The Waterfall by Gareth Rubin

 The Waterfall

by Gareth Rubin

The Waterfall by Gareth Ruben  was published by Simon & Schuster on 25th September 2025.

My thanks to the author and publisher for sending me a copy to review and to 

Random Things Tours for inviting me on the Tour.

Synopsis

A story about stories within stories as four interconnected mysteries take the reader through the ages, from Shakespeare’s day to a 19th century Gothic former Priory, to 1920s Venice, and finally to 1940s California, from the internationally bestselling author of The Turnglass. We begin with the last testament of William Shakespeare as he investigates the real-life murder mystery of his friend, playwright Christopher Marlowe. The second story is a 19th Century Gothic tale about the discovery of Shakespeare’s manuscript, set in an isolated former priory, turned into a clinic for those who cannot sleep. The third is a lighter Golden Age detective tale set in Venice, where private investigator Honora Feldman looks into a baffling case of theft and murder in the British expat community, with the Gothic story at its heart. And finally, a 1940s American Noir as Ken Kourian finds a serial killer is recreating all the murders in The Waterfall, the companion book to his friend Oliver Tooke’s The Turnglass. The Waterfall is a beguiling and intricate mystery that cements Gareth Rubin’s position as one of the most original authors writing today. 

My Thoughts

I first came across Gareth Ruben’s with his book Holmes & Moriarty which was a very good story centred around two of Conan Doyle’s favourite characters. Consequently when I was asked to review The Waterfall I didn’t hesitate to say “Yes” and I wasn’t disappointed .

The book is divided into four stories which as you progress through them you will find they are linked and the last  one ,The Waterfall ,unites them all.

I have to be honest I preferred one of the sections a lot more than the others, though I am not going to say a lot more apart from I struggled to get into the first part. The rest of the book was a lot easier to pick up and follow and will have you questioning what the outcome is going to be and how will they link together. 

Some of the characters which Ruben creates are described in intricate detail , which I love as I need their character to feel real. The settings are clever , differing from sheer poverty, where you can almost smell the rank odours from the streets  to opulence with their aromas of rich spices and herbs.

Rubin is one of those writers who I am going to have on my “Watch out for “ list as so far he has intrigued with his writings.

About Gareth

GARETH RUBIN is the Sunday Times bestselling author of The Turnglass, which was also a top 10 bestseller in Italy. His other books include Holmes and Moriarty, Liberation Square and The Winter Agent. He lives in London and writes about social affairs, travel and the arts for British newspapers.