Shadows in the White City: An Inspector Alastair Ransom ... (ISBN 0060739967)

Shadows in the White City:
Book Title: Shadows in the White City Author: Robert W. Walker Publisher: Harper Release Date: April, 2007 Reviewer: Lee Carper Robert W. Walker has really outdone himself with his recent novel, Shadows in the White City. I have to admit, I've never had the desire to read historical fiction, but this book had me hooked from the get-go. The setting remains the same as Walker's previous novel, City for Ransom, with Chicago in the late 1800's, during which time commerce, magnificent skyscrapers, and the World's Exposition leave the public in awe. Reprising his role from City for Ransom, protagonist Alastair Ransom takes center-stage once again. While others view the World's Exposition as something no less than amazing, Inspector Ransom sees quite the opposite. The Phantom of the Fair has wreaked havoc among fair-goers, and when the Inspector makes an arrest only to see them freed, he decides his way of justice is the only way to stop this bloodthirsty killer. Some view Ransom as a hero, while others carry their own agenda. The novel also features Dr. Jane Francis, a strong female who is forced to circumvent society's prejudice against women. Along with Ransom, she and her daughter Gabrielle, find themselves facing an even worse adversary than the Phantom of the Fair when bodies of the homeless begin surfacing in extraordinary numbers. Inspector Ransom manages to not only grasp the workings of forensics, but also bears a crucial understanding of the criminal mind, what we've come to know as profiling today. Dr. Jane Francis utilizes her skills as a physician, and Gabrielle steps up to the plate as she learns more about the down and destitute, a far cry from the cushioned world she's known so far. Author Robert W. Walker is certainly on top of his game. Not only does Inspector Ransom come alive on the page, but Walker succeeds in the female characters as well. Shadows in the White City is a riveting tale that will keep you awake until you turn the last page. It is not for the faint at heart. Walker's sequel, City of the Absent, is due out in December.

History and murder combined nicely with great characters:
Inspector Alastair Ransom is fighting more than just the heat in 1893 Chicago. He's fighting murder (which he's not above committing himself for the "right" reasons); his superiors on the police force (who aren't above murder if it's to their benefit); and public opinion (which the inspector couldn't care less about--unless it helps or hinders his quest to get to the truth). While the world's attention is centered on the wonders of the great fair, children are being slaughtered in a heinous fashion. Beyond the glamour and laughter, beyond where the average person will look, evil lurks in the shadows of the city, making the most vulnerable its prey. No one other than Alastair Ransom has the tenacity or the single-mindedness to combat evil and corruption in order to make the city safe. But lest you think Ransom is some sort of a super hero--he's not. This is the first Robert Walker book I've read. Perhaps because I don't read many historical novels of any genre, or perhaps because I hadn't read the predecessor, City for Ransom--it seemed to start a little slow. I found Ransom tedious in his trigger anger, and the repetition of thoughts and events overdone. But I stuck with it, mainly because of Walker's reputation. And I'm glad I did. Walker paints a time and place of gas-lit street lamps and horse-drawn carriages--a time on the dawn of great inventions waiting to catapult this country into a different age. He brings people into our lives who are forward thinking and compassionate, and whose hearts are hardened and feel their cruelty justified. By the end of Shadows in the White City, I felt a kinship with 1893 Chicago and many of the characters Walker has drawn and given dimension to. Even his secondary characters are fully formed and interesting in their own right. And Ransom? I would be proud to count him as a friend. Armchair Interviews says: Shadows in the White City is highly recommended.

Fast Read, Fun Mystery...:
I have not read the first book in this series (yet), but reading the prequel isn't required for the reader to pick up on the storyline of Walker's second Alastair Ransom mystery right away. As has been pointed out elsewhere, SHADOWS IN THE WHITE CITY contains some minor historical errors, such as the use of phonographs for background music when at the time only expensive, poor-quality wax cylinders were in use--but I would not hold this mystery to the same standard I'd hold a historical novel to. Mysteries are meant to be entertaining, delivering a suspenseful, page-turning plot peppered with unexpected twists. And that is something Walker's second book in this Alastair Ransom series does very well. The environs aren't painted completely enough by the text for me to imagine more than just bits and pieces of Chicago in 1893, which is the setting for this story. This is what cost the book its fifth star, as I expected a stronger visual impression. The characters are not deeply developed, but the dialogue between them more than makes up for that. Walker's characters speak in period prose that reads as naturally as any dialogue I've ever seen. It is the mark of an experienced author. The plot is lean. Walker didn't include any long, gratuitous digressions such as I'd be tempted to skip over. Crime in 1893 Chicago is nasty business. The murders are horrific and vividly described, enough so it may make some readers squeamish. Having said that, I appreciate the author didn't pull his punches. SHADOWS IN THE WHITE CITY builds into a nail-biting suspense soon after the middle, and becomes difficult to put down. I eagerly await the sequel, CITY OF THE ABSENT. -Byron C. Justice, Author of VIOLENT NIGHT Violent Night

Shadows in the White City:
My bookmark has just left Shadows in the White City, by Robert W. Walker. I will preface the review with the disclaimer that I am a slow reader, and most of my recreational reading is done at bedtime. For a number of reasons, partly personal scheduling, partly that portions of the book are really not good bedtime "lull me to sleep" material, it has taken me a couple of months to complete the book. For that reason, I fear that much of the general effect of the book was lost on me - but what I did get was sufficient that I will keep it in reserve for a time when I have a block of dark and stormy nights to revisit. "Shadows in the White City", the second in Walker's Inspector Alistair Ransom "City" series, is set in Chicago at the time of the World Columbian Exposition of 1893. Several books have explored this setting in recent years; Nancy Wikarski's The Fall of White City and Erik Larson's documentary The Devil in the White City come to mind as two examples. Unlike the others, Walker's "City" series does not place the Fair front and center, but rather in a more realistic context as part of Chicago as a whole. This is 1893 Chicago from the perspective of the people of Chicago, rather than the perspective of Fairgoers. We are left with no doubt that, while the Fair was truly a monumental achievement, and something of a miracle, it was also a huge pain in the tail to the people whose daily lives kept the city running. Walker has mentioned in a couple of interviews that some editorial decisions were enforced by the publisher; the opening of "Shadows" is actually the conclusion of the first in the trilogy, City for Ransom, which was running "longer than standard". I believe both books suffered somewhat as a result; the first was trimmed for length, and the second was expanded accordingly. This was not arbitrary hacking and padding, thankfully - the two books combined would have ended up with the same length, regardless of where the line was drawn between them - but the end result is such that if you read "City for Ransom", I suggest that you have "Shadows in the White City" on hand, so you can dive right in. The two dovetail very nicely together. In spite of my choppy approach to reading the book - on 3 nights, off 2, on 4, off 5 - the story refused to lose coherence. When I missed a full week of reading, I was afraid I was going to end up setting it aside, but I found it easy to pick up where I had left off. And in the final chapters, all the elements of the underlying hunt for a serial killer come together. I hesitate to resort to the overused phrase "perfect storm", but that was the impression I had - everything swirling together onto a vast cinematic canvas. I would love to see Tim Burton bring this series to the screen. Portions of "Shadows in the White City" are disturbing; Walker's past experience writing horror fiction is evident. Due to the nature of the victims in this story, parts of it are not easy reading. The violence is _not_ gratuitous - it is all part of the larger picture and, I think, essential to the story's impact. And that impact is forceful. I was caught a bit off guard, when I realized part way through that I was being led into an examination of the homeless in Chicago. This was in no way preachy, nor exploitive. But it was eye-opening, to see that the problems which were swept under the rug in 1893 are the same problems faced by Chicago one hundred and fifteen years later. Each of the major characters, and ultimately the reader, are asked to confront a question: Do you choose to give a damn? While my bookmark is moving on - to something much, much lighter - that question will remain with me, for a long time to come. At least, I hope it will.

'Shadows' left me in the dark:
Robert W. Walker does a tremendous job conveying the spirit and atmosphere of a city emerging from its own shadows in his second Alastair Ransom mystery. Unfortunately, most of the rest of the novel is so incoherent that it's hard to care. Rebuilding from the fire that nearly wiped it from the map and the history books, Chicago hosted the Colombian Exposition in 1894 - a world-wide success that ensured the vitality of the city for the hundred + years since. But dark deeds also occured as an influx of people from across the country migrated to Illinois that summer. Walker's mystery records some of these deeds, and ventures into some pretty dark territory while doing so. Recovering from injuries sustained in the first novel, "City for Ransom", Inspector Ransom is shocked to discover the man accused of the murders featured in his first case is released from prison. He then decides to take the law into his own hands, and makes sure the villain meets a suitable ending at the bottom of Lake Michigan. The book then abruptly switches focus, and Ransom becomes embroiled in a case of the missing daughter of a prominent Chicago citizen, while he deals with superiors who are out to disgrace him,gangs of homeless children, and an implausible romance with a woman doctor impersonating a man that even Ransom can't explain. Ransom is not a likeable character, but more than that, the author injects action that doesn't make sense. More than once I was forced to go back and re-read a passage to find out what happened. Which is a shame, because, at its heart, 'Shadows in the White City' has a darned good central plot that will have even the most jaded mystery reader nervously checking their windows. And there's a cast of characters that are individual and complex enough to propel the series into the double digits. But they are currently constrained in awkward plotting and semi-ridiculous situations. Fans of Erik Larson's 'Devil in the White City' will no doubt have their interest piqued by this novel, as mine was, but we deserve better.