A clever and charming series, cosy crime at its finest, with each book taking the form of six linked short mysteries and the entire series spanning from Elizabeth II’s coronation to Charles and Diana’s wedding. It would be a pity not to start at the beginning but one of the delights is how easy it is to dip in and out, savouring each story or enjoying the way the character, overaching plot and British history develop. Alongside the mysteries there are musings on love, life and ecclesiastical titbits you’d expect from a sleuthing vicar. ~ Sarah Broadhurst
Sidney Chambers and the Perils of the Night Synopsis
The 2nd book in the Grantchester Mysteries series.
1955. Canon Sidney Chambers, loveable priest and part-time detective, is back. Accompanied by his faithful Labrador, Dickens, and the increasingly exasperated Inspector Geordie Keating, Sidney is called to investigate the unexpected fall of a Cambridge don from the roof of King's College Chapel, a case of arson at a glamour photographer's studio and the poisoning of Zafar Ali, Grantchester's finest spin bowler. Alongside his sleuthing, Sidney has other problems. Can he decide between his dear friend, the glamorous socialite Amanda Kendall and Hildegard Staunton, the beguiling German widow? To make up his mind Sidney takes a trip abroad, only to find himself trapped in a web of international espionage just as the Berlin Wall is going up.
While the diminutive priest detective created by G. K. Chesterton led the way, Sidney Chambers is set fair to be a worthy successor ... this is quite an achievement -- Barry Turner Daily Mail
Chambers turns out to be a winning clergyman-sleuth, and Runcie's literary authority is repeatedly demonstrated in the construction of his elegant tales ... there is no denying the winning charm of these artfully fashioned mysteries -- Barry Forshaw Independent
Inspector Morse would appear to have a rival -- Mary Crockett Scotland on Sunday
Author
About James Runcie
James Runcie is an award-winning film-maker and the author of seven novels. Sidney Chambers and The Shadow of Death, the first in 'The Granchester Mysteries' series, was published in 2012, soon followed by Sidney Chambers and The Perils of the Night, Sidney Chambers and The Problem of Evil, Sidney Chambers and the Forgiveness of Sins and Sidney Chambers and the Dangers of Temptation. In October 2014, ITV launched Grantchester, a prime-gime series starring James Norton as Sidney Chambers, with the second season airing in March 2016. In May 2016 James Runcie became Commissioning Editor for Arts at BBC Radio 4. He lives in London and Edinburgh.
