This is the fourth novel in the Railway Detective series set in the mid 19th century, at the time when the railways were revolutionising the economy and social life of Britain. This story starts with the discovery of a severed head in a hatbox at Crewe station, and concerns the murderously bitter rivalry between the trainers of the leading horses contending to win the 1854 Derby. I quite like the central characters Inspector Colbeck and Sergeant Leeming, though the former is a bit too irritatingly perfect and the latter a rather cliched stolid sidekick of a plod - they don't really feel like three dimensional characters. The scene of the actual Derby race itself in the final chapter, with people of all classes able to travel from far away on the new-fangled excursion trains to enjoy the occasion, reminded me of the crowds travelling to the bare-knuckle fight in the second novel, The Excursion Train. The dialogue in this one seemed a bit more natural than the sometimes rather stilted dialogue in the earlier novels. Overall, a decent engaging page turner. ( )

Edward Marston provided me with another page turner, the first book that I have read in less than two days for a very long time. Right from the word go I was drawn into the scheming world of Horse Racing to which Inspector Colbeck is led by a very macabre discovery at Crewe Station. Colbeck is an intriguing detective with some rather unusual methods, ably assisted by Sergeant Leeming, who hates travelling by train, but who is a very thorough policeman, although it does seem that he is the one who is on the receiving end of any rough stuff! Madeleine Andrew, becoming ever closer to Colbeck, is also invaluable in the solving of the crime(s).
Marston has also created a thoroughly detestable Senior Officer in Superintendent Edward Tallis, whose jaundiced view of society makes him very difficult to work for, and he is probably very jealous of Colbeck’s continued success, putting obstacles in his way at every opportunity. The Horse Racing protagonists are also well developed, each of them unpleasant in his own way, each distrusting of the others, and each getting their comeuppance by the time the crimes have been solved.
I think that I knew who the murderer was when he was first introduced into the story, but I was never quite sure until nearer the end.
A good read, must acquire the next one!
( )

Book 4 in a very enjoyable series. These books gallop along at some pace (apologies for the pun given the book involves horses and The Derby). I find these books very engaging and fully buy into the main characters, and there is good variety in the three main characters in the series. I look forward to continuing my reading of the series and also getting hold of other Edward Marston books. 4 stars. ( )

From the website:
"The fourth outing of the Railway Detective is based around the Derby of 1854. When a porter unloads luggage from the roof of a train in Crewe, he drops a trunk on to a lady’s hatbox and breaks the strap. As the hatbox opens, a human head rolls out. It is the beginning of a case that takes Inspector Robert Colbeck to Ireland, where one of the favourites for the Derby is being trained, and sets him off on a trawl through the nobility, crooks and undesirables who live off horseracing.

Overcoming his dislike of train travel, Sergeant Victor Leeming is eager to be involved because he hopes he may pick up valuable tips about the Derby itself. The detectives follow a tortuous route through the London underworld and soon discover that they have more than one serious crime to solve. Their efforts are hampered by the fact that there is a spy in Scotland Yard who is warning one of their suspects about their movements.

The action builds to a climax at Epsom where the Derby brings the three fancied horses together and unleashes further crimes. Colbeck and Leeming – aided by Madeleine Andrews, who gains information that only a woman could glean - have to work at full stretch to bring the villains to book."

I really didn't care for this one too much, as I did not like any of the peripheral characters, they were all nasty, mean, greedy, ugly people, all getting their "just desserts". There was too much conversational filler & going around in circles, so I skipped a lot.

I thoroughly dislike Inspector Tallis as well, and what I do not understand about British mysteries is that there is always an asshat in a supervisory or superior position that dislikes the main investigator for the fact that they happen to be of keener intelligence and work to fit clues together rather than simply take things at face value. ( )

This is the fourth book in this Victorian era police procedural. This volume's story line concentrates on horse racing as much as it does the railways of the era. The case starts with the discovery of a severed head in a ladies hatbox, after said hatbox falls onto the platform, opening up and revealing its grisly contents. Inspector Colbeck investigates and the trail swiftly moves to the world of horses and the racing world and the very nasty attempts to interfere with the favourites in the Derby become more deadly as the race draws closer. ( )