The Axeman's Jazz: The Award-Winning Historical Crime Thriller Set in Mafia-Run New Orleans
May 2014 · City Blues Quartet Book 1 · Pan Macmillan
4.3star
30 reviewsreport
Ebook
336
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About this ebook
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.
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.
Ratings and reviews
4.3
30 reviews
Jules Gardner
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October 14, 2015
An engaging and enjoyable fiction in old New Orleans on the trail of a real menace, The Axeman, who murdered 12 people just after WW1. There are a fine mix of characters in here, to tell the story in three strands; a young woman with a quiet mission, two detectives, one disgraced, one serving, with a supporting cast of mafiosi, jazzmen and lowlifes. You can feel the screenwriter at play with some of the set pieces but there is enough to distract from that and allow your imagination to get involved.
Rosepho3nix
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June 25, 2015
Fantastic read. Great characters and so beautifully put together. Keeps you reading until the very end...
Emily Ashton
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May 3, 2017
A bit slow, too many names to remember.
About the author
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 twentieth century.
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