Three Times Dead; or, The Secret of the Heath; or The Trail of the Serpent
Mary Elizabeth Braddon
1860
4/5 stars
This triple-named Victorian melodrama has everything that the genre should and more: murder, deceit, blackmail, love, true friendship, deep emotions, a foundling, a man jailed for a crime he didn't commit, a mute detective, a truly despicable villain, and lots and lots of drama.
(A more detailed plot synopsis would spoil some of the surprises of the book, and I honestly think the less known, the more pleasure.)
I thoroughly enjoyed Braddon's first published sensation novel. It is one of, if not the, earliest British "detective" novels, and makes use of disguise, civilian assistants, a doggedly determined sleuth, and many other features characteristic to that story type. The plot was twisty, sometimes unpredictable, with mostly well drawn characters and a satisfying ending. While it's literary merit doesn't deserve five stars, I certainly got five stars worth of entertainment from the Trail of the Serpent (as it's most commonly known) and highly recommend it to fellow lovers of the genre.
