“…enchantment and terror mingle.” #peterackroyd #londonunder

“London Under” by Peter Ackroyd was one of the titles mentioned in Nicholas Royle’s wonderful book, “Finders, Keepers“, and I made a note at the time to explore it a bit further. I’m a fan of Ackroyd’s writing and my enjoyment of his Ezra Pound biography made me realise it was time to read more of his non-fiction. As “London Under” was apparently all about what lies below our great capital, it sounded perfect, and I confess that a pre-loved copy was soon winging its way to the Ramblings…where it didn’t even touch the TBR!!! London is a constant presence in both Ackroyd’s fiction and non-fiction; the first work of his I read was “Hawksmoor” which draws on some of the city’s churches. In 2000 he published a massive tome “London: The Biography”, but this volume, released eleven years later, is a slimmer work. In it, he focuses on what lurks underneath the city, and there might be more than you think! Wells and springs are places of transition, where the underworld rises out of the…