BETHLEHEM ROAD

The plotting of this ingenious Charlotte and Thomas Pitt mystery, set in Victorian London, is intricate and interesting as Anne Perry plays fair with her readers while staying three jumps ahead of them. The wonder is that Davina Porter, who must surely have been registered as a national treasure by now, actually seems to get better, though there was no room for improvement. Here she calls up the thickness and temperature of the London fog as someone starts cutting the throats of Members of Parliament on Westminster Bridge. The shrill snobbery of Charlotte's poisonous old grandmother, so distinct from the lively warmth of Charlotte's equally fancy favorite aunt, is a snap to Porter. Male and female, upstairs or below stairs, these characters live. B.G. © AudioFile 2005, Portland, Maine [Published: DEC 05/ JAN 06]