Description
By (author) Celestin Ray
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New Orleans 1919. As music fills the city, a serial killer strikes . . . Inspired by a true story, Ray Celestin’s The Axeman’s Jazz is a sinister debut crime thriller.
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Inspired by a true story, set against the heady backdrop of jazz-filled, mob-ruled New Orleans, The Axeman’s Jazz by Ray Celestin is a gripping thriller announcing a major talent in historical crime fiction.
Winner of the CWA New Blood Dagger for Best Debut Crime Novel of the Year
Recommended on the Radio 2 Arts Show with Claudia Winkleman
Shortlisted for Theakston”s Crime Novel of the Year Award
New Orleans, 1919. As a dark serial killer – the Axeman – stalks the city, three individuals set out to unmask him:
Detective Lieutenant Michael Talbot – heading up the official investigation, but struggling to find leads, and harbouring a grave secret of his own.
Former detective Luca d’Andrea – now working for the mafia, his need to solve the mystery of the Axeman is every bit as urgent as that of the authorities.
And Ida – a secretary at the Pinkerton Detective Agency. Obsessed with Sherlock Holmes and dreaming of a better life, she stumbles across a clue which lures her and her musician friend, Louis Armstrong, into the case – and into terrible danger . . .
As Michael, Luca and Ida each draw closer to discovering the killer’s identity, the Axeman himself will issue a challenge to the people of New Orleans: play jazz, or risk becoming the next victim.
”A fascinating portrait of a vibrant and volatile city and a riveting read” – The Guardian
The Axeman”s Jazz is the first book in Ray Celestin”s prize-winning City Blues quartet. It is followed by the second installment, Dead Man”s Blues.
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A rewarding crime novel, swinging its way to a terrifying denouement with all the panache of a New Orleans marching band
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A fascinating portrait of a vibrant and volatile city and a riveting read
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Gripping . . . Celestin smartly evokes the atmosphere of 1919 New Orleans, and a city dominated by music and the mob
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Based on a true story . . . this thriller blends voodoo, gangsters and jazz into an intoxicating mix
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The evocative prose brings the jazz-filled, mob-ruled ‘Big Easy’ of pre-prohibition America to life in glorious effect with a story full of suspense and intrigue. Stunning
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Outstanding
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A clever and utterly believable procedural with a suitably grisly killer, set in a brilliant and vibrant historical background
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The best debut I’ve read this year
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Celestin has skilfully woven around the facts a clever story of three detectives who, in different ways and for different motives, set out to find the murderer. He brilliantly portrays the mood of a city under a siege of fear. Fictional musicians mix with the real jazz artists of the period, not least Louis Armstrong.
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An absolute must for true crime fanatics
Biographical note:
Ray Celestin is a novelist and screenwriter based in London. His debut novel, The Axeman’s Jazz, won the CWA New Blood Dagger for best debut crime novel of the year, and was featured on numerous ‘Books of the Year’ lists. His follow-up, Dead Man’s Blues, won the Historia Historical Thriller of the Year Award, and was shortlisted for a number of other awards, including the CWA Gold Dagger for best crime novel of the year. The novels are part of his City Blues series, which charts the twin histories of jazz and the Mob through the middle fifty years of the twen
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