A Pretender's Murder

Eric Peterkin, Book 2

By: Christopher Huang

Narrated by: Raphael Corkhill

"Christopher Huang's knack for creating mysteries in the Golden Age tradition is displayed splendidly in A PRETENDER'S MURDER."

—Martin Edwards, author of the Rachel Savernake mysteries

The year is 1925. A labyrinth of roads and rails spirals out from the bones of a nearly forgotten settlement. Londinium. Once the far-flung edge of the vast Roman Empire, it is now the seat of a greater one.

Few have given more for the Empire than Colonel Hadrian Russell. Robbed of his four sons by the Great War, he now holds court as the acting president of the Britannia, a prestigious soldiers-only club in London. But when the Colonel is shot and thrown out the club’s front window, it seems the shadows of the Great War may extend further than previously thought.

Lieutenant Eric Peterkin, newly installed secretary at the Britannia, finds himself thrust into the role of detective after Scotland Yard points fingers at friends he knows are innocent. But is the true murderer an unknown spy? Or a recently resurfaced friend of the Colonel’s dead sons? Or is it one of the Colonel’s four widowed daughters-in-law, who by all appearances paid him complete devotion?

Accusations from personal betrayal to wartime espionage mount among the suspects as Eric's investigation draws him back to scenes and sites of a war he’s sought to leave behind. From the greening fields of Flanders and the springtime streets of Paris to the sterile wards of a Swiss sanatorium, and back to the Britannia itself, Eric finds that even myths leave behind bones.

©2026 Christopher Huang (P)2025 Audible, Inc.

Character Driven Story

I gave it a four star review because it took me a while to identify the characters and the roles they played. Otherwise, I enjoy slow moving stories, and always like the twenties time period. It is definitely a World War 1 environment.

Excellent mystery

I enjoyed this authors first book and looked forward to the second. I wasn’t disappointed. It is a well written mystery that continued to develop through out the course of the story. Will look forward to the third!

Decent story but went on too long

I split this book into 3 parts. Part 1 is fine but too similar to the previous book. Part 2 made me want to quit the book. It was long and went on circles and really kind of boring. Part 3 got better and wrapped everything up. I think it is too similar to the 1st novel with a murder at the club and could have been a lot shorter. I hope the series continues but takes Eric out of the club. I would hope for more depth about him and his story. We need to be drawn more into him in order for this to a sustainable series.

Great Book!!

I really enjoyed this book. Another great mystery!! Perfect narrator. Looking forward to the next book in the series.

Twists and Turns!

Mr. Huang is a brilliant new voice in the realm of whodunit! I was trying to figure out the murderer and was completely caught off guard at the reveal. The main character is scarred from the Great War, but he makes the most out of his life and is cracking on. Planning on reading the first book in the series soon.