this is a very good read. Perhaps a little too modern for some tastes, bearing in mind the regency period (think hollywood crime blockbuster without the cars), it's still a ripping good yarn - plenty of lowlives, pickpockets, bare knuckled fighting, submarines, spies, those damn Frenchies!

A good Victorian mystery with plenty of ambiance and a main character that was easy for me to root for. There is a pretty explicit sex scene, but does turn out to be 'necessary' to the plot line later on. You can still skip the scene if you'd rather, just knowing that it happens will be enough. It can be bloody, and the author is not squeamish about the seedier aspects of life in Victorian London. This is not a 'feel good' romp through an imaginary Victorian London where everything comes up roses. This is a determined walk towards the elusive truth through a more realistic Victorian London, complete with economic and social disparity, appalling poverty and antipathy towards the poor, and of course standard greed and complicit cooperation between the 'law' and those criminals well off enough to buy themselves out of trouble. ( )

The ratcatcher is after the unlawful fraternity of London and not rats. The hero Hawkwood is a Bow Street Runner with a military background similar to that of Sharpe if you know the books and series. In this book, he is involved in resolving how a naval ship suddenly blows up and sinks, which then leads him into a den of espionage and treason. This is all set during the Napoleonic war but entirely in and around London. This was a rollicking good read - and I devoured it in one sitting on a cold and wet Sunday afternoon. ( )

Well I finished Ratcatcher and I really wanted to like this book but it got to be more and more unbelievable as the story progressed.

The author refers to several events as "miracles" which got to be annoying after a while, with Hawkwood getting himself in impossible situations and being saved by a miracle. He should have been dead several times were it not for such miracles.

As a mystery it started out reasonably for the first 100 pages but it seemed all his clues seemed to come from bad guys about to kill him and telling him stuff about their actions. As a historical fiction, it lacked the descriptive feel of the various locations. He was kind of a minimalist, as he would describe the scene in short choppy sentences but you never really feel you are part of the scene.

Many names of historical significance are tossed about but they were not developed and not overly involved in the story other than to be there... sort of historical name dropping IMO.

I will not be reading the next in the series. ( )

I may have been generous with my rating, but as I had just finished another historical mystery that was such slogging I was ready to enjoy a light, historical thriller. I've finally decided what my definition of a 'thriller' is... a book (or movie) in which you must suspend a great deal of belief because in real life the hero would have died three or four times. Hawkwood is saved at the last minute more than once, by himself or someone else, and of course he saves England as well. It wasn't the best, but certainly not the worst. ( )

Something to read to pass the time, but nothing engrossing. I had no problem putting it down if there was something else of interest to do. Storyline was decent, characters a little flat, and the title was a smidge misleading. Hawkwood is one of many Bow Street runners, which are basically cops of the slums. Though he is seen as the best one there, it's not like it's him against the city or anything. ( )

A Victorian James Bond... or just the n-th attempt at distracting the readers with period colour and detail so that they don't throw the book away?

If this was the case, didn't work for me. The characters are uninteresting, the period/place (London during the Napoleonic period) is not completely new, and introducing character X so that we can be "shocked" to find out that s/he is really Y trying to cheat the main character into doing Z is not exactly riveting.

There is a sequel. I think I'll pass. ( )

Adventure novel set in the time of the Napoleonic Wars and featuring an ex-army man of extensive past who is now one of 7 Bow Street runners working for the British crown. Murder, intrigue, a honey trap, and violent encounters carry the action from the dark and filthy streets of London to the ballroom of a nefarious aristocrat who entertains agents of France bent on destroying a British ship along with her Prince, utilizing the terrifying invention of the American, Robert Fulton – a submersible armed with a torpedo.

The atmosphere of early 19th C. England is palpable, the history accurate, the hero enigmatic, the villains worthy, and the good guys intelligent enough to keep me turning the pages. Better than I expeted but not a series I’ll pursue. ( )

A "bodice ripper" almost certainly writen by a woman. ( )

What a jolly good romp through the underground of Regency London. This debut offers the reader a great new hero who is a bit of a different kind of character we usually see. Retiring from the army, a Captain in the Napoleonic Wars Rifle regiment, Matthew Hawkwood now works for the famous Bow Street Runners catching criminals. The reader does not encounter the wealthy ton of London, but is introduced to the seedy side of the city, complete with rapscallions, pick-pockets, wharfrats, prostitutes, mudlarks, and the entire array of anyone and everything unsavory. The book has great characters, a vivid depiction of what life was like in the late 1700's and early 1800s London and lots of action, humor, and mystery. I loved this debut and hope the author continues with the series in the same adventurous flavor. McGee's writing style could be compared to that of Bernard Cornwell, polished and engaging from start to finish. Bravo Mr. McGee, keep 'em coming. ( )

http://www.shvoong.com/books/historical-novel/1751443-ratcatcher/ ( )

The story starts with a highway robbery which ends in the death of a man carrying confidential documents, then heads into the underworld of London and a bow street runner, Hawkwood, who is assigned to find who did this. Along the way he finds another dead runner and a byzantine plot. It's not the best of it's type I found it a fun read.

It rattled along and took me with it for a fun spin. ( )