March 1916.
The Great War rages across Europe.
In the British Army garrison town of Bethune in northern France, a woman’s body is found in a park. Her throat has been cut.
Marie-Louise Toulon is a prostitute at the Blue Lamp, the brothel catering exclusively to officers of the British Army stationed in the area.
Wounded ex-soldier Frank Champion is brought in to investigate the crime – to find the killer believed to be among the officer corps.
But almost before his investigation gets underway another woman from the Blue Lamp is killed, her throat also cut. A third prostitute, meanwhile, has gone missing.
Then two more bodies are uncovered, including that of a British Army captain who appears to have taken his own life with his service revolver. But all is not what it seems…
Champion must face a race against time to save the life of another woman – at the risk of dying himself.
My thanks to publishers, Sharpe Books, for the review copy and to Anne Cater of Random Things Blog Tours for the opportunity to host this leg of the Cut And Run tour.
It’s 1916 and Frank Champion has served his country but been returned home after being injured in combat. Frank isn’t in the best of health and when we first meet him he’s unkempt, scratching out booze from a local landlord in exchange for seafood and life appears to be at a low ebb.
However, a visit from a former colleague sees Champion boarding a boat to France as he’s tasked with investigating the murder of a young woman – her body found in a small park near the brothel she worked in. As a foreigner with no formal association with the French authorities or the British army it is hoped Frank’s skills and experience will give him some flexibility and leeway which may not be offered to others.
During the First World War there were many girls at many brothels across France and the unexplained death of one girl would not normally command such scrutiny. However the brothel connected to this dead woman primary caters for the officers of the British Army, the concern a senior military figure may be responsible was enough to prompt the unorthodox recruitment of Champion to investigate matters.
From the moment Champion arrives at the town in question the story slips nicely into investigation mode and I was flicking through the pages at a speedy rate. Cut and Run turned out to be an extremely readable tale and I got completely caught up in events.
Champion interviews the other girls that worked at the murdered girl’s brothel. He spoke with the police and then visited the owner of a rival brothel (one which catered for the non-promoted army personnel). At this stage events start to branch off into new directions and the threat to Champion increases along with the tension in the story.
Initially I thought I’d been picking up the Frank Champion books a few stories into his series – early chapters made reference to several past events and encounters. However this is book one and I’m relieved not to have unintentionally encountered spoilers – instead I hoped to learn more about Champion’s escapades prior to Cut And Run.
Without giving away too much I can say this is a cracking historical murder tale. I very much enjoyed Alex Marsh’s writing style and I felt the location and the feeling of “time” within the story were handled very well.
Very engaging story which zipped along at a nice pace. The likeable lead character made this a fun read and I will absolutely be lining up to read any future Frank Champion books. A gem I was thrilled to discover.
Cut And Run is published by Sharpe Books and is available in paperback and digital format. You can order a copy here: https://www.amazon.co.uk/Cut-Frank-Champion-Thrillers-Book-ebook/dp/B0CYQHFJVX?ref_=ast_author_mpb
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