Challenging At First, But Funny, Interesting And EnjoyableI enjoyed this novel very much though I can see why some readers would be put off by the writing. While the writing in my opinion is very good, it's not going to be to the taste of those who choose their fiction primarily from the best sellers lists. Nothing against the best-sellers list, the books found there are best sellers after all, I've found books I've enjoyed there myself. But for the most part you can sit down with a best-seller and get right into the story, the writing doesn't tend challenge the reader, it generally appeals to the masses and most people don't like to have to work too hard at what they read for pleasure. I did find this book a challenge at first. What kept me reading was the subtle and often not so subtle humor that had me laughing out loud multiple times during the first chapter. Though other readers might not care for the intoxicated, opium-eating under achiever of a protagonist, I thought Edmund Whitty was clever and charming. The narration is in the present tense and while I know it's not Whitty telling the story I found myself attributing the amusing sense of humor the narrator has to the character of Edmund Whitty.I liked that characters seemed to arrive in pairs, homely, introverted Walter Sewell and handsome, extroverted Reginald Harewood both well to do gentlemen who were classmates of Whitty's at Oxford, the prostitutes, tall and experienced Flo, short and naive Etta, the shoplifters, Dorcas wild and daring, Phoebe controlled and discriminating. Each seems to possess the opposite traits or experience of the other. These characterizations illustrate the fact that you often see what you want to see, the good or the bad in someone depending on what you are looking for and once you've made certain observations, assumptions about the rest of a person's character are further made. This for Whitty turns out to be an important mistake.It took some effort to settle into this book but I'm happy I did. I'm still laughing at certain passages. Here is one: "Nothing is more incendiary to an ill-advised, unanticipated tryst than to be enclosed in a darkened, plush-upholstered, moving chamber. Privacy, Intimacy, Darkness, Transience: the Four Whorsemen of the Apocalypse."I wouldn't recommend this novel for everyone; however I would recommend it for fans of historical fiction who enjoy something more challenging than what's typically found in the mainstream. While part of the mystery wasn't very mysterious to readers who were paying attention the story itself was still very enjoyable.
This is one of those books where the whole thing doesn't make sense until you've finished it. Written in a definitely Victorian mode, it is both a tour of Victorian London and a mystery. If you're not used to writing done in this style, it can be a bit off-putting, to say the least.The characters are well drawn and the story is a good one. The main character is a Mr. Edmund Whitty, a reporter for The Falcon, a newspaper that has no qualms with sensationalizing to try to outdo the rival papers. Sadly, Mr. Whitty is most times down on his luck, and in debt to some creepy character known as The Ratter, who has a very bizarre way of getting back at those who don't pay up. That scene made me cringe just thinking about it! Whitty also puts away a little too much alcohol, enjoys being a part-time opium eater, and is just an inventive ploy away from being tossed out of his rented room. In this story, the buzz on the streets is that a serial killer is roaming the streets of London, strangling his victims with a white gentleman's scarf. While the infamous "Chokee Bill" is put away in prison, however, the crimes continue, and Whitty, along with a very strange "patterer" named Mr. Owler, are trying to see that justice is done. Their quest: to get the wrong guy out of prison and put the right one in. I won't say more.Quite well done, but it does have a tendency here and there to drag so that I found myself skimming a little to move things along. Overall, a pretty first in series. I would recommend it to those who enjoy a good novel set in Victorian London; people who pick this up expecting a cozy or easy read might be disappointed.read: 12/03/2006
What do You think about The Fiend In Human (2004)?
The book probably deserves another half star but I found the prose a bit over wrought and pretentious. Gray does spend a considerable amount of time setting the scene and if you are already interested in this genre you probably all too familiar with "turn of the century" London and I found the description a bit laborious. Nonetheless, he presents a decent story with well developed characters emblematic of a forgotten age. There are some nice but perhaps too foreseeable plot that also seem to hamper an elegantly written book.
—Counsel182
The Fiend in Human (form) by John MacLachlan Gray is a crime and criminal situation in Victorian London where privilege was known to get more than it's due, especially freedom from prosecution to it's senior members unless the prosecuting person has alot of facts and proof to make something stick. Perhaps this is still true, but something about the public morals of this period and it's willingness to overlook in large numbers renders the subject a little more poignant. The book has a very good social commentary about it, and it does go into the lives of the impoverished and lower paid working class citizens, also quite heavily into the place and roles of men and women of the time. The plot revolves around a newspaper account of a guilty verdict for a person accused of being a serial killer when the killings keep on even as he waits in jail for the execution. The journalist is sort of the detective and he gains a partner in this. It's a thriller, although slow at times, too. Portrayals of some people and some situations may remain with you well beyond the book.
—Elli
What distinguishes The Fiend in Human from the myriad other Victorian thrillers, to the point that it's one of my all-time favorite books?1) The protagonist. Edmund Whitty is dissolute, insolvent, and hapless--yet aware of these shortcomings to comic yet poignant effect. He's also articulate, intelligent, intuitive, and despite an exterior of skepticism and degeneracy, a highly moral being. All of which makes him someone you want to spend as much time with as possible.2) The writing. By combining the arch floridness of Victorian prose with a present-tense, subtly ironic style, Gray has created a distinctive voice.3) The supporting characters. Not a cliche or stock character among them.4) The humor. Yes, the story revolves around a Jack the Ripper type, but the book is damn funny nonetheless.
—Sherry Chiger
