The Oscar Wilde Murder Mysteries

This is a series, written by Gyles Brandreth, set against the exotic backdrop of London, Paris, America and the Vatican and evokes Oscar Wilde’s trademark wit and brilliance with huge flair, intertwining all the intrigue of the classic English murder mystery with a compelling portrait of one of the greatest characters of the Victorian age. I would call it historical faction as the diaries of Richard Sherard (Oscar Wilde’s biographer and grandson of William Wordsworth) have been shown to be a major source of information. “Lovers of historical mystery will relish this chilling Victorian tale based on real events and cloaked in authenticity” according to Gyles. 

I have read the first 4 of the 6 novels. (http://www.oscarwildemurdermysteries.com/b6_description.php provides shot synopsis of each book and also the alternative titles for the USA market for some of the books.)

1.      Oscar Wilde and the Candlelight Murders

2.      Oscar Wilde and The Ring of Death

3.      Oscar Wilde and Dead Man’s Smile

4.      Oscar Wilde and the Nest of Vipers

5.      Oscar Wilde and the Vatican Murders

6.      Oscar Wilde and the Murders at Reading Gaol

The stories are well told and the element of mystery is extremely well handled. In fact for the 4 stories I have read the twist in the tale identifying the culprit at the end defiantly comes as a surprise. As the tale is told from the detailed information within the diaries all the facts have been laid out and still the plot is not easy to unravel. I have had such fun reading this and puzzling over the identity of the murderer and also the motive of murder. 

The other draw to the books is reading about personalities you have heard of, for example Sir Arthur Canon Doyle is a friend of Oscar and is around the time when he has just published his first Sherlock Homes book. He is a part of many of the tales and seems to pick ideas and events that he could later weave into this books. Indeed he is seen to be stating often that Oscar could be Sherlock and with Richard Sherard keeping a detailed written account of his daily life he was easily demonstrating the role of Watson. Arthur Canon Doyle is a practicing doctor and also a sculpture. There is a fascinating glimpse in this well-known personality. 

Bram Stoker is another name I recognised who is a friend, and well ‘into’ the existence of vampires while researching for his famous character Dracula. One of the stories runs around the theatre and gives us glimpses of the lives of Sarah Bernhardt and actor-manager Edmond La Grange. In another tale you see the lives of the Prince of Wales, his son, and other royalty such as Duke and Duchess of Albemarle. There is a look at the then understanding of and practice of psychiatry with hypnosis being the popular therapy for most mental illnesses and in particular hysteria of all kinds as well as medical research. There are other actors, painters, musicians that are dotted around the stories and most are, of course, familiar names. 

The final fascination of these stories is the description of life in those times which can be surprising considering the eventual straight-laced attitudes of the British people. The open use of drugs such as cocaine was normal and they were indeed sold over the counter and advised for healthier living. Having a wife did not stop men from having affairs. It seems that while this was happening in many of the marriages that it was a norm but not on display as such. All wink wink nudge nudge variety. While it was not legal to be a homosexual during these times, the stories tell of how clandestine groups and friendships existed all on the hush hush. There was also an accepted fact that ‘men will be men’ and so will form relationships with actresses, dancers, ‘ladies of disrepute’ and so on.  Thus the times, fashion and lives of people are described well in the stories. Gyles provides a good deal of detail with regards to the fashion of this period, which sometimes boggles the mind at the combinations of colours and fabrics. 

So besides a good mystery these books provide a look at the times, live of various well known figures and of course a lot about Oscar Wilde’s personality, his friends, his writings, his wife and sons. While there is no need to read them in any particular order as each one is a clear stand-alone story I am obsessed in reading according to the order of publication. I am on to my next book………Hope you enjoy them as well.