The fabulous Lucifer Box returns for another round of spirited, pun-heavy sleuthing in this devilishly decadent sequel to the acclaimed The Vesu...
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Aug 27, 2011
Ben
rated it: 
The second book was a long wait for me, and when we got it, I had to wait to read it! Wait through long days of my husband's exclaimations of 'You bastard!', his gasps, his laughter...and then, finally, he woke me up one afternoon and BEHOLD! It was my turn! I curled up and devoured it in a matter of days, and did the same thing.
I adore writers that can make me audibly react to their writing--Mark Gatiss joins Plum in the very short list of authors that have achieved this honour. He More...
I adore writers that can make me audibly react to their writing--Mark Gatiss joins Plum in the very short list of authors that have achieved this honour. He More...
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Dec 22, 2011
mzd
rated it: 
I wish I wish I wish I had read this before The Vesuvius Club. I was completely prepared to continue disliking Lucifer Box and putting up with the novel for the sake of having spent money on the box set, but to my surprise, just a few pages in and I was enjoying it much more than the previous novel.
I found the level of tongue-in-cheek humour just right. Box is dry and ridiculous, but not as smug and annoying as I found him in The Vesuvius Club. Having it set in America and giving it that noiris More...
I found the level of tongue-in-cheek humour just right. Box is dry and ridiculous, but not as smug and annoying as I found him in The Vesuvius Club. Having it set in America and giving it that noiris More...
Feb 18, 2011
Anthony
rated it:
This is actually the second book in Gatiss' Lucifer Box series. I picked it up on the sale shelf at a Borders Express the night I saw "Stardust" and started reading it over dinner, then put it aside long enough to finish the Woolrich book reviewed above. Thankfully, like a James Bond or Dirk Pitt book, you can read the Box stories out of order (considerably easier since there are only two Box books at the moment).
Lucifer Box, "portraitist, dandy, and terribly good secr More...
Lucifer Box, "portraitist, dandy, and terribly good secr More...
May 06, 2009
Erika
rated it:
This review has been hidden because it contains spoilers.
To view it, click here
May 12, 2011
Kate
rated it:
Fast, cheeky, engrossing, and just as amusing as the original. Lucifer Box does it again, tangled up in another supernatural mystery that requires him to save the world, with the help of some very stalwart companions.
If you're looking for a deep, complicated mystery that keeps you guessing until the last moment, the Lucifer Box novels aren't for you. If you're looking for a cheeky, witty, fast-paced thriller set between the world wars and incorporating a whole lot of British wit and wi More...
If you're looking for a deep, complicated mystery that keeps you guessing until the last moment, the Lucifer Box novels aren't for you. If you're looking for a cheeky, witty, fast-paced thriller set between the world wars and incorporating a whole lot of British wit and wi More...
Oct 04, 2010
Monika
rated it:
Lucifer Box in his second, big case. He's still seducing men and women left and right, despite being in his forties now. He has changed a little, still rushing about, mind you, but the times have taken their toll on him. Not as much as his old friend Christopher Miracle has, but they've had loses in the great war and they're not the same dandies of the naughty nineties and the Edwardian era anymore.
The case itself is of a more supernatural kind and takes on a rather "Indiana Jon More...
The case itself is of a more supernatural kind and takes on a rather "Indiana Jon More...
Jan 29, 2011
Kitt
rated it:
Yet another Christmas present. I wasn't at all impressed by Black Butterfly, but did enjoy The Vesuvius Club, so came at this one fairly open minded. I liked it, Lucifer Box (that magnificent bastard) is on the run and up to his neck in trouble - par for the course really.
As with the others in the series, things quickly gallop towards the ridiculous, however there was much more to this than just Lucifer's usual seductions and swashbuckling - there's another sinister organisation, som More...
As with the others in the series, things quickly gallop towards the ridiculous, however there was much more to this than just Lucifer's usual seductions and swashbuckling - there's another sinister organisation, som More...
May 10, 2010
Antonia
rated it:
"He screamed and looked wildly around him, looking for support from his acolytes who, like loyal acolytes across the ages, were running to save their skins."
loved it. less crass, less youthful and less wild than the The Vesuvius Club: A Lucifer Box Novel, yet still disgusting, libertine and funny enough. i liked the story, double-triple-or-quadruple-dealing, supernatural and several steamy events. incredibly easy to read, incredible fun all the way.
i'll be reading mo More...
loved it. less crass, less youthful and less wild than the The Vesuvius Club: A Lucifer Box Novel, yet still disgusting, libertine and funny enough. i liked the story, double-triple-or-quadruple-dealing, supernatural and several steamy events. incredibly easy to read, incredible fun all the way.
i'll be reading mo More...
Oct 30, 2011
Calliope
rated it:
Copied from my blog:
The Devil in Amber is the second book in the "Lucifer Box" series, but author Gatiss is deft enough with description that there's no need at all to have read the first book (it will certainly deepen the experience, though). The setting is the 1920s in New York City and the English countryside, and the plot is pure adventure spy novel with tongue very, very firmly in cheek. The main character, Lucifer Box (all the characters have similarly fantastic names) is aMore...
Mar 20, 2011
Rebecca
rated it: 
Oops, didn't review this one. Perhaps because I'm still a little traumatised. Why does every side character I like end up dead??
That's not as much a spoiler as it sounds, I swear.
The second of the Lucifer Box novels is set post-Great War, making for a rather large shift in mental imagery from the last book. Lucifer, while still a marvelous dandy about town, has aged and survived a war that left many scars on him and those around him. He's also now in the US, away from his More...
That's not as much a spoiler as it sounds, I swear.
The second of the Lucifer Box novels is set post-Great War, making for a rather large shift in mental imagery from the last book. Lucifer, while still a marvelous dandy about town, has aged and survived a war that left many scars on him and those around him. He's also now in the US, away from his More...
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Sep 19, 2011
Katie
rated it: 
I was hugely disappointed with this book. I enjoyed its predecessor 'The Vesuvius Club' so much that I raced through it in a day and went straight onto the second in the series. Unfortunately it suffers by comparison. A lot.
What made the first book such a good read was the dry humour of the narrative style and the characterisation of the delightfully bad Lucifer Box, but both of these key features were decidedly patchy in 'The Devil in Amber'. It has moments of brilliance (who co More...
What made the first book such a good read was the dry humour of the narrative style and the characterisation of the delightfully bad Lucifer Box, but both of these key features were decidedly patchy in 'The Devil in Amber'. It has moments of brilliance (who co More...
Oct 25, 2011
Jeffrey
rated it:
Mark Gatiss' second go at the Lucifer Box character isn't as entertaining as the first, but provides an amusing distraction nonetheless.
Abandoning the dawn of the 20th century Edwardian trappings of Empire from The Vesuvius Club, this book finds Box in a post Great War funk. Down on his luck, art has moved on, beginning to feel his age, and challenged by a younger rival, Box is tasked by his superiors to investigate the fascist agitator Olympus Mons. But Mons has greater ambitions th More...
Abandoning the dawn of the 20th century Edwardian trappings of Empire from The Vesuvius Club, this book finds Box in a post Great War funk. Down on his luck, art has moved on, beginning to feel his age, and challenged by a younger rival, Box is tasked by his superiors to investigate the fascist agitator Olympus Mons. But Mons has greater ambitions th More...
May 17, 2007
Simon
rated it:
Inconsequential fluff, but fun nevertheless.
Mark Gatiss really does wear his influences on his sleeve in this one, moreso than 'the Vesuvius Club', to the point where it definitely sits more comfortably as pastiche than novel. The breathless 'man on the run' segments are lifted straight from 'The Thirty-Nine Steps' (along with the incredible volume of coincidences that power it along) and the evil cult and their ceremonies come courtesy of Dennis Wheatley. Add to that the slightly (b More...
Mark Gatiss really does wear his influences on his sleeve in this one, moreso than 'the Vesuvius Club', to the point where it definitely sits more comfortably as pastiche than novel. The breathless 'man on the run' segments are lifted straight from 'The Thirty-Nine Steps' (along with the incredible volume of coincidences that power it along) and the evil cult and their ceremonies come courtesy of Dennis Wheatley. Add to that the slightly (b More...
Mar 06, 2010
Zojar
rated it:
Mark Gatiss's creation, Lucifer Box, in his second novel did not dissapoint in the least. I had seen some less than favourable reviews but after reading the first book and enjoying it, I felt I should read this one. It has the same quick, dark whit as the first and the story is well paced. Plenty of twists to keep you gripped and, dear Lucifer, still has the unwielding charm as ever before. Great read, thanks Mark Gatiss, I shall now endeavour to make my set of books whole and purchase and r
More...
Dec 19, 2007
Joseph
rated it:
I actually purchased this book before its prequel, The Vesuvius Club, but held off on reading it until I'd managed to locate that book. Reading the two books out of order wouldn't have had an effect on my understanding, but that's just the way I roll.
Sadly, The Devil in Amber isn't as entertaining as its predecessor, although it is still enjoyable. Gatiss seems to have toned down the more foppish aspect of Box's character in favor of a greater emphasis on sex and action, and while More...
Sadly, The Devil in Amber isn't as entertaining as its predecessor, although it is still enjoyable. Gatiss seems to have toned down the more foppish aspect of Box's character in favor of a greater emphasis on sex and action, and while More...
Jan 08, 2012
Isabel
rated it:
Twenty years after the events of "The Vesuvius Club", portrait painter and spy Lucifer Box is as witty, self-centred and vain as ever, but age is catching up with him. Changes in artistic fashions mean that his portraits are no longer in demand, younger spies are snapping at his heels and the Great War has taken its toll.
In this book he gets involved in investigating Olympus Mons, the leader of F.A.U.S.T (the Fascist Anglo-United States Tribune), an American fascist organisat More...
In this book he gets involved in investigating Olympus Mons, the leader of F.A.U.S.T (the Fascist Anglo-United States Tribune), an American fascist organisat More...
Aug 07, 2011
I can often tell if I'll like a book from the first sentence. So, imagine my delight with this one: "He was an American, so it seemed only fair to shoot him". Marvellous!
Lucifer Box returns for a second adventure and a right ripping yarn it is too. I very much enjoyed the first novel and the same goes for this one. This won't stretch the grey matter too much - perfect for a boring commute.
Lucifer Box returns for a second adventure and a right ripping yarn it is too. I very much enjoyed the first novel and the same goes for this one. This won't stretch the grey matter too much - perfect for a boring commute.
Feb 11, 2009
russell
rated it:
Much better than The Vesuvius Club; with fewer crass puns, and the pointless over-characterisation that marred it's predecessor.
Having said that if it wasn't for the fact this was the second part of a Lucifer Box omnibus, I wouldn't have read it at all.
Interesting aside (well, maybe not) - I note Box's sister (Pandora) bears a resemblence to Jessica Mitford's sister, Unity Valkyrie. Is that serendipity, or am I clutching at straws? More...
Having said that if it wasn't for the fact this was the second part of a Lucifer Box omnibus, I wouldn't have read it at all.
Interesting aside (well, maybe not) - I note Box's sister (Pandora) bears a resemblence to Jessica Mitford's sister, Unity Valkyrie. Is that serendipity, or am I clutching at straws? More...
Aug 05, 2011
Heather
rated it:
A brilliant book. I'd read The Vesuvius Club many years ago, and this one cheerfully stood up to it. The writing is brilliantly fast paced, with more twists and turns, crosses and double-crosses than I could count. The characters are fab, and the plot kept me in suspense till the end.
Oct 29, 2011
ian
rated it:
A darker tone washes over "The Devil in Amber" as our hero Lucifer Box is framed for murder and is on the lam for most of the tale.
The fact the book is set some 20 years after the "The Vesuvius Club" and manages to reintroduces the characters and sums up the events of the intervening years so well was fantastic and at one point was surprisingly quite moving (without giving too much away and for those who have read it, in one word: "Jackpot").
It perhaps More...
The fact the book is set some 20 years after the "The Vesuvius Club" and manages to reintroduces the characters and sums up the events of the intervening years so well was fantastic and at one point was surprisingly quite moving (without giving too much away and for those who have read it, in one word: "Jackpot").
It perhaps More...
Nov 03, 2009
Suna
rated it:
Much the same goes for this book as for the Vesuvius Club, see my review there.
He has however created a much more complex plot and I thoroughly enjoyed the way he tied all the loose ends together at the grand finale.
His social and political stabs are well observed and made chuckle much.
Flamboyant, smart and sexy.
He has however created a much more complex plot and I thoroughly enjoyed the way he tied all the loose ends together at the grand finale.
His social and political stabs are well observed and made chuckle much.
Flamboyant, smart and sexy.
Mar 19, 2009
Turi
rated it:
Didn't like the second Lucifer Box novel quite as much as the first one, but definitely more of the same fun. Ridiculous, but fun.
This one centers takes our hero to the shores of America, and a fascist cover for a plot to raise the devil himself. Shenanigans ensue.
This one centers takes our hero to the shores of America, and a fascist cover for a plot to raise the devil himself. Shenanigans ensue.
Dec 18, 2008
Cindy
rated it: 
I found this at the library, a sort of between World Wars spy romp. I just couldn't get into it. The main character was obviously so in love with himself that I couldn't agree enough. Very self-consciously affected. Not my style.
Nov 25, 2011
Kirsty
rated it:
Not quite as all-conqueringly strong as the first and last Lucifer Box novels, this is still a fabulous adventure that I utterly enjoyed. It has old-school action and jolly filthy in lashings, so I thoroughly recommend it.
Nov 24, 2010
Ferox
rated it:
Rather lower-key than the previous book in the series, ditching the Edwardian and sci-fi trappings for a slightly half-hearted venture into Da Vinci Code territory. But this was an abridged audio version, very abridged, and it's really not fair to judge a book by its abridgement.
Aug 02, 2010
Bridget
rated it:
The only reason it doesn't get top marks s because I nearly got frostbite at the bus stop while reading and once I got on the bus, the book made me cry. A lot.
Aug 02, 2007
Amy
rated it:
I believe this is the second book in the Lucifer Box series, and maybe I would have enjoyed it even more if I had read the first one, but it still worked by itself.
Now, its not really the greatest book of all time, but I read it in about two days and it made me look forward to what would otherwise be boring long journeys on the bus and train.
Its funny, very rude, shocking, well shocking for what you would normally come across in a detective story.
I am bad with dates, so I can More...
Now, its not really the greatest book of all time, but I read it in about two days and it made me look forward to what would otherwise be boring long journeys on the bus and train.
Its funny, very rude, shocking, well shocking for what you would normally come across in a detective story.
I am bad with dates, so I can More...
Aug 21, 2011
Dfordoom
rated it:
Annoying, politically correct rubbish which tries so hard to be clever and fails completely. I just wanted the hero to die horribly.
Jul 10, 2011
Kris
rated it:
# 2 of the Lucifer Box trilogy, it takes place twenty years after the Edwardian adventures of #1.
Lucifer is now middle aged, traumatised by the Great War, and under the pump from a new generation of secret agents. Of course, he remains as beautiful lithe as ever – and informs us on a regular basis – but seems a little less cocksure and a little more vulnerable than the earlier tale.
Without giving too much away, the story is a little darker as Lucifer battles a horrible gang More...
Lucifer is now middle aged, traumatised by the Great War, and under the pump from a new generation of secret agents. Of course, he remains as beautiful lithe as ever – and informs us on a regular basis – but seems a little less cocksure and a little more vulnerable than the earlier tale.
Without giving too much away, the story is a little darker as Lucifer battles a horrible gang More...
Jul 27, 2011
Donna
rated it:
Jolly good romp. I read it when on holiday alone. Marvellous fun for chilly nights tucked up in bed!
