay, it took me a while before I get into it. And for me, this book needs a serious editing. Just the first paragraph almost threw me off. I read the word ‘Window’ three times. That can be changed. There are also paragraphs where most of the sentences starts with the same pronoun. If I read it aloud, it won’t be good to my ears. BUT I AM READING AN ADVANCE READER’S COPY so I’m sure it’ll be fixed on the final copy.

Overall, I enjoy this book and this won’t be the last book I’m gonna read from this author.

The year is 1890 and Sarah Bain, crime photographer for the Daily World, has been summoned to the scene of a grizzy death. With her associates Lord Hugh Staunton and street-wise Mick O’Reilly, she goes to the Ropemaker’s Daughter, a pub in Whitechapel owned by the official hangman for the British government. There they find the hangman Harry Warbrick dead. The initial response is that Warbrick committed suicide, but an examination of the scene quickly proves otherwise. Warbrick’s head, still in the noose, was actually severed from his body which had dropped to the pub floor. No reputable hangman, and Warbrick was the best, would botch an execution this badly.

Someone murdered the hangman and tried to cover it up. The suspect list is soon narrowed to the seven witnesses to Warbrick’s last execution of the notorious baby murderer Amelia Carlisle. Sometime happened in the hanging shed but the witnesses are bound by the Official Secret’s Act and cannot reveal anything. Sir Gerald Mariner, owner of the Daily World, challenges the police to a contest; his paper will uncover the killer before the police do and he gives the task to Sarah and her friends. So begins an intense and terrible examination of Newgate Prison and the corruption within the penal system and the police department before the murderer is revealed.

A second plot, carried over from the first two books. concerns Sarah’s search for her fugitive father who disappeared twenty years earlier after being accused of the rape and murder of a child

I had not read the previous books in the series, but I had no trouble with the considerable backstory. I was soon immersed in Sarah’s London, with its polluted air, gas-lit streets, and colorful inhabitants. This is a fast-paced mystery with strong characters. Everyone has secrets and flaws. Highly recommended.

Sarah Bain and her two friends Hugh and Mick are called by their journalist boss to a gruesome murder. A hangman that has been beheaded! Although the three are despearate to solve another mystery, their actions are seen as meddling by the local police. Add to the mix both Sarah and Hugh's personal relationship problems with the men they love and Sarah and her half-sister, Sally, searching for their father- a wanted man, and you have an action packed story!

Although I had not read the two previous stories The Ripper's Shadowand A Mortal Likeness, there are plenty of illusions to Sarah and other characters past relationships that it could be treated as a stand alone. However, there were parts of the novel that seemed a bit drawn out and repetitive. Also, I didn't really buy into Sarah and Barrett's relationship especially after they meet with his parents in the book. Because of this fact I could not go any higher than a 3 in my rating.

As they say, a picture is worth a thousand words.

Sarah Bain wakes to the pounding on her door just before daybreak. The rude awakenings are part of her lifestyle. Sarah lives above her photography studio and has a sideline for photographing crime/murder scenes in the Whitechapel High Street neighborhood. She and her two partners, Mick and Hugh, have been employed by Sir Gerald Mariner who runs The Daily World newspaper. What awaits her a few streets over may not be fit to print.

The body of bar owner, Harry Warbrick, has been found on the floor of his establishment in a bloody mess. Harry is a victim of his own trade. He moonlights as a hangman to bring in extra cash. It appears that ol' Harry got tripped up on his own rope tightly tied around his neck from the upper floor. Harry ended up at the wrong end of his rope. Murder? But his former "customers" never hung around to retaliate. Then who?

Sarah delivers the plates to Sir Gerald who wishes to get a leg up on the police investigation. He challenges Sarah to take the lead in finding out what happened to Harry Warbrick. She and her partners had a private inquiry service before hooking up with the newspaper. This will play havoc with her love interest PC Thomas Barrett. Is it possible to refrain from telling Barrett all that she knows about the crime?

The Hangman's Secret is the third offering in the Victorian Mystery Series by Laura Joh Rowland. It definitely
reads as a standalone. Rowland nicely fills in the backstories when needed. Rowland swirls the scenery with the sights and sounds of London in 1890 with its factories puffing horrendous chemical fumes and rivers appearing thick in their flow.

Rowland's choice of characters are wide and varied. Even Sarah has some painful experiences from childhood surrounding her father who may or may not be guilty of a serious crime. She still continues to search for him. Rowland slides the true crime character of Amelia Carlisle who actually ran a baby farm during this time period. This tough investigation may have a connection to Amelia as well. Rowland will keep you on your toes with quite the action. The ending will escalate to lives being in mighty danger.

I received a copy of The Hangman's Secret through NetGalley for an honest review. My thanks to Crooked Lane Books and to Laura Joh Rowland for the opportunity.

This was an easy and enjoyable read, especially if you like murder mysteries set in Victorian Britain.
The story-line did twist a little and deepen further into the book although it was not too difficult for the reader to ascertain where the plot was headed. Sometimes I felt the main character was a bit naive with regard to her own safety and that of her friends so that made the detecting a little unrealistic. Otherwise, though, the description was evocative of that era and I would be happy to read the other books by this author.

Thank you to NetGalley and Crooked Lane Books for this copy in exchange for an honest review..

When I requested this book I hadn't realised it was set in Victorian times. If I had noticed I wouldn't have gone for it. How blinkered was I, I was drawn in and hooked after the first couple of pages and then couldn't put it down. I will certainly read more by Laura Joh Rowland even if they are set in Victorian London.