The Darwin Affair: A Novel Paperback – June 23, 2020

This one of the better “entertainments” I’ve read this year. There’s a plot afoot to murder certain members of the British Royal Family over their support for Charles Darwin and his theory of evolution, a plot which detective Charles Field must race to foil. Set in Victorian England, in the year 1860, “The Darwin Affair” combines vivid historical detail with tight plotting to keep readers turning pages well into the night. The characters are well drawn and entertaining, and author Tim Mason gives us one of the better villains I’ve seen in some time. Other “players” are reminiscent of some of the more eccentric of Charles Dickens’s characters, which is appropriate since Dickens makes a cameo appearance.“The Darwin Affair” is perfect for fans of Dickens, Sherlock Holmes, Michael Crichton’s “The Great Train Robbery,” or Caleb Carr’s “The Alienist;” or anyone and everyone wanting to spend a little bit of time hanging out with Queen Victoria and Prince Albert both in London and abroad.

I really loved this book. A cameo appearance by Dickens and the minor but developed character of Charles Darwin are very well done. There is a Victorian flavor to the story in more ways than just the setting. I blew through this book rather quickly but it was one of those books that I didn't want to end. Speaking of the ending, this was probably the weakest section, but still pretty good.

I learned a lot about the reaction to Darwin's research and books. The story was action packed and very exciting too . The 1850/1860s were teeming with interesting periods.

There is a lot to enjoy in this historical thriller. The author, Tim Mason, is generally able to keep our attention focused as the story gallops through a series of horrific murders in 1860, mostly in London. Many period details add to the pleasure of reading the book, as does Mason’s inclusion of several real-life Victorians (most centrally Prince Albert) in major and minor roles. Mason depicts the extravagance of the royals’ life, the modest comforts of middle-class Londoners (such as the heroic detective inspector and his wife), and the desperation of those at the bottom of society (who traffic in stolen bodies or empty the pockets of corpses floating in the Thames). There are lean, focused sections that make the book a page-turner at times, especially when Mason sticks with the detective inspector’s perspective. But the book feels cluttered with too many minor characters that are never developed enough to stick in memory or to serve the plot. And when one of these quickly-sketched characters is murdered, we are virtually never invested in them enough to feel horror or dread. Similarly, too many developments seem to depend upon highly out of-character or preposterous actions. We learn very early who is committing the murders -- a virtually superhuman sociopath -- and the novel’s most suspenseful sections involve the detective inspector’s dogged efforts at identifying and tracking him down. The detective inspector soon determines that the murders involve a conspiracy of some sort, and we are led to see the origin and extent of the conspiracy as the central mystery to be resolved. But those answers never arrive, and the mystery becomes a tedious, incoherent mess by the end. This lack of resolution could make sense if the book were to stick entirely with the detective’s perspective and we could see that he is never able to solve the case completely because the conspirators occupy a higher station in life than he does. But Mason chooses to have an omniscient third-person narrator and nonetheless elects never to explain how such a treasonous conspiracy could have taken root. Reading the book felt to me like a visiting a great country home whose considerable charms and wonders are marred by piles of clutter and hallways that lead nowhere. I think rigorous de-cluttering could have revealed the more coherent, propulsive thriller this novel might have been.

The Darwin Affair is a good historical fiction that is an excellent distraction from a pandemic summer. The characters were enjoyable.

I found it fascinating. The author is a Dickens fan and I played a little game to see which of the characters I could trace back to Dickens. The book makes much of historical coincidences, something like Forest Gump. It was an easy , quick read. I felt transported into the Victorian era. Of course many of the personalities are well known. Sadly the book ends with something of a rush and crash. It was a fun read though.

Tim Mason's The Darwin Affair is a rollercoaster of a novel: fun, frivolous and fully satisfying. The dizzying plot and Gilbert-and-Sullivan-like characters are set in Victorian times when Prince Albert, the Queen's well-educated and liberal leaning Consort, supports Charles Darwin, whose recently published theories blew the cobwebs away from Biblical myth as to how we got here and have since evolved. Dickens, Huxley and other beacons of the age make appearances, but it is Mason's quirky reversals and revelations that make this modern-day Penny-dreadful so entertaining. A highly recommended read!

I love detective stories because I like to guess whodunit and thinking what the motives are. But this isn't about guessing whodunit. The killer is known from early on and it's about 'catch me if you can' story; which sometimes become too overextended.What I like about this book is its creation of a story based on true facts. It doesn't change the history, it manages to play around it. I never would have thought that one could bumped into Darwin and Marx in a same place. Very brilliant.

Learn an intriguing twist in the history of evolutionary theory while immersed in riveting drama.

I enjoy this style of book. As with the ideas that a good lie needs to be based in truth, so this great story has enough historical truth to make it believeable. And a story really well told. Thank you.

Considering that “ The Darwin Affair “ is Tim Mason’s first book for an adult audience, I give it a high rating. Admittedly ,I love anything to do with the Victorian era. I wouldn’t rate this book at the same level as my other favourite summer reads , such as Daniel Silva. In time ,however, who knows. Maybe Inspector ( or a promoted up the ladder) Charles Field will appear Zelig like at other Victorian Era crime scenes such as the Jack the Ripper slayings.

The Darwin AffairTim Mason 20193.5 starsAuthorAmerican playwright and Dickens tragic. He’s written a fantasy novel for children. This is his first novel for adults, I think.PremiseSomeone’s trying to assassinate Queen Victoria and it’s got something to do with Charles Darwin’s On the Origin of Species, or has it? London police detective Charles Field investigates. Field was a real person and is reputed to be the inspiration for one of the first ever fictional detectives Inspector Bucket, from Bleak House by Dickens. Mason goes all meta by making it so. His Inspector Field is a figure of great notoriety in mid-19th century London as a result.PlotHistorical police procedural featuring a conspiracy based in religious fundamentalism, a highly villainous villain, celebrity cameos (Victoria and Albert, Darwin, Dickens etc), and a colourful supporting cast. There’s a chase too. Willing suspension of belief required.CharactersWell enough drawn if not exceptional, or believable.ProseCrisp, clear and of good pace.Bottom lineIt was okay.

Too laboured in efforts to emulate Dickens — too little plot momentum