Twenty-One Days (Daniel Pitt #1)
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Twenty-One Days
by Anne Perry
Edition: ARC, 2018
Synopsis: It’s 1910, and Daniel Pitt is a reluctant lawyer who would prefer to follow in the footsteps of his detective father. When the biographer Russell Graves, who Daniel is helping defend, is sentenced to execution for the murder of his wife, Daniel’s Pitt-family investigative instincts kick in, and he sets out to find the real killer. With only twenty-one days before Graves is to be executed, Daniel learns that Graves is writing a biography of Victor Narraway, the former head of Special Branch and a close friend of the Pitts. And the stories don’t shed a positive light. Is it possible someone is framing Graves to keep him from writing the biography–maybe even someone Daniel knows in Special Branch?
The only answer, it seems, lies in the dead woman’s corpse. And so, with the help of some eccentric new acquaintances who don’t mind bending the rules, Daniel delves into an underground world of dead bodies and double lives, unearthing scores of lies and conspiracies. As he struggles to balance his duty to the law with his duty to his family, the equal forces of justice and loyalty pull this lawyer-turned-detective in more directions than he imagined possible. And amidst it all, his client’s twenty-one days are ticking away.
On the heels of a triumph in the courtroom, Daniel Pitt is assigned to be assistant in a murder case. When the client, Russell Graves, is found guilty, Daniel has twenty-one days to find some way of preventing the execution. As details come to light, he questions whether he really wants to or not.
Though I have seen Anne Perry’s books before, this is the first one I’ve ever had the privilege of reading. After finishing this start of a series, I want nothing more than to read more of her works. The pacing was excellent and the tension was kept throughout the narrative perfectly.
Daniel was a fantastic character to follow. His relative youth as he faces the complexities of the law made him interesting. His desire to live up to his father’s expectations made him relatable. The supporting characters rounded out the cast phenomenally.
Overall, I would recommend this to readers who enjoy the turn of the century mystery tales.
