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Book Description He might be elegant, but there's no mistaking it--the gentleman tied to the lamppost on Westminster Bridge is definitely dead. Before Inspector Thomas Pitt can even speculate on why anyone should want to kill the eminent M.P., Sir Lockwood, a colleague of his, meets the same fate at the same spot. The public is outraged, and clever Charlotte Pitt, Thomas's well-born wife, helps her hard-pressed husband by scouting society's drawing rooms for clues to these appalling crimes. Meanwhile, another victim is being stalked.... "Mrs. Perry once again demonstrates her true and lively passion....Her finely drawn characters couldn't be more comfortable within the customs and sensibility of their historical period." THE NEW YORK TIMES BOOK REVIEW Reader Reviews 1 of 1 people found the following review helpful: A Road With A Pitt-Fall, August 30, 2002 Reviewer: antiochandy from Antioch, CA USA BETHLEHEM ROAD is another installment in the Thomas and Charlotte Pitt series. As such, it has all of the usual features: interesting and, in many cases, familiar characters, an intriguing plot, Victorian London as the backdrop, and a burning social issue of the day that plays a significant role in the story. As occaisionally happens, Ms. Perry lets her soapbox get in the way of her mystery once or twice in this one, but that's only a minor problem. For most of the story, the plot revolves around a series of murders involving MPs. Each is found tied to the same lamppost with his throat cut. Each was returning home alone and on foot from an evening session of Parliament. This is pretty riveting stuff, and for most of the book there is no obvious suspect. The only suspect on the horizon seems unlikely to be the perpetrator. Both Thomas and Charlotte are baffled. Ultimately, however, the solution to this mystery is only the prelude to the real climax of the story, which is abrupt in true Anne Perry style. For me, the solution to (or, really, the rationale for) the lamppost murders is this book's weakness and it's what keeps this from being a five-star book. The lamppost murders need more of a tie-in. At the risk of giving away too much, it just seemed to me that the lack of intent and motive for these murders left a little to be desired when all was said and done. BETHLEHEM ROAD is a pretty good mystery with most of the strengths usually found in the Pitt series. While Perry perhaps over-reaches herself a bit here in trying to pull off a plot within a plot, it will keep readers turning the pages from beginning to end. I found it entertaining and recommend it to other mystery readers, particularly fans of the Pitt series.
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