London Bridges

by Jane Stevenson

Book Overview

London Bridges, her first novel, evokes the mood and sheer enjoyability of classic English detective fiction, though it is set in the London of the 1990s. A young lawyer comes across a treasure lost... This description may be from another edition of this product.

• Format: Hardcover
• Language: English
• ISBN: 0618049347
• ISBN13: 9780618049349
• Release Date: September 2001
• Publisher: Houghton Mifflin
• Length: 304 Pages
• Weight: 1.15 lbs.
• Dimensions: 1.1" x 5.8" x 8.6"

Customer Reviews

Witty, literate and a lovely read

I thought this book was going to be a mystery, and it borders on being one, however as someone else pointed out it crosses genres and was much more. The story is very engaging, and the plot moves quickly, much as a thriller does. But this is no thriller. It is witty and funny in places -- I laughed out loud several times while reading it. It is intelligent, which is a refreshing change from so many authors today. Plus the characters are well-developed so you start caring about them. And it has a sense of place. I can think of very few "mysteries" I would say all that about. It most reminds me of my favorite mystery writer, Donna Leon, and that says quite a lot. I thoroughly enjoyed the story (which others have outlined and I will not repeat) and hated when it ended. I recommend it highly!

Great Fun -- Perfect For a Rainy Weekend

This extremely well-written and entertaining book is a quasi-thriller constructed around an exploration of how people meet and forge their own communities. Set in London, the story is populated by a disparate upper-middle class cast of professionals who are entwined in a plot revolving around some valuable South Bank real estate owned by a Greek monastery. Events are set in motion when two different groups discover the existence of the property, as well as the possibility of the existence of priceless antiques in a safe-deposit box. The story opens with a prologue out of chronological order that foreshadows events to come. Then the reader is taken back a few weeks to meet the villain of the piece, a snobby but poor lawyer who is given the task of wrapping up the affairs of an estate that puts him in contact with the South Bank property and forgotten relics. It also puts him in touch with a cunning Greek businesswoman, and the two convince each other that they might be able to get their hands on these precious items by conning an elderly Anglo-Greek banking agent into assigning the lawyer power of attorney. Meanwhile (a phrase much used in the book), an enthusiastic preservationist has discovered an old fountain and thinks the South Bank property (currently an ad hoc community garden) is just the place for it. He's comes up with the grand scheme to get the monastary to donate the land for the project, and ropes in his friend Hattie, who works for a foundation (trust in the UK) dedicated to the nebulous task of improving London. She brings on board her friend who is a campy gay classics professor who just happens to know the abbot of the monastary. It all gets rather complicated to explain, but soon these characters all start to cross paths, along with an Australian graduate student in the classics program who moonlights as a pharmacist, an Indian lawyer born and bred in London who works at the villain's firm, and various other minor characters. These are all well-drawn figures that occasionally border on cliché at times, but whenever we see them at work or at home, they are always doing things that give them depth and life, and Stevenson shows a nice ear for dialogue. Of course, everything is pretty much constrained to the well-meaning striving set of law, academia, trusts, art, and so on, but it's still well done. The story walks that fine line of being literate without becoming pretentious. The "thriller" aspect almost borders on a Scooby-Doo story where the gang starts to put the puzzle together, but a murder keeps things dark enough to avoid tounge-in-cheekitis. There is comedy and wit, and the climax is perhaps a bit over-the-top in the wackiness, but Stevenson makes it work nonetheless. The plot does require one to go along with a heavy dose of coincidence in terms of these people all knowing each other, but if one can get past that, it's vastly entertaining stuff. The book also mainly succeeds as a slice of London life that is a homage

Can't we just have some fun?

I am quite puzzled by some of the other reviews here. I picked the book up as a remainder at a local bookshop and read it at the beach. In contrast to some prior reviewers, I found the book a sort of playful romp in the genre of the "lost manuscript". I found the characters quirky in an enjoyable manner and that the setting created a fun sense of some parts of London and environs that I have enjoyed. I enjoyed the writing and found the book overall much less pretentious than Alexander McCall Smith's newest book The Sunday Philosopher's Club(although I have enjoyed his African series). Can't we just have some fun?

Wonderful use of language

I just finished reading this book aloud to my husband, and we were both very impressed, with the marvelous use of language and with the wonderfully woven threads of story and charachters. Very enjoyable; would make a good "Masterpiece Theatre" kind of show. We're looking forward to her future efforts.

Reminded me of Sarah Caudwell

I first came across the book in London, where it was a big hit, and picked up a paperback copy. I am glad to find it in the US and hope others will too. "London Bridges" is a light, witty, caper (the hardest to pull off well), that reminded me of the exceptional Sarah Caudwell -- which always makes me sad to think that we no longer have more works of hers to look forward to, but I digress -- the plot is fun, thoughtfull, and more enjoyable because of the odd assotment of characters. The ending, though somewhat excessive, is a real throwback to the days of Buster Keaton and his antics. It will definitely make you laugh.