Rating: 
Summary: I was almost late for a meeting...
Review: ...because I reached the gripping final courtoom scene over lunch, and absolutely had to finish. I adore Perry's mysteries, and am especialy fond of William Monk and Hester Latterly. Even though I was able to predict the killer's motive, I was still enthralled by the resolution of the case. The revelations at the end of the book are well worth the price of admission!
Rating: 
Summary: Another winner.
Review: A wonderful Victorian novel from Anne Perry. After reading
it you'll want to pick up the next in the series to find out
what the detective and "his faithful sidekick" (my words, not
hers!) are up to now.
Not that you have to read these books in the order in which they are published - jump in anytime and enjoy, enjoy, enjoy.
Rating:
Summary: Uneven but worthwhile
Review: Anne Perry charmed me with the Thomas and Charlotte Pitt series first. I imagine Thomas to be very much like Mulder from the X-Files. Anyway, I made the mistake of reading one of the later Monk novels out of desperation for more Anne Perry, and just plain lost interest. Then, I found "Face of a Stranger" and started the series in order, and can picture Timothy Dalton as Monk, Hester Latterly as Emma Thompson, and I care so much about these main characters that even when the pace got mired down in Monk's flashbacks, I had the motivation to keep going. It's worth it in this most unusual approach. I highly appreciate Ms. Perry's respect for her readers; there is a definite level of erudition here without becoming pedantic. As a teacher, I recommend these books as great historical fiction, with plenty of insight on the lower classes and the plight of women. Stick around for the exquisite courtroom scene. Oliver Rathbone is a well-balanced, realistic character, and his father Henry is a dear. Callandra Daviot is as important to the Monk novels as Aunt Vespasia is to the Pitt series. To sum up: start at the beginning of each series to get the most out of them. They don't stand alone nearly as well as some series novels.
Rating:
Summary: This is a brilliant book and kept me awake all night
Review: Having read other Anne Perry novels (which really are of a high standard), I carried a high expectation of Defend and Betray. Although it is not a whodunnit, the court case at the end is as good as any Christie novel, as Victorian London is told with some relish
Rating:
Summary: Great Tale!!
Review: I have read roughly 12 Anne Perry books so far. This was my 3rd William Monk book. In general I am finding I like the William Monk series a little more than the Thomas and Charlotte Pitt series. There are a few things that bug me about the way Anne writes, such as the term "pulled a small face" which seems to be used two or three times in every book, and also sometimes the mystery is given away too easily. I found in this book, I guessed who "the bad guys" were very early on, but I still could not put the book down because I wanted (and needed) to see if I was right. It had an element that was more horrifying than the typical Anne Perry book. The fact that I stayed up till 3 am to finish it on a work night means it definately rates 5 stars for me.
Rating:
Summary: Could not put it down after the first third
Review: I have read roughly 12 Anne Perry books so far. This was my 3rd William Monk book. In general I am finding I like the William Monk series a little more than the Thomas and Charlotte Pitt series. There are a few things that bug me about the way Anne writes, such as the term "pulled a small face" which seems to be used two or three times in every book, and also sometimes the mystery is given away too easily. I found in this book, I guessed who "the bad guys" were very early on, but I still could not put the book down because I wanted (and needed) to see if I was right. It had an element that was more horrifying than the typical Anne Perry book. The fact that I stayed up till 3 am to finish it on a work night means it definately rates 5 stars for me.
Rating: 
Summary: A victorian mystery featuring Inspector Monk? HUH Where?
Review: I try to avoid giving 1 star because there is usually some redeeming quality to a book/film. But not Anne Perry's work. Here is a woman who gives formula writers a good name. She is completly unable to get to the point, chosing instead to just wander aimlessly on for page after page after page. At times there seems no end to it. But I think this writer a fool and utterly over rated in every sense of the word. These books are meant to be about a certain William Monk. A Sherlock Holmes copy but with a twist. Quite interesting and one reason why I picked the first 3 books up. But he is only the star in the first book. AND HE DOESN'T SOLVE THE CRIME IN THE SECOND! Somebody else does. The third follows the same trend as the second. The true star is a nurse. A nurse who HAS no point to be in any story other than the first one. Of which she was an important player. But after that she has no place whatsoever to be in any of the other books. She is a nurse nothing more, yet everyone she knows dies. Death follows her and she interigates the grieving families like a police office. A ridiculas concept. William Monk who is an interesting character and who until fired from his position as an Inspector had every reason to be involved in the deaths without prior connection to the families. A concept that seems to be lost on perry. It's almost like she got bored with Monk after the first book and decided the nurse is a much more interesting character. On top of that, every book is the same. All the characters in them are clones of previous ones. And they are all sterotypes. There is no difference in their mannerisms, beliefs or reactions. They are just robots following a routine. They go on and on about the same things well after any reader has recieved the idea. She is so hooked on the setting that she loses in every department. Characters, story, plot, forward motion and the ambiance that Victorian London has all suffer because of it. These books would not have been anywhere near as popular if they had been written in a modern setting. .... If you wish to read Anne Perry then I suggest the first William monk book which I did enjoy, but then move on to other things.
Rating:
Summary: A victorian mystery featuring Inspector Monk? HUH Where?
Review: I try to avoid giving 1 star because there is usually some redeeming quality to a book/film. But not Anne Perry's work. Here is a woman who gives formula writers a good name. She is completly unable to get to the point, chosing instead to just wander aimlessly on for page after page after page. At times there seems no end to it. But I think this writer a fool and utterly over rated in every sense of the word. These books are meant to be about a certain William Monk. A Sherlock Holmes copy but with a twist. Quite interesting and one reason why I picked the first 3 books up. But he is only the star in the first book. AND HE DOESN'T SOLVE THE CRIME IN THE SECOND! Somebody else does. The third follows the same trend as the second. The true star is a nurse. A nurse who HAS no point to be in any story other than the first one. Of which she was an important player. But after that she has no place whatsoever to be in any of the other books. She is a nurse nothing more, yet everyone she knows dies. Death follows her and she interigates the grieving families like a police office. A ridiculas concept. William Monk who is an interesting character and who until fired from his position as an Inspector had every reason to be involved in the deaths without prior connection to the families. A concept that seems to be lost on perry. It's almost like she got bored with Monk after the first book and decided the nurse is a much more interesting character. On top of that, every book is the same. All the characters in them are clones of previous ones. And they are all sterotypes. There is no difference in their mannerisms, beliefs or reactions. They are just robots following a routine. They go on and on about the same things well after any reader has recieved the idea. She is so hooked on the setting that she loses in every department. Characters, story, plot, forward motion and the ambiance that Victorian London has all suffer because of it. These books would not have been anywhere near as popular if they had been written in a modern setting. .... If you wish to read Anne Perry then I suggest the first William monk book which I did enjoy, but then move on to other things.
Rating:
Summary: Great Tale!!
Review: I've only started reading Anne Perry a couple months ago and started with the William Monks books as they seemed a little more recent and accessible. I've always been a lover of Victorian mysteries and this has to be one of the best I have ever read and one of the better books I have read period. Basically the book can be broken into thirds, first third is relatively interesting as it lays out the opening facts in the case, the second half gets extremely frustrating and to some degree boring and the last third will keep you up until 4AM in the morning like it did me because you can't put it down. I think the second third was done on purpose as I think Anne wanted us to be as frustrated as the characters were at the lack of progress in the case. You do start to suspect the motive but it unravels slowly and when it does, all I can say is "Oh my god!" The last third is riveting as you can't wait to see how it all plays out especially in light of Victorian social mores. Don't get me wrong, Anne Perry has a number of annoying quirks in her writing, she loves SAT words like prevaricate and equivocate and uses them every chance she gets, her use of third person omniscient gets a little out of hand and her characters are a little slow to deduce things that you know they should have 100 pages earlier. If you can get past these difficulties and some others, however, Anne Perry creates very strong characters and in this case, a riveting tale.
Rating:
Summary: Teamwork featured in the third book in the "Monk" series
Review: The first two books in this series featured Monk with assistance as needed from freelance nurse, Hester, and the attorney, Rathbourne. The dynamic changes a bit in this book. Hester has the leading role as she is the link to the family of both the victim and the accused. Likewise, since the arrest happens early in the book, much of the book focuses on the formation of a legal defense resulting in a much bigger role for Rathbourne. Monk isn't forgotten but his role is secondary. (Indeed, the handful of times where he explores his forgotten past are almost awkward interruptions in the flow of the book.) I liked this use of the three characters -- probably because I like Hester a great deal. She's feisty and smart. The overall reading experience is a mixed bag. After an adequate start, the book really bogs down in the middle section. Some good editing would have trimmed about 30 pages. Fortunately, the final hundred pages are dandy -- more than making up for the tedium of the earlier parts of the book. It was also interesting to read a book that was focused on the motive for the crime rather than determining and locating the criminal. As seems to be the case in all the Perry books I've read so far, the plot is focused on getting behind the facade of respectable upper class Victorian families. Who else would have the money to hire our heroes? I enjoy the upstairs/downstairs insights as well as the historical social commentary. Bottom-line: I liked this Agatha nominated book. First time readers are strongly encouraged to read this series in order (starting with The Face of a Stranger).
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