The Poison Machine

“A deliciously preposterous adventure…” —The New York Times Book Review

“Lloyd once again infuses his world with the sights, sounds, and smells of the late 17th century…for what’s bound to be one of the best historical novels of the year.” —CrimeReads

“Outstanding … Lloyd skillfully combines an endearingly flawed lead, jaw-dropping twists, and the fraught, conspiracy-laden politics of the Stuart Restoration.” —Publishers Weekly, Starred Review

“What an extraordinarily absorbing historical mystery, filled with just as much swashbuckling derring-do as it is intellectual conundrums!…Mr. Lloyd’s ability to bring the mores of the times to life, as well as to make the 17th century feel both exceedingly relatable to and intriguing for the modern reader, more than makes up for any slight liberties taken with the historical record in the telling of this tale” –Criminal Element

“A nail-biting and brilliantly imagined historical thriller…” –Bookreporter

“Lloyd’s characters are simultaneously deeply imaginative and perceptive and very much of their time and place, which Lloyd refuses to romanticize. This principle of accurate observation, so in tune with the series’ theme and Hunt’s personal values, is one of the series’ many strengths and something that distinguishes it from nearly all historical mysteries set in pre-20th-century Britain…” –Reviewing the Evidence

“This is a 17th-century Mission Impossible and a real page-turner.” –The Historical Novel Society Review

Praise for The Bloodless Boy (A Hunt & Hook Novel) …

A New York Times Best New Historical Novel of 2021

CrimeReads Best Debut Novels of The Month: November 2021

“Potent… fast-paced…” — The New York Times Book Review

“Everything new is old again — rumor-mongering, disinformation campaigns, religious bigotry — in Robert J. Lloyd’s nifty murder mystery loosely based on real events in Restoration England.” —The Washington Post

“Lloyd’s stunning debut and series launch makes the complex politics of the time feel immediate while integrating them into an engrossing whodunit.” — Publishers Weekly, Starred Review

Robert Lloyd, the son of parents who worked in the British Foreign Office, grew up in South London, Innsbruck, and Kinshasa. He studied for a Fine Art degree, starting as a landscape painter, but it was while studying for his MA degree in The History of Ideas that he first read Robert Hooke’s diary, detailing the life and experiments of this extraordinary man. After a 20-year career as a secondary school teacher, he has now returned to painting and writing. He is the author of The Bloodless Boy, which was selected by Publishers Weekly as a Mystery Book of the Year and The New York Times as a Best New Historical Novel of 2021.

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