Though I’ve read most of Marston’s books under the name Conrad Allen, The Railway Detective is the first book I’ve read under the Marston name. However, with my experience of Allen’s Dillman series, I felt confident that I was in for an interesting mystery set in an unusual physical setting during an interesting time period – in this case, a railway-themed mystery in Victorian-era England.
Well, suffice to say I wasn’t disappointed! As always, Marston manages to portray an interesting period of time, in this case the Victorian era, as well as the transportation technology that most well-defined it >>> here, steam-driven locomotives. I’ve got the series tagged as reportedly not Cozy on the appropriate pages of the list – for now I’m going to leave it since Detective Colbeck is an actual police detective, while most Cozy protagonists are amateurs, but I would definitely say that from what I have read so far, the Railway Detective Mystery Series seems well-suited for most Cozy Mystery fans, especially those interested in the Victorian era or train travel.
Dee says
Thank you for the recommendation! I look forward to reading this.
Danna - cozy mystery list says
Dee, you’re welcome! I hope you enjoy it.
susan ballantyne says
thank you i didnt know marsten had other names, so now i have more stories to read!
Danna - cozy mystery list says
Susan, you’re welcome! I do wish that more authors were a bit more forthcoming about their aliases sometimes.
Joan C Alberts says
WOW!! this book is the first of nineteen in the series..I have learned to go to Fantastic fiction and check out the author and his history..This gentleman is extremely prolific..Many series with long lists..But thank you for an interesting review..
Danna - cozy mystery list says
Joan, I hope you enjoy the series!
Elaine Behrendt says
Just recently read the first two of these wonderful stories. I highly recommend them and will continue on as soon as I finish other series I have started…
Danna - cozy mystery list says
Elaine, it’s always a constant struggle to keep up with favorites!
PaulD says
I suspect you’d also like Marston’s Home Front detective series, set during the First World War, also a police procedural, but following most of the cozy ‘basics’
Danna - cozy mystery list says
Paul, I’m sure I would! I’ll have to pick it up sooner or later as well.
Suzanne Garcia says
Paul, thank you for the recommendation. I will try this series as well since I enjoyed the Railway Detective so much!
James R Spears says
I checked out one of Marston books and I am enjoying it. Thank you for the recommendation.
Danna - cozy mystery list says
James, I’m glad that you’re enjoying it! (I removed the other post you made a bit earlier, as this appears to be the “updated” version…)
Aurora says
I look forward to reading this author-starting with the ship series.
Aurora
Danna - cozy mystery list says
Aurora, it’s definitely a series worth picking up as well! I hope you enjoy it.
Myrna Larson says
I have been reading English mystery books for 65 years. I never tire of them- old authors and new authors!
Danna - cozy mystery list says
Myrna, they’re certainly classics for a reason!
Susan* says
I love the ‘Great Liners’ series with Dillman and Porter, but for some reason, I could never get into these.
I’m glad others are enjoying them, though. The author is definitely a prolific and talented man, whatever name he was writing under!
Danna - cozy mystery list says
Susan, well, it’s likely just a matter of taste. I agree that the Dillman and Porter series is probably better for many of this audience – it certainly feels a bit “Cozier” at times.
Emma says
I just read the first book a few weeks ago. Now I am going after the others. Really liked it. Just what I needed… another series. I’ll never get caught up!
Danna - cozy mystery list says
Emma, that’s a good sort of problem to have, though!
Greenway says
Read your old movies list: Right there with ya; wish I had the access. Might include Miss Fisher’s Murder Mysteries (from K. Greenwood’s much more transgressive, but super-rich and somehow still cozy novel series). By way of your mention of the film noir In a Lonely Place (excellent, but): the novel by Dorothy B. Hughes, whom Hitch admired and worked with, was much better. Don’t know if the Ellery Queen, Nero Wolfe, Nancy Drew, Sherlock Holmes, etc. series and stand-alones are available. The Jesse Stone movies are top quality, kudos to Michael Brandman who took up the written series much more faithfully than Lorne Coleman (if not with the astonishing perfection Ace Atkins brings to the post-Parker Spensers). We can put a discreet cover over abominable (per)versions of Agatha Raisin, Sherlock Holmes, etc. of recent screenings. As President Swenson of Balaclava College would say, “AAUGHH!!”
Being glad for the good stuff and its authors while wistful of their fade, let’s also remember, on All Saints>All Souls, those so many filmmakers before and behind the cameras who brought things to the visual and have Gone On. The Murder, She Wrote list by itself is daunting!
Greenway says
Mildred Pierce fans: Don’t miss Todd Haynes’s superb remake! I believe it was a made-for-TV and might be best available through your local library. Kate Winslet as Mildred, Evan Rachael Wood as vicious daughter Veda, Guy Pierce as the final husband, and an amazing job of 2nd-quarter-of-the-20th-Century recreations of domestic Mission Revival architecture put up in New Jersey! Be sure to catch the “he went for the DAIRY?!” bit.
And don’t miss the late great Stewart Kaminsky’s Toby Peter’s Mystery (unless the hapless, dogged, almost-his-own-worst enemy detective’s beating-taker status is too far outside of cozy for you), MILDRED PIERCED, title referring to the arrowed fate of Toby’s office-space neighbor(appalling schlub dentist)’s harpy wife. Toby novels are always full of (semi…?) fictional takes on showbiz and political stars of mid-20th-Century USA and tasty details of the times. Those who love Elliot Roosevelt’s/William Harrington’s ELINOR ROOSEVELT MYSTERIES will probably revel in Toby’s, too.
Gill says
I’ve ten of the Railway Detective books and I’ve loved every one of them! I started with Murder on the Brighton Express and went on from there. I think you would also like the Domesday series and I’ve read the Wildcats of Exeter which I enjoyed very much. I’ve also tried the Soldier of Fortune series but I didn’t like this very much.
Suzanne Garcia says
Gill, thank you for the recommendation of the Domesday series! I shall try this one next!
Suzanne Garcia says
Hi Dana, I just finished reading the Railway Detective and loved it! I thought I remembered you blogging about this series and I was right! Thank you, as always, for the great recommendations!!
Danna - cozy mystery list says
Suzanne, you’re welcome, and I’m glad you enjoyed this recommendation!