Sensational Victoria: Bright Lights, Red Lights, Murders, Ghosts & Gardens: Tales from the Capital City

Literary Nonfiction. Travel Writing. The follow-up to Eve Lazarus's successful At Home with History: The Untold Secrets of Greater Vancouver's Heritage Homes, SENSATIONAL VICTORIA gives us a glimpse into aspects of Victoria, British Columbia, rarely talked about in the tourist brochures or flowery garden guidebooks. Lavishly illustrated throughout with archival and contemporary photographs, SENSATIONAL VICTORIA is a must-read for both history buffs and regular visitors to The Garden City.

One decade's crime scene is another era's bed-and- breakfast. Forget the postcard-perfect Victoria you think you know; SENSATIONAL VICTORIA explores the capital city's old structures and the not-so saintly spirits that haunt them.--Seattle Metropolitan Magazine

SENSATIONAL VICTORIA is an eclectic compendium of truly captivating stories. While a few are sensational because they are about murders and ghosts, most of them are sensational because they excite our senses of sight and sound and allude to our sense of smell. The work of selected artists, writers, poets, and gardeners comes to life through Lazarus's carefully written prose, brief quotations, and excellent photographs.--BC Studies

Some of the stories are well known but presented from a different perspective, and the chapter on the Linners brings to light a creative group many may not know. Overall, SENSATIONAL VICTORIA: BRIGHT LIGHTS, RED LIGHTS, GHOSTS AND GARDENS provides an interesting portrait of Victoria and some of the personalities that call the city home.--Spacing
This has already been a stellar year for books about local history. If you're still looking... there are more than a dozen top-quality choices on the shelves, from books on Victoria City Hall and the University of Victoria to ones on the Japanese community and Government Street. This late arrival, SENSATIONAL VICTORIA, is one of the year's best. ... Dozens of archival and modern photographs of the people and the buildings help to bring the stories to life. It's a great presentation that helps make the book a success... This book is a great addition to any shelf of local history. It really doesn't matter what level of knowledge the reader has; there is something here for everyone.--Times Colonist (reviewed by Dave Obee, Editor-in-Chief of the Times Colonist and author of The Library Book: A History of Service to British Columbia)