The William Monk Mysteries: The First Three Novels

A great introduction to Perry's Monk series. Having previously read nearly all of the successive Monk novels, in then reading these three, an appreciation of Perry's ability to early formulate a realistic fictional environment and cast of principal characters is fully realized.

three good murder stories in victorian london. perry's knowledge and discriptions of the times make reading interesting and enjoyable.

If you like historial novels---with some mystery combined with realistic romance; if the Regency, Victorian or Edwardian periods interest you, then buy this book. Fans of Anne Perry's Thomas and Charlotte series are bound to appreciate Monk. I found this series richer and more satisfying than Charlotte and Thomas (although I still re-read them also). Perry is an excellent writer, relaxing to read. Her characters are memorable. They grow and develop as the series procede. This three-for-one is one terrific bargain!

I've read every book in the William Monk and Hester Latterly series and loved them all. Anne Perry's research into Victorian history is accurate and mesmerizing. She often builds her stories around known events of the period. These two characters are people you can care about because they are separately fascinating and together entertaining. Monk is a private investigator with a mysterious past and Hester is a Crimean war nurse--one of Florence Nightingale's band of revolutionary nurses. Both learn from their experiences and apply what they've learned to their lives. It is fun to watch them bicker and argue and irritate one another and then grudgingly come together on one overriding ethical issue. Through the years, they mature into wiser people who also grow to love and appreciate one another after a very prickly beginning. Monk himself is a mystery for most of the novels as he remembers bits and pieces of his past life before an accident that took his memory. This series is well worth investing your precious reading time. Perry's other series featuring Thomas and Charlotte Pitt are equally engaging, but set in a later Victorian time period. If you like characters who value integrity and place the welfare of the unfortunate before their own in that old-fashioned way, and are smart at solving some really puzzling crimes, all in the context of British Victorian society, you will love these two series. And after that, there is Perry's superb WWI mystery series. I think this is her best work to date.

This set of three novels shows what a mystery should be. They are without doubt some of the best examples of mystery writing I have read. Setting, characters and plot combine to create situations that enthrall. And the third of these first three mysteries is simply unforgetable.