The Jaggard Case
J.C. Briggs
Genre: Historical fiction
In Charles Dickens’s tenth case, he and Superintendent Jones pursue Martin Jaggard, notorious forger, abductor of young girls, and suspected murderer. He is ruthless and has spies everywhere following his pursuers. The beating sound of sticks signals their presence, even at Dickens’s house. Two more murders and still Jaggard eludes the detectives until the final, deadly confrontation in the eerie marshlands.
Martin Jaggard, murderer, forger and child trafficker, and leader of a crew of savage boys, makes a seemingly indomitable opponent for Charles Dickens and Superintendent Jones. Dickens and Jones, determined to find Jaggard, are nearly thrown off course by the disappearance of Jones’s little servant girl, last seen in the company of Phoebe Miller and a gentleman in yellow gloves who is spotted in Clerkenwell, notorious haunt of coining gangs.
The case takes Dickens and Jones to the slums of Belle Isle, to the wilds of Wapping and Limehouse where beyond the ruined lime kilns, they face a murderer who is prepared to kill again.
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“Impeccable historical detail, beautifully written and highly atmospheric. Jean Briggs knows her Charles Dickens who is wholly convincing.” (Eric Summers, Dickens Fellowship)
“A series that stands out from the rest, combining formidable historical research and a gift for ingenious story-telling.” (Professor Jeffrey Richards, Lancaster University)
