The Cater Street Hangman: The First Charlotte and Thomas Pitt Novel

I don't know what literary rock I have been hiding under, but Anne Perry's Thomas and Charlotte Pitt series has just come on my radar. Ms. Perry is an extremely prolific writer, producing 32 books in this series to date (written from 1979-2016). In addition, she has written another Victorian mystery series featuring William Monk, and numerous other books and short story collections. To make things even more interesting, Ms. Perry was convicted of participating in the murder of her best friend's mother. They were both sentenced to 5 years in prison. She was 15 years old at the time. The two girls had a rather obsessive relationship and killed the mother to prevent the family from moving away. If this sounds vaguely familiar, the movie Heavenly Creatures was based on the friendship and murder. So, fertile ground for a writer of mysteries. The Cater Street Hangman is the first in the series of books featuring Thomas Pitt and Charlotte Ellison. It is set in 1881. Young women, both above and below stairs, are being garroted on Cater Street, a wealthy London neighborhood. Charlotte is the middle daughter in the Ellison family and is the most unconventional. Her older sister Sarah is married and proper. Younger sister Emily is a master at the social arts and aims to marry above her station. Charlotte cannot hold her tongue, hates hypocrisy and social rules, and is interested in unladylike things such as current events. Enter Inspector Pitt, who is barely tolerated by the upper class. Verbal and romantic sparks fly between Thomas and Charlotte, as she finds she has an interest in detective work. And she worries about the safety of her sisters and other young women, as murder gets very close to her home. While I figured out the guilty party about mid-way through the book, I still enjoyed it. It is a good page-turner and is easily read in a sitting or two. The ending was quite abrupt, which I did not like. I thought the chapter ended, but it was actually the end of the book! I would also have liked a more in-depth explanation of the murder's motives and psychological make-up. However, I recognize that is not the point of these books. I really enjoyed the Victorian London atmosphere and all the class and social rules. In addition to the mystery, this book explores the consequences of marrying outside your station (above and below) and the subservient role of women. At least subservient on the surface. Charlotte and Emily certainly know how to use their wit and charm to get what they want. I am not sure that I will read all 32 books in this series, but I did purchase 8 of them for $1.99 each for the Kindle. So, I am off to read book 2--Callander Square.

I admit that I am a bit of an Anglophile and so am quite smitten with books taking place in England. I also enjoy murder mysteries very much and since this book puts both together and does it quite well, I very much enjoyed, not only this book, but the entire series. The plot has been covered by others so I won't repeat it, but the mystery is done very well and keeps you guessing until the very end. I liked very much that the author mixed in a developing love story, although it's definitely an aside and doesn't detract from the mystery in any way. The book also does a very good job of giving the feel for what Victorian Era England was like, the caste system, the stiff upper lip, the dismissiveness towards the police by the aristocracy, who after all, are just working class people in their eyes! The book is also very well written. Good writing, good mystery, good story line. What's there not to like?

The Cater Street Hangman by Anne Perry is the first in a long series of novels featuring Charlotte and Thomas Pitt. I'm delighted to have found these new-to-me Victorian mysteries and relish the thought of reading the entire series. I liked the writer's voice from the very start. Perry expertly combines two stories here: one about the morals and manners of the Victorian period, the other a gruesome mystery. While some readers may find the author a bit heavy-handed, I was interested in her description of the role of women within the family and the patriarchal, societal and religious influences on their restrictive lives. In spite of this, while not without her faults, Charlotte evidences intelligence and a strong will. Perry does an exceptional job describing the dynamics of the Ellison family and their lives. I felt like I was right in their midst enjoying tea in the withdrawing room, and being overcome with confusion, fear and doubt as the murders progress. Well-drawn and distinctive characters here in the daughters and other family members. There is a sharp contrast between Charlotte's sheltered existence and the harsh realities of the Victorian netherworld as recounted by Insp. Pitt. I particularly enjoyed the delightful scene when Charlotte gets quite an education of the criminal class while waiting in Pitt's office. Well paced, especially as we zero in on the murderer, I flew through the book and admit, while I had lots of suspicions, it took me nearly until the reveal to identify the perpetrator......I love that in a mystery. While really not looking for too much more romance, I might have enjoyed a little more development of Charlottes's feelings for Insp. Pitt, especially as we don't get much information on how he rather quickly goes from admiring Charlotte to proposing to her. I felt the book ended a bit abruptly and perhaps a final short epilogue was needed, but all in all The Cater Street Hangman was a very satisfying read. I'm looking forward to the other books in the series, which some reviewers have stated may be even better than this one. Lots more fun to look forward to.

Anne Perry’s The Cater Street Hangman (Charlotte and Thomas Pitt Series Book 1) is one of the more uncommon murder mysteries that I’ve ever read. I call it a murder mystery because I’m not sure that I can properly call it a detective novel. The protagonist is a feisty young lady who hardly more than accidentally makes discoveries relevant to the case, and the actual police detective does almost nothing on the stage of the novel except question said young lady, who is not, as it happens, the murderer. The detective does not make use of any forensic evidence, nor is he shown interviewing suspects other than the ones in the protagonist Charlotte’s family. The detective, Inspector Thomas Pitt, is eminently likeable and clearly hardworking, but his work seems irrelevant. In the end, the case isn’t really solved—the murderer merely attacks the wrong person at the wrong time and is finally caught. So in this murder mystery, the plot action is carried along purely by circumstances, not by actual deduction. Despite this, Perry does a fine job of keeping the pace taut, a significant feat for this genre. The one other detrimental factor, an actual flaw in the book as opposed to merely a unique way of handling murder mystery plotting, is that Perry switches perspectives unevenly. In the first few chapters, some are told from a limited-omniscient perspective focused on Charlotte, others are LO focused on her sister Emily, and still others on their mother. Then the rest of the novel, except for sections from the brother-in-law Dominic’s perspective, is Charlotte’s LO point of view. I’m not sure what Perry could have done to fix this problem, but since none of the chapters are in first-person and most of the novel is devoted to Charlotte, the multiple points of view make for choppy and confusing reading until Charlotte’s story finally stays on center stage. Since the novel isn’t actually about detective work, what is it about? As with all good murder mysteries, it is about human nature. This novel is worth reading for its rich insights about human nature, marriage, infidelity, conflict, forgiveness, and sibling rivalry alone, never mind the enjoyable characters and dark suspense. Additionally, the Victorian setting is intriguing, and Perry actually makes use of her setting, rather than making it a mere backdrop. She vividly illustrates some of the nuanced challenges that women faced during this time period. What would Aristotle and John Keats say? In terms of truth and beauty, this novel is elegantly-written and filled with engaging plot and characters. Perry is remarkable in her ability to insightfully communicate truths about human nature. The greatness of content of this work would have to refer to the truths about human nature, not the less-than-complex plot, but I think a case can be made for it. The greatness of execution is well-served by Perry’s literate prose, but poorly served by the uneven point-of-view shifts. As for the strange case of the absent or irrelevant detective in this story, I think that Pitt and Charlotte might prove to be a very formidable detective team in the next novel in the series, actually solving cases rather than merely discussing them, now that their characters have been set up. I have high hopes for this, anyway.

Anne Perry writes well enough that her mysteries are decent historical fiction as well as historical mysteries. Her characters are interesting enough, that she could probably write some historical fiction without mysteries. In one book Disraeli dies, and he is discussed. I happen to enjoy reading about Disraeli, and so I find these little historical touches, that also establish time period, quite interesting. I should also mention General Ballantyne, who shows up in some of the novels, and who is interested in military history- those little snippets are also fascinating. You'll also get clues to the music, plays and literature of the time, as well as a thousand other details about Victorian London, if you read all the books. The books are well plotted, and it's difficult to guess the various murderers. Selfishly, I wish they were longer books, since I tore through them rather fast, but I suppose I could always reread them. I read Paragon Walk because someone gave it to me, and I loved it so much I then ordered every single book in the Pitt series from Amazon, and I was not disappointed. Some are better than others, and Perry does tend to repeat metaphors from time to time (like the "moons" of the gas lamps)- but I don't have a problem with that.

I enjoyed this book up until I got to the end. The ending felt so incomplete to me. In a burst of action we find out who the murderer is, and then the book just... ends. I turned the page on my kindle, excited to get to the next chapter, but there wasn’t any more to the book. The next page was the start of the preview for the next book. What the heck??? Aside from that, I loved the detail about Victorian-era society. The characters were well drawn and interesting. I enjoyed the budding romance between Inspector Pitt and Charlotte, although their engagement seemed a bit rushed. I realize Anne Perry is a much lauded author and this series continues on for many more books, so I will continue with it, even though the ending frustrated me. I’m hoping the other books in the series have better endings.

I started reading Anne Perry's novels years back when I accompanied my friend to Wichita,KA for a wedding. The whole trip was a nightmare, but the best part about the trip was randomly picking up Seven Dials at the airport as "just something to read" on the plane. That Anne Perry novel, was the first of many Thomas and Charlotte Pitt novels I lived in. Anne Perry's novels will entertain you, and re-create a time gone by so vividly, you feel fully immersed in the goals, ideals, society, and strife of that time. After buying a kindle, I finally had easy access to the first ever Thomas and Charlotte Pitt novel. As someone who started reading the novels when both characters were married for years, and already had both their children, it was both interesting and endearing to see the beginning of their love story. It was also nice to get the full back story of "Sarah","George Ashworth" & "Dominic", three characters who are referred to vaguely in various of the later novels...This is a great debut for Perry! I am embarking on reading all the novels, in chronological order this time .... can't wait for the introduction of Lady Vespasia Cumming-Gould #VictorianGoddess

It is always a great read

This is my first book of the Charlotte and Thomas Pitt saga I didn't realise how addictive Anne Perry's stories are. Elegantly written, humorous at moments and a excellent description of Victorian London upper-class society. It contains murders and twisted minds at their best!

Avec William Monk et Hester, je m'étais habituée à trouver un côté très fleur bleue chez Anne Perry. Ici, visiblement, elle ne fait pas exception et nous entraîne, au travers d'une série de crimes inexplicables , dans les affres d'une famille confrontée à deux de ces crimes. D'autres vont survenir avec, au fil du temps, les suspicions qui surgissent entre voisins et membres d'une même famille. Mais tout est bien qui finit bien!

I liked this book so much, that I started to read the whole series of the Charlotte and Thomas Pitt Series. The plot is settled in victorian London and the reader gets a lot of informations about the society live of this time. The story is not bloodthirsty but very exciting with pleasent actors.

Really enjoyed the read, so have purchased the second book in the series.

Ho letto molti anni fa questo libro in italiano e ora mi sono cimentata nella versione inglese. Ammetto che mi hanno aiutato le reminescienze di allora, ma il fascino di questo thriller rimane immutato. Il fatto di aver installato sul mio kindle , aiuta