Christopher Benfey
Taylor has culled Victorian popular literature for pertinent epigraphs to his chapters, and he cleverly evokes the crush and clutter of 19th-century crowds. He knows the difference between a barouche and a britzka, a phaeton and a fly, and has plucked some of his characters from a once-famous painting of the Derby by William Frith. His roving narrator, who might have strayed from Trollope or Dickens, amiably anticipates the reader's questions.
—The New York Times Book Review
Jonathan Yardley
D.J. Taylor, a British writer of formidable accomplishments…but little known in this country, has pulled off an impressive and wholly engaging feat in Derby Day. Set in London and environs during a few weeks in the reign of Queen Victoria, it is not merely a work of historical fiction but one written in a language appropriate to its time—i.e., it is a Victorian novel, the prose of which brings to mind Thackeray (of course) and Dickens, yet never smacks of cuteness or contrivance. It is delicious fun and can be read purely as such, yet it is also a serious novel about a society caught between the familiar and the new, in which "the world is changing" and leaving many people behind.
—The Washington Post
Publishers Weekly - Audio
In Victorian England, a variety of spectators arrive at Epsom Downs for the annual derby, expecting racehorse Tiberius to take home the prize.But as race day approaches, George Happerton, owner of Tiberius and new husband of the entitled Rebecca Gresham, hatches a plan to throw the race—a plan that will only work if he can avoid the watchful eye of the local constabulary. With his crisp delivery and tonal shifts, Simon Vance infuses Taylor’s prose with an energy that will engage listeners until the very end. Vance creates a variety of voices and regional accents—each one appropriate and true to life—for the characters and smoothly transitions among dialogue and exposition and description. This audio edition is a real treat for listeners. A Pegasus hardcover. (Apr.)
Condé Nast Traveler
Derby Day will be hard to put down. As ever with Taylor, literary complexities lurk under the smooth surface of a stylish page-turner.
A. N. Wilson - Financial Times
Derby Day is a triumphant success. In this unputdownable Victorian romp Taylor enjoyable proves himself to be one of the finest of our 21st-century novelists.
Financial Times
Derby Day is a triumphant success. In this unputdownable Victorian romp Taylor enjoyable proves himself to be one of the finest of our 21st-century novelists.
The New York Times Book Review
Epsom Derby is the subject of an intricately plotted and stylistically burnished crime caper. Taylor builds the suspense,sending his characters to the racetrack for the final event. Whether he intends Tiberius to win or to lose remains, like much else in this tantalizing novel, mysterious almost to the end.
Sunday Times
Taylor has written an exceptionally clever 19th-century novel with a richness of character that almost matches his models of Dickens and Thackeray.
Jonathan Yardley - The Washington Post
D. J. Taylor, a British writer of formidable accomplishments,has pulled off an impressive and wholly engaging feat in Derby Day. The prose brings to mind Thackeray and Dickens. It is delicious fun. Taylor leaves one delighted to have visited this world and to have shared in its dissolute yet inviting pleasures. Derby Day is on every count a winner.
Financial Times
Derby Day is a triumphant success. In this unputdownable Victorian romp Taylor enjoyable proves himself to be one of the finest of our 21st-century novelists.
Conde Nast Traveler
Derby Day will be hard to put down. As ever with Taylor, literary complexities lurk under the smooth surface of a stylish page-turner.
Library Journal
It's Derby Day in 1860s Epsom Downs, and literally everyone is there regardless of age or station, be they rich, poor, criminal, or victim. Taylor elicits a strong sense of place and atmosphere, giving the listener a feeling of being there. Just as fascinating is the broad array of characters, who seem totally unrelated until they eventually connect to one horse, Tiberius. Will he win or lose? And is it a real win or loss? In addition to the riveting story of life before and after the biggest race of the year, an intriguing depiction of the underside of all classes (often absent from such stories) is presented in black, white—and grey. VERDICT Narrator Simon Vance's spirited delivery enhances the splendid description and even better dialog. Listeners feel privy to conversations; the recounting of the race as it happens is perfect.—Susan G. Baird, formerly with Oak Lawn P.L., IL
Kirkus Reviews
Taylor reinvents the Victorian novel, basing his narrative loosely on W.P. Frith's massive satirical portrait of mid-19th-century English life of the same name. This novel is preoccupied with social status, power relationships and even, as Taylor has it, "d______d villains." Although he creates a diffuse world without much of a center, one of the major players is Mr. Happerton, a ne'er-do-well with the casual villainy of Our Mutual Friend's Alfred Lammle. He marries Rebecca Gresham, the daughter of a wealthy London lawyer, a mariage de convenance that gets him closer to a source of the money he craves for his schemes. Happerton is a sporting gentleman whose obsession is Tiberius, a racehorse owned by the financially strapped Mr. Davenant. Happerton buys up notes to make Davenant indebted to him, though Happerton's sole purpose is to procure Tiberius and run him at Epsom Downs. In his schemes he's assisted by the hapless Captain Raff, who's completely outmaneuvered by the rakish and sharp-witted Happerton. Also involved in the action is Mr. Pardew, suspected of having robbed a London mail train and a man perhaps even shrewder than Happerton. He's on the lam while Captain McTurk, a detective, tries to track him down. Mr. Gresham becomes a valetudinarian, though it remains a possibility that his son-in-law has been slowly poisoning him. The climax of the story is the running of the Derby, and Happerton might be attempting a double cross, betting on a competing horse and trying to ensure Tiberius' loss. A sprawling and expansive novel that will appeal to those who like leisurely paced narratives with authentic 19th-century flavor.
