I have been meaning to read Andrew Taylor’s historical novels for some time now and have just finished the first book in the six volume (and counting?) series featuring James Marwood and Cat Lovett as the central characters.

Taylor is a prolific writer who wrote the Bergerac novels in the 1980s under the pseudonym Andrew Saville as well as other crime and history fiction including the Lydmouth series and the Roth trilogy.

Set in London in 1666 with the Great Fire as the dramatic backdrop to the opening of the book it follows Marwood as he is tasked to identify a killer of two men caught up in the political intrigue of both Westminster and the Royal Court.

I usually approach historical novels with some reservation, I don’t want a Wikipedia researched history lesson and this is anything but that. Taylor manages to weave an exciting story with fascinating historical context which really brings to life such a remarkable time in British history.

Taylor is clearly well researched, he paints a vivid picture of London at that time, the detailed place names, lanes and public buildings add weight to the descriptions of Marwood’s walks from his lodgings to his places of work and surveillance. It’s an interesting street map of the city and I wondered how familiar these places might still be to Londoners reading it.

This first book is clearly written to set the tone for another instalment, Marwood and Lovett are interesting characters with family backgrounds to invite further exploration and historical context. I have already started the second book and would highly recommend this if you are not already a fan.