Ten Second Staircase by Christopher Fowler

The Bryant & May series, written by Christopher Fowler, is about two elderly detectives who, even though they are well past retirement age, are the leading detectives in the Peculiar Crimes Unit in London. Ten Second Staircase is the fourth book in this series.

You ask what the Peculiar Crimes Unit is? From a memorandum in the first chapter of Ten Second Staircase:

The Peculiar Crimes Unit was founded, along with a handful of other specialist departments, soon after the outbreak of World War II, as part of a government initiative to ease the burden on London's overstretched Metropolitan Police Force, by tackling high-profile cases which had the capacity to compound social problems in urban areas. The crimes falling within its remit were often of a politically sensitive nature, or could potentially cause social panics and general public malaise.

If you want to know more about the detectives and their setting, there is a great description at the the author's website.

The first Bryant & May Mystery was Full Dark House. In that book, the setting alternates between London in the early 21st century and 1940's London, during the Blitz. There are two plot lines: the very first case that the two policemen worked together and the current case, obviously very late in their careers. The two cases seem to be connected.

I read Full Dark House in 2006 and it is one of the few mysteries I took the time to record my feelings about. This is what I said:

The two main characters are opposites and the joining of their contrary skills has resulted in the successful resolution of many cases over the years. This story emphasizes the growing pains associated with adjusting to the new relationship. At least at the beginning of the relationship, Bryant is the senior policeman and May is the new man in the department, although both of them are about the same age and very young. Both major and minor characters (of which there are many) have depth. A good read, one that has me looking forward to following future Bryant and May mysteries.

The second book in the series, The Water Room, involves an impossible murder by drowning and London’s system of underground rivers. In the third book, Seventy-Seven Clocks, several members of a family are murdered by various bizarre means in a case from 1973. It includes a crafts guild, Gilbert and Sullivan references, and I remember being thoroughly confused. I read those books in 2009.

And now we have arrived at of Ten Second Staircase. Here is a brief introduction from Goodreads:

It’s a crime tailor-made for the Peculiar Crimes Unit: a controversial artist is murdered and displayed as part of her own outrageous installation. No suspects, no motive, no evidence—but this time they do have an eyewitness. A twelve-year-old claims the killer was a cape-clad highwayman atop a black stallion. Whoever the killer really is, he seems intent on killing off enough minor celebrities to become one himself.

I enjoyed the beginning of the book because there were several elements that introduced the Peculiar Crimes Unit and the team and gave some background. Since I had not read the series for a while, this was welcome. The first chapter is a memorandum from the Acting Head of the unit (who has been acting head since 1973) to the Home Office Liaison Officer explaining his concerns about Bryant and May and the unit. John May's granddaughter joins the unit and gets an introduction to the varied staff. Then Bryant gives a speech to a group of teenaged students, which provides even more background. And sets up one of the premises of the novel, the divide between youth and adults.

The Bryant & May series has many good points. The author uses historical facts and actual locations in London in his stories. He highlights social issues. In my opinion, though, the characterizations and the relationships in the novel are the best feature; the people are complex and don't always act as you expect them to.

I like the police procedural aspects also. Although Bryant is known for his desire to look for supernatural elements and use witches and mysticism in his quest for the truth, the unit has and uses forensics and computer expertise.

I found myself bogged down in the middle of the story and getting quite frustrated. I have read books that kept me interested all the way through then fell flat at the end. This one was the opposite. It had a "wow" finish. May's granddaughter, April, who seemed like a throwaway character, becomes real and interesting. All the seemingly disparate threads pulled together to give me a sense of closure.

This book explores the tension between youth (teens, in this case) and older adults, and the difficulties of a changing society. That is putting it very simply, and of course the book does a much better job of getting this across. Such divides have always existed, but with two elderly detectives, the author can use his characters and setting to reveal what we may not see in our everyday lives.

I recommend the series if you have not given it a try. Some readers find them very funny. I find them darker, although I applaud Christopher Fowler for focusing on the ills of society. I introduced these books to my son, and he has read the first eight books. He keeps pushing me to read more of them. I have recommended this series to my husband, because of the emphasis on buildings in London. He has read Rune, by the same author, which features Bryant and May (as secondary characters?) and could be considered the first book in the series.  He enjoyed it very much.

Note the differences in the two covers I feature. These are scans of the covers of my copies of the books.  I paid a pretty penny years ago to get a UK cover of the first book ... because I loved the cover so much. My copy of Ten Second Staircase is a trade paperback edition published in the US. I find the UK covers much superior.

Here are some other good posts on Bryant and May mysteries:
In the Spotlight at Confessions of a Mystery Novelist...
A review of the 10th book in the series at Pretty Sinister Books.