[book-info]

I picked up Sidney Chamber and the Shadow of Death by James Runcie because I adore the PBS series Grantchester. This compilation did not disappoint! I honestly thought these were contemporary stories published in the 50s and was shocked to find they are historical stories published from 2012 on.

Almost all of the stories in this compilation have been on Grantchester. The show followed pretty closely to the original stories so they were familiar. Each story was pretty short but conveyed a lot. The pacing was slow but not in a bad way.

It was comforting like the small village feel of Grantchester. The stories in the show had the same endings but the new ones were pretty interesting with endings I didn’t call.

I really enjoy Sidney as a character. He’s fairly open-minded for a religious man (especially for the time period). I often wonder if this is due to having served in World War II and seeing humanity go to the brink and back.

All of the other characters are there as well: Leonard, Geordie, Amanda, Mrs. M, Jennifer, and Johnnie. Sidney really stays center-focus and the secondary characters have even less page time.

Reading the short stories in Sidney Chambers and the Shadow of Death by James Runcie was pretty relaxing. I’ll definitely be continuing with the series.