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WORK TITLE: Arrowood
WORK NOTES:
PSEUDONYM(S):
BIRTHDATE:
WEBSITE:
CITY: Brighton, England
STATE:
COUNTRY: United Kingdom
NATIONALITY: British
http://www.anglia.ac.uk/science-and-technology/about/psychology/our-staff/mick-finlay * https://thelitbitch.com/2017/07/19/review-arrowood-by-mick-finlay/ * http://bakerstreetbabes.com/reviews/book-review-mick-finlay-arrowood/
RESEARCHER NOTES:
LC control no.: n 2017048840
LCCN Permalink: https://lccn.loc.gov/n2017048840
HEADING: Finlay, Mick
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053 _0 |a PR6106.I52
100 1_ |a Finlay, Mick
670 __ |a Arrowood, 2017: |b ECIP t.p. (Mick Finlay) data view (born in Glasgow and grew up in Canada and England; now divides his time between Brighton and Cambridge; teaches in a Psychology Department, and has published research on political violence, persuasion, and verbal and non-verbal behaviour; writes historical crime fiction; Arrowood is his first novel)
PERSONAL
Born in Glasgow, Scotland.
EDUCATION:Holds Ph.D.
ADDRESS
CAREER
Anglia Ruskin University, Cambridge, England, reader in psychology, 2011–. Has taught at Surrey University and Open University, and has worked for U.K.’s National Health Service.
MEMBER:Crime Writers’ Association.
WRITINGS
Contributor to books, including The Palgrave Handbook of Adult Mental Health and Theorizing Identities and Social Action, and journals, including British Journal of Social Psychology, Sociology of Health & Illness, and Journal of Intellectual Disability Research.
SIDELIGHTS
Mick Finlay, a psychology instructor, made his debut as a novelist with Arrowood. The novel, the first in a planned series, follows the adventures of William Arrowood, a journalist turned detective serving the poorer areas of London in the 1890s. He is a rival to Sherlock Holmes, whose clientele is drawn from the upper classes, and Arrowood has great disdain for Holmes. Like Holmes, though, Arrowood has a partner in detection, in his case former law clerk Norman Barnett, who narrates the story. The two are hired by photographer Caroline Cousture, a beautiful and mysterious Frenchwoman, to find her brother Thierry, who has disappeared from the Barrel of Beef, a restaurant where he worked as a cook. She had wanted to hire Holmes but could not afford his fee. While Arrowood and Barnett do not trust her, they take the assignment anyway. Their investigation runs into many complications, as the Barrel of Beef is owned by crime boss Stanley Cream, who had clashed with Arrowood and Barnett on one of their previous cases and vowed to kill them if he encountered them again. Their current case may also have connections to corrupt police or the Fenians, a group of Irish rebels. In addition, a serial killer is loose in the city. Arrowood and Barnett frequently put themselves and others in danger, with their 10-year-old assistant Neddy being kidnapped twice. The detectives also often irritate the police as well as each other, and they are not above using violence to obtain information. Barnett, as narrator, is far from an admiring John Watson, as he is willing to point out all of Arrowood’s flaws. The setting is likewise much different from Holmes’s rarefied environment, being instead a world of seedy pubs, prostitutes, and small-time criminals. The novel is marked by its portrayal of class differences along with the inequities faced by women.
“Writing this type of fiction requires a huge amount of research, and I’ve spent the last few years collecting sources on Victorian life.” Finlay related in an essay for the Crime Readers’ Association’s Web site. “For the first Arrowood book, I read about the Fenian bombing campaigns, early theories of psychology, crime and policing in Victorian London, the lives of the poor, and, of course, plenty of Sherlock Holmes.”
Several critics found Arrowood a compelling, refreshing mystery informed by Finlay’s research. “Finlay captures the filth, frustration, and dark humor of the Victorian-era slum,” offering “a realism decidedly un-Sherlockian,” observed Jen Baker in Booklist. Pam Norfolk, writing in England’s Lancashire Post, offered similar praise, saying: “Using his vast research … Finlay has given us both an extraordinary new perspective on a literary giant, and an exciting alternative to the Victorian crime genre.” A Publishers Weekly reviewer noted: “Finlay does a good job of creating a plausible alternative to Sherlock Holmes,” but a Kirkus Reviews contributor described the novel as “a great concept worked out with more grit than inspiration.” On the RT Book Reviews Web site, Carrie Townsend voiced some reservations as well. She had positive words for the setting and characters, but saw “something missing in its cohesion that would elevate it from a good read to a great one.” Historical Novel Review commentator Katharine Quarmby thought the portions about Arrowood’s rivalry with Holmes “could have done with a little editing; overall, however, the novel is readable and pacey.” John Cleal, writing online at Crime Review, remarked that Arrowood and Barnett’s sleuthing represents “the slow piecing-together of a jigsaw rather than flash of Holmesian brilliance,” adding: “Despite this, Finlay is a deft story-teller with a real lightness of touch, which makes this both an interesting and enjoyable read.” A blogger at Baker Street Babes commended the novel’s “honest narrative style.” which “offers an authentic feel of the situation and especially the social circles in which the protagonists move,” and praised the inclusion of “a couple of truly wonderful female characters.” Barnett, she continued, “is quite the feminist, too.” She concluded: “I found Arrowood truly enjoyable and I dearly hope that Mick Finlay will continue to write about the flawed duo and their adventures.”
BIOCRIT
PERIODICALS
Booklist, May 15, 2017, Jen Baker, review of Arrowood, p. 18.
Historical Novel Review, August, 2017, Katherine Quarmby, review of Arrowood.
Kirkus Reviews, May 15, 2017, review of Arrowood.
Lancashire Post, April 18, 2017, Pam Norfolk, review of Arrowood.
Publishers Weekly, April 17, 2017, review of Arrowood, p. 43.
ONLINE
Anglia Ruskin University Website, https://www.anglia.ac.uk/ (January 7, 2018), brief biography.
Baker Street Babes, http://bakerstreetbabes.com/ (June 30, 2017), review of Arrowroot.
Crime Readers’ Association Web site, https://thecra.co.uk/ (January 10, 2017), Mick Finlay, “Diary of a Debut Author.”
Crime Review, http://crimereview.co.uk/ (May 27 2017), John Cleal, review of Arrowood.
Crime Writers’ Association Website, https://thecwa.co.uk/ (January 7, 2018), brief biography.
Fantastic Fiction, https://www.fantasticfiction.com/ (January 7, 2018), brief biography.
Lil Bitch, https://thelitbitch.com (July 19, 2017), review of Arrowwood.
RT Book Reviews, https://www.rtbookreviews.com/ (January 7, 2018), Carrie Townsend, review of Arrowood.
Mick Finlay
UK flag
Mick Finlay was born in Glasgow and grew up in Canada and England. He now divides his time between Brighton and Cambridge. He teaches in a Psychology Department, and has published social psychological research on political violence, persuasion, and verbal and non-verbal behaviour. He reads widely in history, psychology, and enjoys a variety of fiction genres (including crime, of course!)
Mick used his background in psychology for writing his first book, a historical crime novel. 'Arrowood', set in Victorian London, will be published in March 2017 by HQ (Harper Collins) in the UK and by Mira in the USA.
Mick Finlay was born in Glasgow and grew up in Canada and England. He now lives in Brighton with his family. He teaches in a Psychology Department, and has published research on political violence, persuasion, and verbal and non-verbal behaviour. Before becoming an academic, he worked in the NHS, social services, ran a market stall on Portobello Road, was a butcher’s boy and a tent hand in a travelling circus. Mick writes historical crime fiction set in the 1890s in South London, and his first novel Arrowood was published in 2017 by HQ (Harper Collins). The sequel (The Murder Pit) will be published in August in 2018.
Dr Mick Finlay
Mick Finley
For media enquiries please contact the Press Team
Reader in Psychology
Faculty:Faculty of Science & Technology
Department:Psychology
Location: Cambridge
Areas of Expertise: Applied, Social and Health Psychology
Mick is a social psychologist conducting research in two main areas: intellectual disabilities and political conflict between groups.
mick.finlay@anglia.ac.uk
Background
Mick has been working at ARU since 2011. Before this he was employed in the Psychology Department at Surrey University. He has also taught with the Open University. For a number of years before beginning his PhD, Mick worked in local authority and NHS support services for adults with learning disabilities.
Research interests
Learning/intellectual disabilities (verbal/non-verbal communication and interaction; sexual health and relationships; identity; methodological issues in research; assessment)
Intergroup conflict; extremism; political violence; political discourse
Mick is a member of our Identity and Social Issues Research Area which forms part of our Applied, Social and Health Psychology Research Group.
Areas of research supervision
Mick is currently supervising two PhD students, both conducting research into aspects of the lives of adults with intellectual disabilities. He'd welcome PhD applications in the following two areas:
Intellectual disabilities (communication, interaction, sexual health, identity, support, empowerment and agency)
Group conflict (prejudice, violence, political discourse, denunciation, conformity).
Find out more about our Psychology PhD.
Teaching
Modules
Groups in Conflict: Social Psychological Issues, Qualitative Research Methods, Research Techniques in Psychology
Qualifications
PhD
MSc
Memberships, editorial boards
Fellow, the Higher Education Academy
Research grants, consultancy, knowledge exchange
Mick’s research has been funded by the ESRC and the British Academy. He has carried out consultancies for Crime Reduction Initiatives (CRI), Allianz, and HM Government, and has provided training workshops for NHS staff working in learning disability services as well as professionals interested in developing qualitative research skills.
Selected recent publications
Fiction
Finlay, Mick, 2017. Arrowood. Published by HQ Harper Collins.
Intergroup relations
Finlay, W.M.L. (in press) Language and civilian deaths: denying responsibility for casualties in the Gaza conflict 2014. Political Psychology.
Finlay, W.M.L., 2014. Denunciation and the construction of norms in group conflict: examples from an Al-Qaeda-supporting group. British Journal of Social Psychology, 53(4), pp.691-710.
Wood, C. & Finlay. W.M.L., 2008. British National Party representations of Muslims after the London bombings: homogeneity, threat and the conspiracy tradition. British Journal of Social Psychology, 47, pp.707-726.
Finlay, W.M.L., 2007. The propaganda of extreme hostility: denunciation and the regulation of the group. British Journal of Social Psychology, 46, pp.323-341.
Finlay, W.M.L., 2005. Pathologizing dissent: Identity politics, Zionism and the ‘self-hating Jew’. British Journal of Social Psychology, 44, pp.201-222
Intellectual disabilities
Antaki, C., Finlay, W. M. L., Walton, C., & Sempik, J. (2016). Communicative practices in staff support of adults with intellectual disabilities. In The Palgrave Handbook of Adult Mental Health (pp. 613-632). Palgrave Macmillan UK.
Borawska-Charko, M., Rohleder, P., & Finlay, W. M. L. (2016). The Sexual Health Knowledge of People with Intellectual Disabilities: a Review. Sexuality Research and Social Policy, 1-17. Rouse, L., & Finlay, W. M. L. (2016). Repertoires of responsibility for diabetes management by adults with intellectual disabilities and those who support them. Sociology of Health & Illness, 38(8), 1243-1257. Antaki, C., Crompton, R. J., Walton, C., & Finlay, W. M. L. (2016). How adults with a profound intellectual disability engage others in interaction. Sociology of Health & Illness.
Finlay, W.M.L., Rohleder, P, Taylor, N. and Culfear, H., 2015. Understanding as a practical issue in sexual health education for people with intellectual disabilities: a study using two qualitative methods. Health Psychology, 34(4), pp.328-338.
Jingree, T. & Finlay, W.M.L., 2013. Expressions of dissatisfaction and complaint by people with learning disabilities: a discourse analytic study. British Journal of Social Psychology, 52(2), pp.255-272.
Finlay, W.M.L. and Antaki, C., 2012. How staff pursue questions to adults with intellectual disabilities. Journal of Intellectual Disability Research, 56, pp.361-370.
Jingree, T. & Finlay, W.M.L., 2012. ‘It’s got so politically correct now’: an examination of parent talk about empowering individuals with learning disabilities. Sociology of Health and Illness, 34, pp.412-428.
Antaki, C. and Finlay, W.M.L., 2012. Trust in what others mean: breakdowns in interaction between adults with intellectual disabilities and support staff. In Candlin, C.N. and Crichton, J. (Eds.). Discourses of Trust. Basingstoke: Palgrave Macmillan.
Finlay, W.M.L., Walton, C. and Antaki, C., 2011. Giving feedback to staff about offering choices to people with intellectual disabilities. In C. Antaki (Ed.). Applied Conversation Analysis. Basingstoke: Palgrave Macmillan.
Antaki, C., Finlay, W.M.L. and Walton, C., 2010. Identity at home: offering everyday choices to people with intellectual impairments. In M. Wetherell (Ed.). Theorizing Identities and Social Action. Basingstoke: Palgrave Macmillan.
Antaki, C, Finlay, W.M.L., Walton, C. and Pate, L., 2009. Choices for people with an intellectual impairment: official discourse and everyday practice. Journal of Policy and Practice in Intellectual Disabilities, 6(4), pp.260-266.
Finlay ,W.M.L, Antaki, C., Walton, C. and Stribling, P., 2008. The dilemma for staff in ‘playing a game’ with a person with profound intellectual disabilities: empowerment, inclusions and choice in interactional practice. Sociology of Health and Illness, 30(4), pp.531-549.
Finlay, W.M.L., Antaki, C. and Walton, C., 2008. Saying no to the staff: an analysis of refusals in a care home for people with intellectual disabilities. Sociology of Health and Illness, 30, pp.55-75.
Finlay, W.M.L., Antaki, C. and Walton, C., 2008. Promoting choice and control in residential services for people with learning disabilities. Disability and Society, 23(4), pp.349-360.
Finlay, W.M.L., Walton, C. and Antaki, C., 2008. A manifesto for the use of video in service improvement and staff development in residential services for people with learning disabilities. British Journal of Learning Disabilities, 36, pp.227-231.
Antaki, C, Finlay, W.M.L., Walton, C. and Pate, L., 2008. Offering choices to people with intellectual disabilities: an interactional study. Journal of Intellectual Disability Research, 52, pp.1165-1175.
Jingree, T. and Finlay, W.M.L., 2008. ‘You can’t do it…it’s theory rather than practice’: staff use of the practice/principle rhetorical device in talk on empowering people with learning disabilities. Discourse & Society, 19, pp.705-726.
Walton, C. and Finlay, W.M.L., 2008. Learning disabilities: barriers to choice in residential services. Community Care, July 31, p.30.
Antaki, C., Finlay, W.M.L. and Walton, C., 2007. Conversational shaping: staff-members' solicitation of talk from people with an intellectual impairment. Qualitative Health Research, 17, pp.1403-1414.
Finlay, W.M.L, Antaki, C. and Walton, C., 2007. On not being noticed: intellectual disabilities and the non-vocal register. Intellectual and Developmental Disabilities, 45, pp.227-245.
Antaki, C., Finlay, W.M.L. and Walton, C., 2007. Identity issues in proposing activities to persons with a learning disability. Discourse and Society, 18, pp.393-410.
Jones, F.W., Long, K. and Finlay, W.M.L., 2007. Symbols can improve the reading of adults with intellectual disabilities. Journal of Intellectual Disability Research, 51, pp.545-550.
Antaki, C., Finlay, W.M.L. and Walton, C., 2007. The staff are your friends: intellectually disabled identities in official discourse and institutional practice. British Journal of Social Psychology, 46, pp.1-18.
Antaki, C., Finlay, W.M.L., Sheridan, E., Jingree, T. and Walton, C., 2006. Producing decisions in service-user groups for people with an intellectual disability: two contrasting facilitator styles. Mental Retardation, 44, pp.322-343.
Jones, F.W., Long, K. and Finlay, W.M.L., 2006. Assessing the reading comprehension of adults with learning disabilities. Journal of Intellectual Disability Research, 50, pp.410-418.
Wilcox, E., Finlay, W.M.L. and Edmonds, J., 2006. His brain is totally different: An analysis of care staff explanations of aggressive challenging behaviours and the impact of gendered discourses. British Journal of Social Psychology, 45, pp.197-216.
Jingree, T., Finlay, W.M.L. and Antaki, C., 2006. Empowering words, disempowering actions. Journal of Intellectual Disability Research, 50, pp.212-226.
Finlay, W.M.L. and Lyons, E., 2005. Rejecting the label: a social constructionist analysis. Mental Retardation, 43, pp.120-134.
Finlay, W.M.L., 2005. Psychometric assessment of mood disorders in people with intellectual disabilities. In P. Sturmey (Ed.). Mood disorders in people with mental retardation. Kingston, NY: NADD Press.
Finlay, W.M.L., Rutland, A. and Shotton, J., 2003. 'They were brilliant, I don’t know what I would’ve done if they hadn’t been here': The group concept problem revisited. Journal of Community and Applied Social Psychology, 13, pp.300-313.
Antaki, C., Young, N. and Finlay, W.M.L., 2002. Shaping clients’ answers: Departures from neutrality in care-staff interviews with people with a learning disability. Disability & Society, 17(4), pp.435-455.
Finlay, W.M.L. and Lyons, E., 2002. Acquiescence in interviews with people with mental retardation. Mental Retardation, 40(1), pp.14-29.
Finlay, W.M.L. and Lyons, E., 2001. Methodological issues in interviewing and using self-report questionnaires with people with mental retardation. Psychological Assessment, 13, pp.319-335.
Finlay, W.M.L. and Lyons, E., 2000. Social categorizations, social comparisons and stigma: Presentations of self in people with learning difficulties. British Journal of Social Psychology, 39, pp.129-146.
Finlay, W.M.L. and Lyons, E., 1998. Social identity and people with learning difficulties. Disability and Society, 13(1), pp37-51.
Finlay, W.M.L. and Bernal, J., 1996. Tourette's Syndrome and challenging behaviour: a case study. British Journal of Learning Disabilities, 24(2), pp.80-83.
Finlay, W.M.L., Duckett, S. and Eliatamby, A., 1995. Intensive community assessment and intervention for challenging behaviour: A case study. British Journal of Learning Disabilities, 23(1), pp.18-23.
Other health and clinical psychology
Walton, C. and Finlay, W.M.L., 2015. Conversation Analysis in Health and Social Care Research. In P. Rohleder & A Lyons (Eds.). Qualitative Research in Clinical and Health Psychology. Basingstoke: Palgrave Macmillan.
Hughes, R, Hayward, M. and Finlay, W.M.L., 2009. Patients’ perceptions of the impact of involuntary inpatient care on self, relationships and recovery. Journal of Mental Health, 18, pp.152-60.
Stone, L. and Finlay, W.M.L., 2008. A cross-cultural comparison of Afro-Caribbean and White-European young adults’ conceptions of schizophrenia symptoms and the diagnostic label. International Journal of Social Psychiatry, 54, pp.242-261.
Dinos, S., Lyons, E. and Finlay, W.M.L., 2005. Does chronic illness place constraints on positive constructions of identity? Temporal comparisons and self-evaluations in people with schizophrenia. Social Science and Medicine, 60, pp.2239-2248
Glasman, D., Finlay, W.M.L. and Brock, D., 2004. Becoming a self-therapist: Using cognitive-behavioural therapy for recurrent depression and dysthymia after completing therapy. Psychology and Psychotherapy, 77, pp.335-351.
Camp, D.L., Finlay, W.M.L. and Lyons, E., 2002. Is low self-esteem an inevitable consequence of stigma? An example from women with chronic mental health problems. Social Science and Medicine, 55, pp.823-34.
Finlay, W.M.L., Dinos, S. and Lyons, E., 2001. Stigma and multiple social comparisons in people with schizophrenia. European Journal of Social Psychology, 31, pp.579-592.
Quoted in Sidelights: "Writing this type of fiction requires a huge amount of research, and I’ve spent the last few years collecting sources on Victorian life." Finlay related in an essay for the Crime Readers' Association Web site. "For the first Arrowood book, I read about the Fenian bombing campaigns, early theories of psychology, crime and policing in Victorian London, the lives of the poor, and, of course, plenty of Sherlock Holmes."
MICK FINLAY: DIARY OF A DEBUT AUTHOR
10th January 2017 by TheCRA in Interviews, New Releases
The review copies of my first novel Arrowood arrived three days ago. I had a couple of glasses of wine and opened one but couldn’t bring myself to read the words. It’s getting serious now. You put a lot of yourself on the line when you publish a novel.
I signed my book deal in April 2016, and it’ll be published in March 2017. Someone told me the time would race by, and publication day would come before I knew it. I can see how it would be that way for my publishers (the great new Harper Collins imprint HQ) and their marketing team, as they have a constant cycle of other books being commissioned and published, but I only have one, and I’m afraid to say it’s too easy to obsess over every step. My most recent weakness is looking on the internet to see which book-selling website it’s appeared on. You can’t buy it, of course, but it’s there, all over the world, in languages I don’t recognize.
Other writers told me about this period between signing your first book deal and it being published. One told me I should try to enjoy it, this golden time between being able to call yourself a writer and your book being out there in the market. You’ve been accepted, your agent and publishers love your book, and you can sit in that cocoon and enjoy it before the people that matter, the readers, can tell you any different. Another told me how difficult it is, the waiting and wondering what will happen when it finally comes out. That’s what I do a lot at the moment. Will my friends like it? Will it get reviewed in newspapers and blogs? Will it get on the tables in Waterstones? How many stars will it get on Goodreads? Will anyone buy it?
At least there are distractions. The to and fro over cover designs, negotiations over TV rights, joining the Crime Writers’ Association, news of publishers in other countries signing it, and the small issue of writing a sequel that has to be finished in January. I’ve tried to arrange my life better so that I can be a writer. There’s a new shed in the garden to work in. I’ve negotiated going part-time in my job (I’m an academic in a Psychology department). My publishers have set a date later this month to train me in social media and to plan a PR strategy. I’ve even had my dog’s ears emptied of wax so he doesn’t yelp when I stroke him. And life goes on.
I work in my job three days a week now, which leaves two full weekdays and parts of Saturday and Sunday to write my sequel. Before getting the book deal, I’d write for an hour before leaving for work, for an hour in the evening, two or three hours here and there at the weekends. Even if I only had half an hour, I’d use that. Writing a novel takes a blind discipline and a bit of selfishness. I always took my laptop on holiday too, and would snatch an hour or two a day, before my family woke up or when they were lazing in the afternoon.
Arrowood is set in London in 1895, and features a private detective who lives south of the river at the same time as Sherlock Holmes is enjoying fame to the north. But Arrowood works the poorer parts of town and resents the success and the well-paid cases of the great detective. Writing this type of fiction requires a huge amount of research, and I’ve spent the last few years collecting sources on Victorian life. For the first Arrowood book, I read about the Fenian bombing campaigns, early theories of psychology, crime and policing in Victorian London, the lives of the poor, and, of course, plenty of Sherlock Holmes.
It’s been great, but as I write I’m always having to check facts. What would a clerk wear on a cold day? What food could you buy in a coffee shop? What was the layout of the racetrack at Alexandra Palace? This week I’ve been puzzling over maps: the streets of South London are important for my story. I previously relied on a few different on-line sources, including Booth’s poverty maps and the OS maps (1892-1905) available on the National Library of Scotland’s website. On these maps you can find Coin Street, near Waterloo, where Arrowood lives in rooms behind a pudding shop. A week or so ago I bought a beautiful A to Z of Victorian London from the London Museum, which contains Bacon’s 1888 street maps, only to find it doesn’t have Coin Street! I don’t know if it was built in the intervening period or if either the OS or Bacon’s maps are wrong. But I suppose it doesn’t really matter. I have to keep reminding myself I’m writing fiction. It’s the characters and story that count, and very few people will know if Coin Street really existed in 1895. Anyway, it’s in my book now, and the book’s on my shelf, and soon it will be on the shelves of bookshops. I just hope people will like reading it as much as I’ve liked writing it.
Mick Finlay (@mickfinlay2)
Arrowood will be published by HQ (Harper Collins) on 23 March, 2017.
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Print Marked Items
Finlay, Mick: ARROWOOD
Quoted in Sidelights: “a great concept worked out with more grit than inspiration.”
Kirkus Reviews.
(May 15, 2017):
COPYRIGHT 2017 Kirkus Media LLC
http://www.kirkusreviews.com/
Full Text:
Finlay, Mick ARROWOOD Harlequin MIRA (Adult Fiction) $15.99 7, 18 ISBN: 978-0-7783-
3094-3
Finlay debuts with a tale built on a wonderful premise: a downscale Sherlock Holmes for the rest
of us.Just like everyone else in 1895 London, French photographer Caroline Cousture would
love to hire Holmes to investigate the disappearance of her brother, a pastry cook who's gone
missing from the Barrel of Beef, the chophouse where he found employment. But, unable to
afford Holmes' presumably stratospheric prices--though his clients are rarely shown actually
paying him--she has to settle for ex-journalist William Arrowood. In some ways it's an excellent
choice. Arrowood is obsessed with his great rival; he can expound on every limitation and
logical fallacy in A Study in Scarlet and "A Scandal in Bohemia." In other ways, Caroline's
choice is less fortunate. Arrowood, who declares to his client and his amanuensis, Norman
Barnett, that he's "an emotional agent, not a deductive agent," isn't much of a detective at all. His
first interview, with a barmaid Thierry Cousture had befriended at the Barrel of Beef, gets the
poor girl killed, and Neddy, the likable neighborhood 10-year-old who does his legwork, gets
kidnapped twice, the second time from under Barnett's nose. Even worse, Arrowood's sleuthing
skills, at least in this first recorded case, seem limited to antagonizing Inspector Petleigh,
repeatedly butting heads with Stanley Cream, who owns the Barrel of Beef, and calling in an
expert to identify the bullet the dead barmaid was clutching in her hand. But Finlay has a fine
time recasting the friendship between Holmes and Watson, as Arrowood and Barnett repeatedly
quarrel, swap obscenities and threats, and pummel each other. A great concept worked out with
more grit than inspiration. The inevitable franchise has already been optioned for television, a
medium you can only hope will hang on to the best bits here and toss out the rest.
Source Citation (MLA 8th
Edition)
"Finlay, Mick: ARROWOOD." Kirkus Reviews, 15 May 2017. General OneFile,
http://link.galegroup.com/apps/doc/A491934336/ITOF?
u=schlager&sid=ITOF&xid=7da4a766. Accessed 25 Dec. 2017.
Gale Document Number: GALE|A491934336
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Arrowood
Quoted in Sidelights: “Finlay captures the filth, frustration, and dark humor of the Victorian-era slum,” offering “a realism decidedly un-Sherlockian,”
Jen Baker
Booklist.
113.18 (May 15, 2017): p18.
COPYRIGHT 2017 American Library Association
http://www.ala.org/ala/aboutala/offices/publishing/booklist_publications/booklist/booklist.cfm
Full Text:
Arrowood. By Mick Finlay. July 2017. 352p. MIRA, paper, $15.99 (9780778330943); e-book,
$9.99 (9781488025136).
South London's Bermondsey and its fiercely edgy detective, William Arrowood, possess little to
recommend themselves in comparison to the more famous deductive expert, Sherlock Holmes,
and his more sophisticated Westmin ster. Still, Arrowood, "an emotional agent" who sees into
souls, is the best Bermondsey can offer. He and his assistant, Barnett, accept a missing-persons
case, although they know the (lovely) client is lying (of course) and that inevitably they will seek
clues from a crime boss they wish they didn't know personally. Layers upon layers later, when
all is very nearly lost, only Arrowood's pugnacious tenacity can ferret out the truth. Finlay
captures the filth, frustration, and dark humor of the Victorianera slum, plopping the reader into
the story among the odoriferous, life-encrusted characters with a realism decidedly unSherlockian.
Still, the tropes are similar, and Doyle's fans will be entertained. While waiting for
the next installment, why not hang out with cranky, intimidating Cyrus Barker in Will Thomas'
mysteries (Some Danger Involved, 2004) and the psychically astute Nine-Nails McGray in
Oscar de Muriel's Frey and McGray series (The Strings of Murder, 2016)?--Jen Baker
Source Citation (MLA 8th
Edition)
Baker, Jen. "Arrowood." Booklist, 15 May 2017, p. 18. General OneFile,
http://link.galegroup.com/apps/doc/A496084741/ITOF?
u=schlager&sid=ITOF&xid=f0d49864. Accessed 25 Dec. 2017.
Gale Document Number: GALE|A496084741
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Arrowood
Quoted in Sidelights: “Finlay does a good job of creating a plausible alternative to Sherlock Holmes,”
Publishers Weekly.
264.16 (Apr. 17, 2017): p43.
COPYRIGHT 2017 PWxyz, LLC
http://www.publishersweekly.com/
Full Text:
Arrowood
Mick Finlay. Mira, $15.99 trade paper (352p) ISBN 978-0-7783-3094-3
Finlay does a good job of creating a plausible alternative to Sherlock Holmes in his first novel
and series debut. In London in 1895, photographer Caroline Cousture, a French woman, turns to
Arrowood because she can't afford Holmes's fees. Her brother, Thierry, has vanished after being
accused of stealing from the bakery where he worked. Though Arrowood suspects her of lying,
he accepts the case, only to find that it reawakens some painful and dangerous memories.
Arrowood was once a successful reporter before he lost his job to a relative of the new owner of
his paper. His reputation for muckraking led to a career as a detective and an eventual
partnership with former law clerk Norman Barnett. Their first joint inquiry, into a suspected
bigamy, ended disastrously, with an innocent man losing his life. Arrowood took to the bottle,
causing his wife to leave him. Finlay's characterizations are better developed than in some
similar series, such as Will Thomas's Barker and Llewelyn mysteries (Hell Bay, etc.). Agent: Jo
Unwin,Jo Unwin Literary Agency (U.K.). (July)
Source Citation (MLA 8th
Edition)
"Arrowood." Publishers Weekly, 17 Apr. 2017, p. 43. General OneFile,
http://link.galegroup.com/apps/doc/A490820766/ITOF?
u=schlager&sid=ITOF&xid=437180f1. Accessed 25 Dec. 2017.
Gale Document Number: GALE|A490820766
Review: Arrowood by Mick Finlay
I absolutely love the tagline of this book: London Society takes their problems to Sherlock Holmes. Everyone else goes to Arrowood.
That totally caught my eye when I was scanning Netgalley in search of new books to read this summer. An anti-Sherlock Holmes sounded refreshing and new. I have been watching the TV show Sherlock (which if you haven’t watched it, go right now to Netflix and start!) and I love the modern take on it, so I thought that something like an anti-Sherlock read would be complimentary.
The Afghan War is over and a deal with the Irish appears to have brought an end to sectarian violence, but Britain’s position in the world is uncertain and the gap between rich and poor is widening. London is a place where the wealthy party while the underclass are tempted into lives of crime, drugs and prostitution. A serial killer stalks the streets. Politicians are embroiled in financial and sexual scandals. The year is 1895.
The police don’t have the resources to deal with everything that goes on in the capital. The rich turn to a celebrated private detective when they need help: Sherlock Holmes. But in densely populated south London, where the crimes are sleazier and Holmes rarely visits, people turn to Arrowood, a private investigator who despises Holmes, his wealthy clientele and his showy forensic approach to crime. Arrowood understands people, not clues (summary from Goodreads).
This was an interesting one and not what I was expecting at all. It was much darker and gritter than I thought it was going to be. I mean yes, it’s an anti-Sherlock novel but I expected Arrowood to at least be somewhat likable! I could never really warm up to him at all. I don’t know that I ever really liked him in any way shape or form. In fact I felt like his assistant did most of the work while he took the credit. I felt like the novel should have been called Barnett.
The mystery itself was ok, it did drag on for a little too long in my opinion but I liked the gritty, darker parts of the mystery just fine. I think the book itself had all the right ingredients but the mixture just didn’t develop into a masterpiece. It’s like someone left out the yeast to make the story rise. Everything was there to make it really really good, but something critical was missing and for me that was a likable, charismatic main character.
The summary made it sound a lot more exciting than it turned out to be. It was ok, but not an overly engaging mystery which made me sad. I had really hoped to like this one but I just didn’t. I have read a lot of other reviews on this one and I seem to be in the minority. Everyone else seems to really like it, but for me it was a complete miss. I would have rated it one star but I did like Barnett and I liked some parts of the mystery, plus I did keep reading the book for quite a while so there was clearly something that kept me reading. If I had really disliked it, then I would have moved it to DNF, but I didn’t, I kept plugging away. So I figured it at least deserved two stars.
Challenge/Book Summary:
Book: Arrowood by Mick Finlay
Kindle Edition, 336 pages
Expected publication: August 1st 2017 by MIRA
ASIN B01N2JL2WO
Review copy provided by: Author/Publisher in exchange for an honest review.
This book counts toward: NA
Hosted by: NA
Books for Challenge Completed: NA
Recommendation: 2 out of 5
Genre: historical fiction, detective novel, gaslight fiction, mystery, thriller
Memorable lines/quotes:
Quoted in Sidelights: “honest narrative style.” which “offers an authentic feel of the situation and especially the social circles in which the protagonists move,” and praised the inclusion of “a couple of truly wonderful female characters.” Barnett, she continued, “is quite the feminist, too.” She concluded: “I found Arrowood truly enjoyable and I dearly hope that Mick Finlay will continue to write about the flawed duo and their adventures.”
BIOCRIT
Book Review: Mick Finlay: Arrowood
June 30th, 2017 by The Baker Street Babes
When I first read about Arrowood as an anti-Holmes, I was intrigued. Of course Sherlock Holmes himself constantly criticizes fictional detectives, and Mick Finlay set out to create a character who has his own methods of solving cases, and who happens to severely dislike Sherlock Holmes.
It is the year 1895 – THE year, for Sherlock Holmes and John Watson. But we are not in Baker Street in front of a fire. We are in a small rented flat in South London. Former journalist William Arrowood, a man who is so vividly described in all his unappealing attributes that even when he shines, there is always a sense of discomfort and disgust overshadowing the action, and his sidekick Norman Barnett, a man who suffers from poverty, heartbreak and disillusionment, set out to solve cases Sherlock Holmes wouldn’t touch with his brother’s brolly’s pointy end. And their adversaries are not to be underestimated, as their current unhappy disposition is largely due to the criminal interference of Stanley Cream, king of crime in South London, who promised them both a gruesome end if they ever interfered with his work again.
Trying to recover from the loss of work and dignity, Arrowood offers his services to those who cannot afford or do not wish to consult Sherlock Holmes. When a young, French lady, who introduces herself as Caroline Cousture, appears in Arrowood’s premises, begging him to find her brother Thierry, the private detective believes he has found a case which might redeem him a little. But what starts off as a fairly straightforward case soon leads to murders, blackmail, an involvement with the Fenians, and physical harm to all involved. Unsurprisingly, all of these problems somehow lead back to Cream.
It is difficult to offer more plot descriptions without going into too much detail or without spoiling the end, so let me write a little more about the style of the book. As with the Sherlock Holmes stories, this mystery is told from the perspective of the sidekick, who, in comparison to Watson, is much more honest and critical of himself and his employer. The lower social class of the narrator becomes apparent not only in the accent he uses in his narrative, but also through his behavior. He does not shy away from physical violence and, as part of his strategy to get people talking, frequently drinks his way through the pubs of South London – as does Arrowood, despite their respective difficult financial situations.
The book starts with a very unfavourable description of Arrowood, which came as a surprise to me, but which also clarified that there would be no adulation and sugar coating in this novel. This honest narrative style drew me in immediately as it offers an authentic feel of the situation and especially the social circles in which the protagonists move.
The mystery itself is quite complex, much to the dismay of the detective and Barnett, and to the benefit of the reader, and there are no loose ends left in this book, which is something I appreciated very much.
We also meet a couple of truly wonderful female characters in this story, and it doesn’t hurt that Barnett is quite the feminist, too.
After two chapters, I was wholly immersed in the story and remained so until the end. Due to work and other commitments, I could not read this book in one go, and it has been quite some time (since Lyndsay Faye’s Gotham Trilogy or The Watchmaker of Filigree Street by Natasha Pulley) since I spent the hours and days between reading new chapters thinking and worrying about the characters and what might happen to them. The characters are all flawed, and beautifully so. They are complex and sometimes unjustifiably ignorant or stubborn and once I had finished the novel, I took a deep breath, knowing that for just a few hours, everyone was stationary and at least partly alright, before new adventures and very likely quite a few stupid decisions would await them.
I also truly enjoyed the jabs at Sherlock Holmes. Quite obviously born out of jealousy and prejudice, but also secret admiration, Arrowood occasionally gives us a piece of his mind of what he thinks of the great detective. At one point, the story even hints at Dr. Watson’s presence during one of Arrowood’s escapades when he explains to a lady on a train that Holmes’s solution cannot possibly have been the right one. We don’t get the satisfaction of knowing what Watson might have told Sherlock that night in front of the fireplace with a tumbler of brandy in his hand, but I guess that’s what fanfiction is for.
In any case, I found Arrowood truly enjoyable and I dearly hope that Mick Finlay will continue to write about the flawed duo and their adventures.
You can get the book on amazon.co.uk, amazon.com (the Paperback comes out on July 19), amazon.de, book depository or directly from HarperCollins.
(HarperCollins kindly sent us a review copy)
Quoted in Sidelights: “could have done with a little editing; overall, however, the novel is readable and pacey.”
Arrowood
BY MICK FINLAY
Find & buy on
This highly readable novel plunges the reader into a mystery: what has happened to the brother of the beautiful and enigmatic Frenchwoman, Miss Caroline Cousture? Set in the late 19th century, the private detective Arrowood and his sidekick Barnett, the narrator, are in competition with Sherlock Holmes. Whilst Holmes solves crime for London’s elite, Arrowood and friend live and work in the other London, the land of the poor. London, at the turn of the century, is a place where the divisions between rich and poor are widening, with those at the bottom of the heap forced into crime of all sorts, whilst the political elite is entangled in scandals and escapades. And there’s a serial killer on the loose. Arrowood’s task here is to discover why the young Frenchman has disappeared and who has a hand in it. His task is rendered more complicated because Miss Cousture is lying to him.
Arrowood’s strengths are his knowledge of people and their interlinked histories; he despises “Sherlock blooming Holmes”, as he calls him, whilst envying his publicity (in The Strand magazine, of course) and his wealth. This plot-line could have done with a little editing; overall, however, the novel is readable and pacey. The novel has a heavy dose of well-described violence, particularly at the hands of one group of gangsters, but also from coppers, coopers and Fenians. Black humour runs through the novel, lightening a story that could be at risk at times of being a detective version of Mayhew’s London. There is tenderness too, in the depiction of the lonely Arrowood’s relationship with a local scamp, Neddy. Readers of historical detective fiction will enjoy this well-set, darkly humorous addition to the canon.
Quoted in Sidelights: “something missing in its cohesion that would elevate it from a good read to a great one.”
ARROWOOD
Author(s): Mick Finlay
Former investigative reporter William Arrowood provides a more psychologically driven alternative to Sherlock Holmes. A bit grittier than his famous Baker Street counterpart, Arrowood will nevertheless appeal to this growing fan base despite his own distaste for Holmes. The author skillfully takes readers to the slums of Victorian-era South London, the seedy setting coming to life on the page, and the complexity of the characters adds to the mood. While all of these elements are individually well done, there seems to be something missing in its cohesion that would elevate it from a good read to a great one.
To William Arrowood, the deductive “skills” of Sherlock Holmes are elementary at best. He prefers to read people, not details. His ability to do so with near inerrancy keeps him in business as an investigator in the slums of South London in spite of a misstep that took away everything else of value to him. When a serial killer brings terror to the slum of Bermondsey, Sherlock Holmes isn’t going to help. It’s all up to Arrowood. (MIRA, Jul., 336 pp., $15.99)
Reviewed by:
Carrie Townsend
Quoted in Sidelights: “Using his vast research … Finlay has given us both an extraordinary new perspective on a literary giant, and an exciting alternative to the Victorian crime genre.”
Book review: Arrowood by Mick Finlay Arrowood by Mick Finlay PAM NORFOLK Email Published: 13:48 Tuesday 18 April 2017 Share this article 0 HAVE YOUR SAY Celebrated London detective Sherlock Holmes might be the master of deduction but he has serious flaws… his prices are prohibitive and he doesn’t understand people. Fortunately for those in the mean, overcrowded streets south of the murky River Thames, there is another private investigator, a man who not only charges less than the Baker Street genius, but can also see into people’s souls. While London’s wealthy high society take their problems to Holmes, everyone else goes to William Arrowood, down-at-heel sleuth, occasional drunkard and self-taught psychologist. Welcome to Glasgow-born Mick Finlay’s stunningly dark and atmospheric crime debut, a murder thriller that imagines a corner of Sherlock Holmes’ capital city in 1895, a place where the poor are hungry, crime bosses are taking control… and the streets are very different to the ones inhabited by Conan Doyle’s famous investigator. Finlay teaches in a psychology department but before becoming an academic he was a man of many parts, including running a market stall on Portobello Road, working as a tent-hand in a travelling circus, as a butcher’s boy, a hotel porter, and in various jobs in the NHS and social services. And it is perhaps this eclectic career that led him to the unwholesome back streets of late 19th century London and the creation of the indomitable Arrowood, a shambling but ‘emotional agent’ who is led by his senses rather than his clues, and despises the ‘deductive’ Holmes, his wealthy clientele and his showy forensic approach to crime. New Photo Gifts with FREE Same Day Pickup at Walgreens Create Custom Floating Frames, 11x14 Metal Panels, 3x3 Photo Cubes and 2x2 Photo Cube Ornaments for the perfect gift. Promoted by Walgreens Arrowood’s sidekick, Norman Barnett, a former clerk who sprung from one of the city’s notorious courts, is certainly no Dr Watson; he knows what it is to have lived amidst filth, despair and human degradation. Down-to-earth Barnett also knows that emotions are both Arrowood’s strength and his weakness, and that is why they make an unlikely but effective team. Together they fight crime, and their patch is sleazy Southwark, a far cry from Sherlock’s upmarket Marylebone in the City of Westminster. It’s 1895, the Afghan War is over and a deal with the restless Irish appears to have brought an end to sectarian violence. In London, the wealthy party while the underclasses are tempted into lives of crime, drugs and prostitution. Politicians are embroiled in financial and sexual scandals, and the police don’t have the resources to deal with everything that goes on in the capital. The rich turn to Holmes for help but in densely populated south London, which the great man rarely visits, the person to see is Arrowood, the private investigator who is adept at ‘reading people.’ And when French woman Constance Cousture walks into his rooms seeking help to find her missing brother Thierry, a worker at a local chophouse, Arrowood fears the worst. The owner of the Barrel of Beef is Stanley Cream, the vicious gang leader at the centre of a case which went badly wrong for Arrowood and Barnett a few years ago. Even though Cream threatened to kill the detectives if he ever saw them again, Arrowood takes on the dangerous investigation but soon his principal lead, the missing man’s girlfriend, is viciously stabbed to death outside a local churchyard. With possible links to Irish rebels, the Fenians, and police corruption, this case is set to be the detectives’ toughest quest yet… It’s no surprise that there are already plans for a TV adaptation of Arrowood with Kathy Burke signed up as Executive Producer. This is a story that packs a powerful punch… the intricate, cleverly crafted plot weaves between Arrowood’s shabby rooms behind a pudding shop and some of Victorian London’s most miserable streets, public houses and dwelling places. And there are people here we can all recognise – some good, some bad and some, like Arrowood, who possess the larger-than-life vividness of a Dickens novel – but all are flawed and essentially real, their vices and vulnerabilities part of the fabric of this teeming, tumultuous city. Using his vast research into 19th century life, crime, policing, early theories of psychology and the Fenian bombing campaign in London, Finlay has given us both an extraordinary new perspective on a literary giant, and an exciting alternative to the Victorian crime genre. With murder, intrigue, dark humour, compelling characters and an extraordinary backdrop, it’s to be hoped that Arrowood is just the opener for a thrilling and original new series. (HQ, hardback, £12.99)
Read more at: https://www.lep.co.uk/lifestyle/books/book-review-arrowood-by-mick-finlay-1-8498521
Quoted in Sidelights: “the slow piecing-together of a jigsaw rather than flash of Holmesian brilliance,” adding: “Despite this, Finlay is a deft story-teller with a real lightness of touch, which makes this both an interesting and enjoyable read.”
Publisher HQ
Date Published 25 March 2017
ISBN-10 0008203180
ISBN-13 978-0008203184
Format hardcover
Pages 400
Price £ 12.99
Arrowood
by Mick Finlay
A missing-person case for down-at-heel private eye William Arrowood and his friend Norman Barnett spirals into an investigation of sexual exploitation, perversion, murder and terrorism.
Review
It had to come – and Mick Finlay leads a backlash against the rising tide of Sherlock Holmes imitators with this atmospheric and detailed depiction of a London the Great Detective in any of his representations would hardly recognise in this downbeat, down-at-heel and dark story of Victorian society.
His very anti-hero is the fat and not very appealing William Arrowood, ex-journalist turned private eye, who seeks solace for a failed marriage in the bottle and the company of prostitutes. He’s a suitable character for his milieu – the dark, filthy, densely populated, disease and crime-ridden streets and alleyways of Southwark, one of the capital’s poorest boroughs, where families do whatever they must to survive.
While the elite turn to Holmes to solve the crimes an overstretched and often corrupt police force cannot deal with, the poor of sleazy south London use the dubious skills of this self-taught, opinionated and obstinate psychologist. Arrowood is openly critical of Holmes’ methods and deductions – which he mocks at every opportunity – but it is clear that much of this derision in motivated by jealousy, which brings some wry humour to the narrative.
In the best Conan Doyle tradition, even this crumbling human failure has his amanuensis. Former solicitor’s clerk Norman Barnett takes the Watson role, but contributes rather more than the good Doctor both in terms of detection and violent physical involvement, while at the same time hiding a personal tragedy.
The plot, involving crooks, Fenian terrorists and street gangs is nicely constructed and paced. What starts as a deceptively simple missing-person case spirals first into murder then sexual exploitation, perversion and murder. The story is well-written, with a strong and intriguing storyline and convincing historical detail, and builds gradually through a positive mesh of intrigue – the slow piecing-together of a jigsaw rather than flash of Holmesian brilliance, which both reflects the flawed main protagonists and gives the opportunity to expand on their personal lives.
Despite this, Finlay is a deft story-teller with a real lightness of touch, which makes this both an interesting and enjoyable read. Cynics like me may find their credulity stretched a little by the rather politically correct depraved upper class capitalists, crooked ‘businessmen’, strong women or nobly motivated ‘freedom fighters’ in the south London slums of 1895, but this is a clever and eminently readable debut – and one which will hopefully inspire Finlay to further adventures for this likeable alternative detective pairing.
Reviewed 27 May 2017 by John Cleal
John Cleal is a former soldier and journalist with an interest in medieval history.