The English Monster or, The Melancholy Transactions of William Ablass

by Shepherd, Lloyd

• ISBN13: 9781451647570
• ISBN10: 1451647573
• Format: Paperback
• Copyright: 2012-05-29
• Publisher: Washington Square Press

Summary

A page-turning historical thriller combining two tales that ultimately converge: the investigation into a brutal series of murders in 1811 London and the seafaring adventures of a young man in Elizabethan England.London, 1811. The twisting streets of riverside Wapping hold many an untold sin. Bounded by the ancient Ratcliffe Highway and the modern wonder of the London Dock, shameful secrets are largely hidden by the noise and glory of Trade. But now two families have fallen victim to foul murder and John Harriott, magistrate of the Thames River Police Office, must deliver revenge up to a terrified populace. His only hope is his senior officer, Charles Horton. Harriott only recently came up with a word to describe what it is that Horton does. It is detection. Plymouth, 1564. Young Billy Ablass arrives from Oxford with the burning desire of all young men: the getting and keeping of money. Captain Jack Hawkyns is about to set sail in a ship owned by Queen Elizabeth herself, and Billy sees the promise of a better life with a crew intent on gain and glory. But the kidnap of hundreds of human souls in Africa is not the only cursed event to occur on England’s first official slaving voyage. On a sun-blasted Florida islet, Billy too is to be enslaved for the rest of his accursed days. Based on the real-life story of the gruesome Ratcliffe Highway murders, The English Monster takes us on a voyage across centuries, through the Age of Discovery, and throws us up, part of the human jetsam, onto the streets of Regency Wapping, policed only by Officer Horton.

Author Biography

Lloyd Shepherd is a former journalist and digital producer who has worked for the Guardian, Channel 4, the BBC, and Yahoo. He lives in South London with his family. The English Monster is his first novel.