A POLICEMAN’S LOT
By Gary M. Dobbs
PRESS RELEASE
Extract from the publisher’s original reader report: A Policeman’s Lot, by Gary Dobbs. Murder mystery. 56K words. Fascinating concept, setting, and characters. Set in Wales during Buffalo Bill’s 1903/1904 tour of the United Kingdom, the story begins with Inspector Frank Parade carrying out his daily duties in the town of Pontypridd, duties complicated by the unprecedented presence of 500 members of Buffalo Bill Cody’s Wild West Show encamped o
utside the town, not to mention the thousands attending the show every day. A series of depraved murders quickly makes things even more complicated. Buffalo Bill stands squarely in his path when Parade tries to investigate the likely possibility that one of the hundreds of show members is involved. And soon enough Parade’s own superiors are blocking his inquires, too. Still more deaths occur as Parade sifts through the thin evidence available and finds a trail that may lead to the perpetrator of the most heinous crime of the 19th Century—London’s “Ripper” murders. Before the story is done, Parade develops a dramatic theory that may solve the Ripper mystery, as well as the murders he faces in idyllic Pontypridd. The story itself is wonderful—clever and intense.
Note from Gary M. Dobbs – The Jack the Ripper killings of Victorian London still fascinate us to this day. The killer was never captured and his/her identity remains a mystery.
Whilst researching for A Policeman’s Lot I came across a bizarre link to the final canonical killing (Note there are officially five killings attributed to the Ripper and these are known as the canonical five but there are theories that there may have actually been between 9 and 15 killings.) which placed Mary Kelly, the final victim, in South Wales in the years before moving to London. Indeed the deeper I researched the more convinced I became that it wasn’t actually Mary Kelly found dead on that bed in Spittlefields, Whitechapel but someone else. This forms the basis for A Policeman’s Lot.
Does A Policeman’s Lot finally solve the mystery? Well it’s fiction, not intended to be factual but I do believe that it throws up a further mystery – who was the woman the police identified as Mary Kelly. The body was so hideously mutilated that she was only identified by her earlobes, and then by a casual boyfriend. There were several sightings of Mary Kelly after she was supposedly dead but the police discounted these. Indeed it was the view of the chief police officer on the case that the killer escaped wearing Mary Kelly’s clothes and that this was the person people saw and mistook for Mary Kelly.
This summer Solstice Publishing presents, A Policeman’s Lot, in all major eBook formats. EBooks are currently revitalising the publishing industry and creating a revolution in the way we read.
A word from Kelly Abell, Editor in Chief Solstice - Solstice Publishing by its very name means “turning point” and they provide excellent quality fiction in both ebook and print book formats. Solstice is proud to add A Policeman’s Lot to its collection of quality books and adds it to Solstice Secrets, its murder/mystery book shelf. Stop by and visit to pick up your copy of Gary’s fascinating book A Policeman’s Lot and browse the other exciting titles.
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Gary Dobbs is available for interview
2 comments:
I meant to ask before, Gary - where did the name Parade come from? I note that Max Brand's character Silvertip has a horse called Parade... (I sold my first story to Parade magazine in 1971...!)
I've had the name for a long time - Frank Parade is mentioned in my 1989 story, Cissie's Heebie Jeebies. I like the name because it lends itself to titles like Parade's Way, Parade's Walk and so on. Plus I wanted a detective with a name as memorable as Morse, Rebus etc. I think Parade is a great name.
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