The Lost Diary Of Samuel Pepys by Jack Jewers

 

The Lost Diary of Samuel Pepys by Jack Jewers.

Published 4th August 2022 by Moonflower Books.

From the cover of the book:

It is the summer of 1669 and England is in dire straits.

The treasury's coffers are bare and tensions with the powerful Dutch Republic are boiling over. And now, an investigator sent by the King to look into corruption at the Royal Navy has been brutally murdered. Loathe to leave the pleasures of London, Samuel Pepys is sent dragging his feet to Portsmouth to find the truth about what happened.

Aided by his faithful assistant, Will Hewer, he soon exposes the killer. But has he got the right person? The truth may be much more sinister. And if the mystery isn't solved in time, then England could be thrown into a war that would have devastating consequences . . .

The diaries of Samuel Pepys have enthralled readers for centuries with their audacious wit, gripping detail, and racy assignations. Pepys stopped writing at the age of 36. Or did he? This action-packed historical thriller, described as "Bridgerton meets Sherlock" imagines what might have happened next.

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Summer, 1699: Samuel Pepys is a man who knows how to enjoy himself - as his illuminating diaries can confirm. But he is considering whether he should continue recording his adventures for posterity now his wife Elisabeth has discovered not only their existence, but also the details of what he has been up to.

His personal and professional lives are proving to be a little stressful, and to top it all he finds he has been selected by his boss at the Navy Office, The Duke of Albemarle, for a mission that will require all of his ingenuity to complete. He must drag himself away from the pleasures of London to investigate the death of a Crown Agent who was looking into corruption in the Royal Navy in Portsmouth. 

With England on the brink of war with the Dutch, it is vital that Pepys gets to the bottom of what is going on in Portsmouth, and he drags along his faithful assistant Will Hewer to help him in his investigation. What they are about to discover will embroil them in a deadly plot that involves espionage, secret societies and double dealing that reaches higher than they can imagine - and of course, he can't help himself from writing it all down, in a brand new diary...

In The Lost Diary of Samuel Pepys Jack Jewers reimagines all new adventures for one of the most famous diarists of them all, Samuel Pepys. The story picks up one week after Pepys' final known volume and details his secret mission in Portsmouth to get to the bottom of murderous shenanigans and apparent attempts to drag England into an ill-advised war with the Dutch.

The story starts as it means to go on, with a bawdy bang and rumours of intrigue, and develops into a fun-filled caper involving drama, passion, and competing secret societies with unfathomable loyalties in the streets of Portsmouth, London and on the high seas. Pepys takes on the role of somewhat of a bumbling Sherlock Holmes to Hewer's Dr Watson as they try to get to the bottom of the mystery here, while continuing Pepys' well-earned reputation as a diarist recording all sorts of fascinating information about the times in which he lived. There is so much lovely period detail, all mixed up with vivid characters from all levels of society, and more swashbuckling fun than you can poke a quill at. I really enjoyed how Jewers has Pepys not only casting his observant eye at those all around him, but makes him question what he thinks he knows about himself too.

This is such an immersive and entertaining debut novel that has the feel of the first part of a new series. It serves to establish an excellent cast of characters around Pepys that it would be delightful to see cropping up in further tales of more of Pepys' escapades - and there is a nice little hook at the end that promises a lot more dangerous missions to come! 

The Lost Diary of Samuel Pepys is available to buy now in hardcover, ebook and audio formats.

Thank you to Moonflower Books and Midas PR for sending me a proof of this book in return for an honest review.

About the author:

Jack Jewers is a filmmaker and writer, passionate about history. His career has been spent telling stories in all media, and his body of work includes film, TV, and digital media. His films have been shown at dozens of international film festivals, including Cannes, New York, Marseille, Dublin, and London’s FrightFest, garnering multiple accolades, including an award from the Royal Television Society and a nomination for Best Short Film by BAFTA Wales. The Lost Diary of Samuel Pepys is his first novel.