The Chinese Puzzle by J C Briggs

London 1851 the Great Exhibition has opened and it is so attractive to the masses of visitors who keep coming and coming to gape at all the wonders of the world exhibited in one spot. This mystery which covers Canton and London covering the Chinese who are involved in trade and who have lived in London and the Englishmen who have made their fortune in goods ranging from Opium to Tea from China. When a high ranking person is found murdered, Dickens is asked to help Superintendent Jones discreetly handle the enquiry. When it is revealed that their are so many controversial threads coming up - the opium trade, a Chinese wife, children living in London and questions regarding a second will and then the unsavory elements of the London underground Dickens and Jones have to get justice served and also with no publicity. When the body count starts rising they know that it is a cover up for a cover up by one particular man who is going to be very hard to catch. Told in such beautiful language and tone, this was a delight to read. A must for those who love history, as well as this setting of the 1850s in England and for those who love vintage detective mystery. Sent by Sapere Books for an unbiased review, courtesy of Netgalley.