Sidney Chambers and The Perils of the Night: Grantchester Mysteries 2

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1955. Canon Sidney Chambers, loveable priest and part-time detective, is back. Accompanied by his faithful Labrador, Dickens, and the increasingly exasperated Inspector Geordie Keating, Sidney is called to investigate the unexpected fall of a Cambridge don from the roof of King's College Chapel, a case of arson at a glamour photographer's studio and the poisoning of Zafar Ali, Grantchester's finest spin bowler. Alongside his sleuthing, Sidney has other problems. Can he decide between his dear friend, the glamorous socialite Amanda Kendall and Hildegard Staunton, the beguiling German widow To make up his mind Sidney takes a trip abroad, only to find himself trapped in a web of international espionage just as the Berlin Wall is going up.

Reviews

While the diminutive priest detective created by G. K. Chesterton led the way, Sidney Chambers is set fair to be a worthy successor ... this is quite an achievement -- Barry Turner * Daily Mail *
Chambers turns out to be a winning clergyman-sleuth, and Runcie's literary authority is repeatedly demonstrated in the construction of his elegant tales ... there is no denying the winning charm of these artfully fashioned mysteries -- Barry Forshaw * Independent *
Inspector Morse would appear to have a rival -- Mary Crockett * Scotland on Sunday *
No detective since Father Brown has been more engaging than Canon Sidney Chambers. Perfect company in bed -- Salley Vickers, author of Miss Garnet's Angel
The clerical milieu is well rendered as an affectionate eye is cast over post-war England - a perfect accompaniment to a sunny afternoon, a hammock and a glass of Pimm's * Guardian *
Alexander McCall Smith's Mma Ramotswe is going to have to look to her laurels! Sidney Chambers's adventures are thoroughly captivating and engaging. I loved the character and I loved the highly evocative period feel and dialogue -- Amanda Craig, author of Love in Idleness
The coziest of cozy murder mysteries ... These stories present a consistently charming and occasionally cutting commentary on "a postwar landscape full of industry, promise and concrete" * New York Times Book Review *
Only a churl could resist Sidney, whose musings on love, evil and morality, penchant for quoting snippets of poetry, preference for whiskey over the endless cups of tea he is offered, and ratiocinative success at unraveling crimes make him endearing * Kirkus *
The series has a charming quaintness and deftly turning plot twists but what renders it unique as detective fiction is its overtly Christian content -- Arifa Akbar * Independent *
Totally English, beautifully written, perfectly in period and wryly funny. More, please! -- Leslie Geddes Brown * Country Life *
It takes a first-class writer to put together a convincing storyline for such unlikely circumstances. James Runcie does it admirably He is a good man in an imperfect world and we should welcome him to the ranks of classic detectives * Daily Mail *
Runcie is emerging as Grantchesters answer to Alexander McCall Smith. The book brings a dollop of Midsomer Murders to the Church of England, together with a literate charm of its own: civilized entertainment, with dog-collars * Spectator *
James Runcie is one of the best -- Barry Turner * Daily Mail *

Author Bio

James Runcie is the Head of Literature at The Southbank Centre, an award-winning film-maker and the author of five novels. Sidney Chambers and The Shadow Of Death, the first of 'The Grantchester Mysteries' series, was published in 2012. He lives in London and Edinburgh. @james_runcie