I had high hopes for this book because I remember reading "Smith" in my early years and thoroughly enjoyed it. I was not expecting to be enthralled in the same way that I was by Garfield's other effort, but I did expect to read a story that evoked the Victorian period with a plot strong enough to cross the child - adult divide. Unfortunately, "Devil - in - the - Fog" does not quite reach the necessary heights. The story centres around the hero George who, as a 13 - year - old, finds himself swapping families. As the story progresses, sinister characters and strange behaviour begin to seep out of cracks and crawl from under stones leading to the big twist at the conclusion. For most, this novel will be different and rather exciting. For me, the excellent turn of phrase, imagery and humour employed by the author are in unfortunate contrast with the slightly convenient, occasionally confusing and ultimately disappointing plot. I do recommend this book, but I do warn the reader that it may come across a little thin in parts.

A trip through the British museum triggers Garfield to write this summary of the cultual highlights of Great Britain in the 18th Century. Garfield discusses how the common people (at least the 10,000 educated ones) become more prominent in society is such things as literature, art, and music. The prominet artists and authors are reviewed such as Gibbon, Hogarth, and Swift. Politicians such as Walpole also mentioned. The book was short, so it did a good job summarizing the cultural aspects of Britain in the 1700s at the start of the reign of the three Georges. A good review, but for more detail, read elsewhere.