Oscar Wilde and the Murders at Reading Gaol: A Mystery

Also by Gyles Brandreth in the Oscar Wilde series

Oscar Wilde and the Candlelight Murders

Oscar Wilde and the Ring of Death

Oscar Wilde and the Dead Man’s Smile

Oscar Wilde and the Nest of Vipers

Oscar Wilde and the Vatican Murders

Praise for Oscar Wilde and the Candlelight Murders

‘One of the most intelligent, amusing and entertaining books of the year. If Oscar Wilde himself had been asked to write this book he could not have done it any better’ Alexander McCall Smith

‘Wilde has sprung back to life in this thrilling and richly atmospheric new novel . . . The perfect topography for crime and mystery . . . magnificent . . . an unforgettable shocker about sex and vice, love and death’
Sunday Express

‘Gyles Brandreth and Oscar Wilde seem made for one another . . . There is much here to enjoy . . . the complex and nicely structured plot zips along’
Daily Telegraph

‘Brandreth has poured his considerable familiarity with London into a witty
fin-de-siècle
entertainment, and the rattlingly elegant dialogue is peppered with witticisms uttered by Wilde well before he ever thought of putting them into his plays’
Sunday Times

‘Fabulous . . . The plot races along like a carriage pulled by thoroughbreds . . . So enjoyably plausible’
Scotsman

‘Both a romp through
fin-de-siècle
London . . . and a carefully researched portrait of Oscar Wilde . . . Very entertaining’
Literary Review

‘Brandreth has the Wildean lingo down pat and the narrative is dusted with piquant social observations. A sparkling treat for fans of Wilde and Sherlock Holmes alike’
Easy Living

‘A lively, amusing and clever murder mystery starring Oscar Wilde – larger than life, brilliant, generous, luxurious – with a new trait: he is now a master sleuth not unlike Sherlock Holmes . . . Brandreth is steeped in the lore of Wilde, but this doesn’t oppress the story which is a cleverly plotted thriller through London’s demi-monde . . . Highly entertaining’
Dubliner

‘This is not only a good piece of detective fiction in its own right, it is highly entertaining, spiced as it is with Wildean sayings, both real and invented and the imagined conversations and intellectual sparring between Wilde and Conan Doyle. Future tales in the series are something to look forward to’
Leicester Mercury

‘This excellent novel . . . I’d be staggered if, by the end of the year, you’d read many better whodunnits. Brandreth demonstrates supremely measured skill as a story-teller’
Nottingham Evening Post

‘Wilde as detective is thoroughly convincing . . .The period, and the two or three worlds in which Wilde himself moved, are richly evoked . . .
Oscar Wilde and the Candlelight Murders
is an excellent detective story. I’m keenly looking forward to the rest of the series’
District Messenger
, Newsletter of the Sherlock Holmes Society of London

‘Brandreth knows his Wilde . . . He knows his Holmes too . . . The plot is devilishly clever, the characters are fully fleshed, the mystery is engrossing, and the solution is perfectly fair. I love it’
Sherlock Holmes Journal

‘A skilful and erudite piece of writing and one well worth reading, not only for the plot, but for much information about Wilde and his friends at that period’
Tangled Web

‘It works quite brilliantly. This is the first of a series. You’ll want to start the next the day after finishing this one’
Diplomat

‘A witty and gripping portrait of corruption in late-Victorian London, and one of which Oscar Wilde and Arthur Conan Doyle would be proud’
Livewire

‘A wow of a history mystery . . . a first-class stunner’
Booklist

‘Beautifully clear prose . . . We tend to be wary of books that use real-life characters as their protagonists, but we were completely enchanted with this one’
Denver Post

‘Wilde beguiles those inside the novel and out . . . Brandreth writes breezily, effortlessly blending fiction and historical facts in a way that keeps the novel moving’
Atlanta Journal-Constitution

‘An intriguing tightrope walk . . . engaging, ingenious’
Newsday

‘Immensely enjoyable, one of the best in the canon of literary mysteries’
Philadelphia Inquirer

Praise for Oscar Wilde and the Ring of Death

‘The second in this wickedly imagined and highly entertaining series . . . an intelligent, jaunty and hilarious mystery’
Good Book Guide

‘Hugely enjoyable’
Daily Mail

‘A cast of historical characters to die for’
Sunday Times

‘A carnival of cliff-hangers and fiendish twists-and-turns . . . The joy of the book, as with its predecessor, is the rounded and compelling presentation of the character of Wilde. The imaginary and the factual are woven together with devilish ingenuity. Brandreth also gives his hero speeches of great beauty and wisdom and humanity’
Sunday Express

‘Wilde really has to prove himself against Bram Stoker and Arthur Conan Doyle when a murder ruins their Sunday Supper Club. But Brandreth’s invention – that of Wilde as detective – is more than up to the challenge. With plenty of wit, too’
Daily Mirror

‘Gyles Brandreth’s entertainment is an amusing and satisfactorily unlikely story featuring Bram Stoker, Arthur Conan Doyle, a locked room and Oscar Wilde in the role of the series detective’
Literary Review

‘The plot speeds to an exciting climax . . . Richly atmospheric. Very entertaining’
Woman & Home

‘Sparkling dialogue, mystery piled deliciously on mystery, a plot with pace and panache, and a London backdrop that would grace any Victorian theatre’
Northern Echo

‘The acid test for any writer who has enjoyed first-time success is that all-important second novel. Gyles Brandreth, I am happy to report, has sailed through the ordeal with flying colours . . . Irresistible . . . Elegant . . . Rich . . . Enjoyable . . . A classic Agatha Christie-style whodunit involving some particularly inventive murders with a few well-placed red herrings’
Yorkshire Evening Post

‘As much imaginative biography as murder mystery . . . Terrifically well researched, it whizzes along’
Scotland on Sunday

‘What raises this book several notches above most mysteries is the authentic historical detail and the engaging portrait of Wilde . . . sparkling’
Historical Novels Society

‘Terrific period atmosphere, crisp writing style, and the flamboyant Wilde make this series pitch-perfect. Great entertainment’
Booklist

‘
Oscar Wilde and the Ring of Death
is the eagerly-awaited second volume in Gyles Brandreth’s series of detective stories and it doesn’t disappoint’
District Messenger,
Newsletter of the Sherlock Holmes Society of London

‘I can’t wait until the next one’
Scotsman

Praise for Oscar Wilde and the Dead Man’s Smile

‘One of the most consistently entertaining historical series starring a real-life sleuth’
Booklist

‘The murders begin. Highly theatrical ones . . . An entertaining and meticulously researched piece of pop fiction about Wilde and his circle’
Washington Post

‘Through his excellent writing Brandreth has brought to life 1880s Europe and his descriptions evoke all the senses as if you were there following Oscar. It is a fun book that introduces you to many interesting characters . . . A light-hearted and entertaining murder mystery’
Irish Post

‘Gyles Brandreth began his Oscar Wilde murder mysteries in grand style. The second book was actually better than the first, and the third consolidates and improves on that achievement. An exceptionally good detective story, it’s also a fascinating historical novel’
District Messenger
, Newsletter of the Sherlock Holmes Society of London

‘A cleverly plotted, intelligent and thoroughly diverting murder mystery. This novel is an educated page-turner, a feast of intriguing and light-hearted entertainment’
Good Book Guide

‘An entertaining yarn – easy and pleasing to read – with an extensive set of vivid characters’
Gay Times

‘Very funny’
Independent on Sunday

‘For me this whole series is a guilty pleasure: Brandreth’s portrait of Oscar Wilde is entirely plausible; plots are ingenious; and the historical background is fascinating’
Scotsman

Praise for Oscar Wilde and the Nest of Vipers

‘Gyles Brandreth’s Oscar Wilde murder mysteries get better and better.
Oscar Wilde and the Nest of Vipers
is positively dazzling. Both witty and profound, it’s also devilishly clever’
District Messenger
, Newsletter of the Sherlock Holmes Society of London

‘Inventive . . . brilliant . . . marvellous . . . glittering . . . graceful . . . intricate . . . enthralling’
Booklist

‘Oscar Wilde is back in rare form in this clever and intricate mystery that brings 1890s London vibrantly to life. Verdict: great stuff’
Library Journal

‘The latest witty instalment in Gyles Brandreth’s hugely enjoyable series of Victorian murder mysteries’
Daily Mail

Praise for Oscar Wilde and the Vatican Murders

‘A flight of imagination that partners Oscar Wilde with Arthur Conan Doyle in a deadly pursuit to the heart of the Eternal City merits a round of applause for sheer chutzpah. But it is one thing to set up an improbably tall tale and quite another to sustain reader interest and credulity for an entire book. Where many others have failed the test, Gyles Brandreth succeeds magnificently. This is partly because the relationship between the two writers – with Conan Doyle playing Watson to super sleuth Wilde – is drawn so convincingly, but there is also dialogue of the period without any Victorian heaviness and a plot that is intriguing throughout . . . Brandreth’s research is impeccable. Literary and theological references merge easily into a skilfully crafted story that goes all the way to meet the standards set by his two eminent protagonists’
Daily Mail

‘Hugely enjoyable . . . a story that reminds us just how enjoyable a well-told traditional murder mystery can be’
Scotsman

‘Brandreth has become a true artist as he so skillfully writes the dialogue between these two detectives . . . Well done Brandreth!’
MysteryNet

OSCAR WILDE

and the

Murders at Reading Gaol

Gyles Brandreth

www.johnmurray.co.uk

First published in Great Britain in 2012 by John Murray (Publishers)

An Hachette UK company