The Highwayman and Mr. Dickens: An Account of the Strange Events of the Medusa Murders: A Secret Victorian Journal, Attributed to Wilkie Collins

In this novel, the second “secret journal” kept by Charles Dickens’s friend and protege Wilkie Collins, the two novelists reunite with Inspector William Field of London’s Metropolitan Protectives to solve a ghastly double murder. Two women – one a wealthy doctor’s wife, the other her chambermaid – are found dead, unmarked, their faces frozen masks of fear, as if they had seen the Medusa of ancient legend. The cause of death is a mystery, but the suspect is The notorious burglar and highwayman-turned-actor Tally Ho Thompson is arrested at the scene and thrown into Newgate Prison.
Thompson’s unusual relationship with Charles Dickens was chronicled in the first of these secret journals, The Detective and Mr. Dickens. In that book, the dashing ex-criminal loaned his special talents to help the novelist. Now Dickens, with Collins in reluctant tow, attempts to return the favor by proving Thompson’s innocence. From the bleak, cold alleys of London during the winter of 1852, to the pestilential cells of Newgate, the steamy pubs where hot gin is served, the stage of Covent Garden, and the paths of a posh men’s riding club in the English countryside, the authors pursue the truth. Meanwhile Field – the foremost inspector of his day – manipulates his charges in a grand game of detection and double-cross.
Cameo appearances by the explorer Sir Richard Francis Burton, Dr. Henry Jekyll, and other Victorian figures, together with a wonderful cast of turnkeys, rogues, prostitutes, hansom drivers, barmaids, actors, and swells, enliven the eventful plot. Readers of Dickens or Collins will recognize familiar characters in different guises, and enjoy special insight into the minds of these eminent Victorians.