Description
A puzzling mystery pulls the thieving Fitzglen family back to a shocking crime committed in the time of Catherine the Great in this third instalment of the spellbinding Theatre of Thieves gothic mystery series, set in Victorian England.
London, 1909. The Fitzglens combine running London’s finest theatre with a very profitable side-line in stealing. But while they might be thieves, they still have principles. They never pinch anything their victim couldn’t afford to lose.
When a stranger approaches Jack Fitzglen after a performance, claiming that a Fitzglen has committed a grave crime in his village in faraway Russia, Jack knows exactly who’s to blame: the unpleasant Saintly Simeon, who was chucked out of the family for breaking their code.
Simeon has stolen three valuable, and oddly frightening, Stone Heads, the likenesses of children who vanished over a century ago. The Heads were locked away from the world in a remote Russian monastery . . . though whether to protect the priceless sculptures, or to protect the villagers from the Heads themselves, no one can say.
Jack joins forces with fellow actor Viola Gilfillan to retrieve the stolen goods and put things right. But as they investigate, peeling the layers of history back to the treacherous court of Catherine the Great herself, the ominous power of the Stone Heads begins to draw them down into a darkness from which they may never be able to escape . . .
This unsettling gothic historical mystery from acclaimed British author Sarah Rayne will appeal to fans of Daphne du Maurier, Laura Purcell, Rebecca James, Sarah Waters and Stuart Turton.
My Thoughts
Sarah Rayne keeps coming up with fascinating plots and this one is just spectacular. We’re once again immersed in the world of the FitzGlen family of actors/thieves who only “filch” from people who can afford it. Here we are treated to an origin story that explains how the family came to own the Amaranths Theatre where they perform their popular plays. The story of patriarch Harry FitzGlen’s relationship with Catherine the Great is done with Rayne’s usual one-two punch of softness (their relationship) then a quick jab to the throat (murder & court intrigue).
Rayne excels in writing creepy characters that make your skin crawl and Brother Quintus is no exception. He’s wily, deceitful, sly, and most certainly unhinged. His role in the plot to murder Peter III and the follow up to that is shiver-inducing.
I continue to be stymied by the fact that so many of my American friends don’t know about this fabulous author. All of her series are well-researched and skillfully written, and most of them bone-chillingly scary. The Face Stealer is one of the best horror mysteries I’ve read in a while.
Recommended for those looking for a clever, knuckle-whitening story of historical murder and mayhem.
Publication Date: August 5, 2025
Published By: Severn House
Thanks to Netgalley for the review copy
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