"An elaborately plotted novel, a chaotic, wild and energetic narrative which combines claustrophobic, charnel-house gothic horror with the romance and adventure of the outlaw and the open road. The section of the novel devoted solely to Dick Turpin, 'The Ride to York', became so popular in its own right that it was often published separately; the well-known legend that Turpin rode from London to York in one night is in fact entirely of Ainsworth's invention" - Stephen Carver, The Literary Encyclopedia.