Cold Cruel Winter

Starred review from September 26, 2011
Set in 1732, Nickson’s superb follow-up to 2010’s The Broken Token finds Richard Nottingham, constable of the city of Leeds, fearful that he will lose more loved ones after his older daughter falls ill and dies. An especially hard winter is making things tough for the entire community. Then a savage murder—that of wool merchant Samuel Graves, whose throat was cut and the skin flayed from his back—tests Nottingham and his men to their utmost. While the motive for the mutilation murder of the respectable Graves isn’t obvious, the constable soon learns the grisly reason for the trophy taking. Other victims will follow, he realizes, if he doesn’t manage to stop the butcher first. Nickson, who does an excellent job depicting an honest, damaged policeman trying to seek justice at a time when influence trumps truth, may yet join the front rank of historical mystery writers.

October 1, 2011
The bitter cold winter of 1732 is a season of death in Leeds. Richard Nottingham, Constable of Leeds, is mourning the death of his daughter, one of many casualties of the frigid English winter. But his mind is diverted from his sorrows when a body is found, its throat cut and the skin removed from its back. The murdered man is Samuel Graves, a wealthy semi-retired wool merchant. His murder stirs up the mayor, who puts pressure on Nottingham to solve the crime quickly before anyone can learn the horrifying details. Following up on a list of employees fired by Graves, he comes upon the name of Abraham Wyatt, a clerk caught embezzling and transported to the Indies for his crime. Wyatt quickly becomes the chief suspect when a journal bound in the skin removed from Graves's back is sent to Nottingham. The Journal of a Wronged Man, In Four Volumes details Wyatt's agenda and makes Nottingham realize that he's on the list of three other intended victims. Although Nottingham uses every colleague and every informant at his disposal, Wyatt remains invisible, and a second murder soon follows. Nottingham must use every trick of the trade to uncover the whereabouts of a clever, ruthless killer. Nickerson's follow-up to Broken Token (2010) is an exciting tale that explores the vast gulf between the rich and poor while delivering a first-rate mystery.

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Starred review from November 1, 2011

Ah, the crazed mind. This second entry in an outstanding series (after The Broken Token) begins with a murder of vengeance. We learn this from the killer's perspective, as the newly released criminal returns to 1732 Leeds to wreak havoc on those who sent him to prison. Constable Nottingham, as strong and good as ever, is grieving over the recent death of his older daughter. But when the murderer starts delivering little books bound with the flesh of his victims, the constable snaps into high alert. A small but devoted police staff and an unusually varied group of informants prove that Nottingham can play hardball, too. VERDICT With its accessible language and likable supporting characters, this stunning historical will just as easily appeal to contemporary thriller fans. Nickson is developing an unusual series that is strong on creepy: Chelsea Cain goes 18th century, anyone?

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