Stuart Turton’s The Seven Deaths of Evelyn Hardcastle is one of my favourite books from the last few years. It boasts an innovation and complexity that shows itself stronger than ever in his second book The Devil and the Dark Water, an eerie and engaging historical mystery full of intrigue and certain peril.
Stuart Turton
It’s 1634 and the voyage to Amsterdam is set to sail. Onboard are sailors, musketeers, passengers, nobility and Samuel Pipps, the world’s greatest detective, who is imprisoned for a crime he may or may not have committed. His friend and bodyguard, Arent Hayes, must protect him while trying to prove his innocence, but this proves difficult when devilry emerges soon after embarking. With Pipps imprisoned, only Arent can solve the mystery, as strange symbols and seemingly supernatural occurrences threaten the lives of all aboard.
Taking inspiration from Western Australia’s history of shipwrecks, Turton has created an epic seaworthy adventure that’s part supernatural and part historical fiction, packed with just about everything you could want in a 1600s high-sea mystery. From superstition and occult to heroes, villains and a Holmes/Watson detective duo – with a twist – Turton masterfully guides the reader through the layered, complex mystery with clarity and captivation.
Stuart Turton’s aim for The Devil and the Dark Water was a big mystery: sweeping adventure with a dash of dread and plenty of heroism told through an epic journey. All I can say is that this definitely did feel like an epic. Turton’s wonderfully charismatic writing style is perfect for setting the scene of a mystery and capturing the intricate world-building, nuanced relationships and wealth of unique, vibrant and memorable characters. It’s obvious that each element of this story was crafted with care and intellect, and it was a privilege to read.
The Devil and the Dark Water is another high-concept, intelligent and well imagined mystery from Stuart Turton that proves his talent for the unusual and remarkable. I highly recommend this for fans of historical fiction, mystery and the unexpected.
—The Devil and the Dark Water by Stuart Turton (Bloomsbury Books Australia) is out now.
The Devil and the Dark Water
An impossible murder. A remarkable detective duo. A demon who may or may not exist.
It's 1634 and Samuel Pipps, the world's greatest detective, is being transported from the Dutch East Indies to Amsterdam, where he is facing trial and execution for a crime he may, or may not, have committed. Travelling with him is his loyal bodyguard, Arent Hayes, who is determined to prove his friend innocent, while also on board are Sara Wessel, a noble woman with a secret, and her husband, the governor general of Batavia. But no sooner is their ship out to sea than devilry begins to blight the voyage...
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