The Black Hand

Barker & Llewelyn #5

by Will Thomas

When an Italian assassin's body is found floating in a barrel in Victorian London's East End, enquiry agent Cyrus Barker and his assistant Thomas Llewelyn are called in to investigate. Soon corpses begin to appear all over London, each accompanied by a Maf ia Black Hand note. As Barker and Llewelyn dig deeper, they become entangled in the vendettas of rival Italian syndicates -- and it is no longer clear who is a friend or foe.

Genres: Mystery, Historical Fiction, Fiction, Historical, Historical Mystery, Audiobook, Crime

305 pages, Kindle Edition

First published July 1, 2008

About the author

Librarian Note: There is more than one author in the GoodReads database with this name. See this thread for more information.

Will Thomas, born 1958 in Bucks County, Pennsylvania, is a novelist who writes a Victorian mystery series featuring Cyrus Barker, a Scottish detective or "private enquiry agent," and his Welsh assistant, Thomas Llewelyn. The Barker/Llewelyn novels are set in the 1880s and often feature historical events, people, and movements. Martial combat is a recurring theme throughout this hardboiled series.

Prior to writing novels, Will Thomas wrote essays for Sherlock Holmes society publications and lectured on crime fiction of the Victorian era.

Will Thomas' first novel, Some Danger Involved, was nominated for a Barry Award and a Shamus Award, and won the 2005 Oklahoma Book Award. In 2015, he won the Oklahoma Book Award a second time for Fatal Enquiry. Will Thomas has been featured on the cover of Library Journal, and was the Toastmaster at the 2007 Great Manhattan Mystery Conclave in Manhattan, Kansas. His fifth novel, The Black Hand, was nominated for a 2009 Shamus Award. He is married to author Julia Bryan Thomas.

Series:
. Barker and Llewelyn

Reviews

[Kate · Rating 3 out of 5]

I have been a devoted fan of this series, but I was disappointed in this last installment. One of the things I enjoy about the series (besides the fact that it allows me to imagine a kung fu master-Sherlock Holmes), is that each book highlights a different ethnic group of Victorian London, and The Black Hand fell right in line with that pattern, focusing on the Italian community and the emergence of a nascent Mafia. However, as opposed to the earlier books, Thomas conveys little sense of their community; the only feel the reader gets for early Italian Londoners are the two meals scenes in which Barker and Llewelyn eat at a Neapolitan restaurant. The pacing is also quite slow, a departure from the action-packed adventure style of the first books. I was also disappointed in the mystery itself, the plot twist at the end was tepid and I honestly lost interest in the mystery halfway through, just kept reading, hoping it would get better but didn't. My overall impression was of a watered-down, half-hearted version of my favorite series. But, I'll still read the next one if/when it comes out - I'm not giving up on Barker and Llewelyn.

[Marit Rae]

It finally happened folks ... after numerous reviews that were mostly just me battling with my feelings about this series, I admit defeat. My white flag is up. The book is closed at around page 100. I return it to my library through the Libby app with a sigh and a "good riddance."



Desperate times called for desperate measures, but I don't have the energy anymore. That being said, I still need to find a way to scratch my historical mystery itch - so stay tuned for updates on my quest to find a historical mystery series that doesn't make me want to rip my hair out!!

[Bev · Rating 4 out of 5]

Private enquiry agent Cyrus Barker and his assistant Thomas Llewelyn begin their fifth recorded case at the docks of London's East End. The bodies of an Italian assassin and his wife, who was just as deadly as her husband and never far from his side, are discovered floating in a barrel near the docks. Then Sir Alan Bledsoe, Director of the East and West India Docks, is found assassinated in a very Italian way. Soon Scotland Yard and the Home Office are asking Barker to take up the case, knowing his ability with out of the ordinary cases. More corpses appear around London--as well as notices from The Black Hand, the Sicilian mafia. No one wants the mafia to move into the British criminal classes and Barker must find a way to bring antagonistic parties--the tough dock workers, French Apaches, and the Italian (non-Sicilian, anti-mafia) Camorra together to fend off a common enemy. The job becomes very personal indeed when Barker's chef is attacked and even the home of his lady friend (Llewelyn isn't quite sure of her status in his boss's life) is invaded. Barker's ultimate goal is to bring the mafia mastermind behind all the killings out into the open. He has an idea who the man is, but unless he can flush him out it will be difficult to bring him to justice.

Thomas continues to expand on this new look at the Holmes and Watson/Wolfe and Goodwin detective team. Lots more action than most of the Holmes stories and Barker is far more mobile and physically involved than Nero Wolfe generally is. And I continue to enjoy the characters. They are very interesting and I particularly like the interaction between Barker and Llewelyn. They have the chemistry necessary to create a duo to follow in such auspicious footsteps. In the first book, we learned a lot about Llewelyn's background with more revealed in each installment, but we get just bits and pieces about Barker. Barker is a very private man and it's a good indication of their developing relationship that he finally introduces his assistant to the Widow (his mysterious lady friend). There is still plenty more to be revealed about Barker and I look forward to learning more in the next book. The other members of Barker's staff from Mac the butler and general factotum to Etienne Dummolard, his French chef, are also well-drawn. We see quite a bit of Etienne this time, though the circumstances are unfortunate for the chef. He's stabbed twice and barely survives the attack, but recovers with full force (and plenty of vim and vinegar).

The book ends with a lovely scrap on the docks--Barker and company taking on the Sicilians. And Llewelyn gets to display his newly learned knife skills. Quite an action-packed final scene. Entertaining and very informative on the early years of the mafia. ★★★ and a half. [rounded up here]

First posted on my blog My Reader's Block. Pleaser request permission before reposting portions of review. Thanks.

[Rade · Rating 2 out of 5]

Sherlock Holmes this ain't.

So much wasted potential.It started off with a murder in an unusual way, followed by introduction of the characters and the reveal of the note left for the said characters to go over and decipher.

Than the whole story got old and predictable. It went to another murder, going in hiding, another note, talking, meeting useless characters, more hiding, and a plan for an ending that failed to get a single fuck from me. So terrible.

One thing I liked was he writing which was set in an 1800s and accompanied by a lot of "indeeds", "lads", and "chaps" because it is set in London. I also liked the setting. The author set the scenes quite nicely but most of the scenes were boring, like meetings with characters that don't play a big part in the story or lunch breaks that go nowhere.

I really hated the overall story. It started off so well and by the end it just failed to make me one bit excited at how it will end. I was yawning at a lot of parts and telling the characters to get on. For example, there was a scene where a dog was stolen and one of the main characters runs after the person and gets the dog back. Pointless. Then there was the story of assassin(s) and a plan to take over part of the city. That never went anywhere. Also, the ending was resolved within few pages. Everything that was built up was demolished in less than a chapter. It wasn't even a good ending. It was so cheap and overused which apparently solved every single problem the characters were facing. How convenient.

Imagine reading a story about a child who was adopted and later learned his parents are evil and out to get him only to have their next door neighbor help the child get away because he knew there was something wrong with said parents since they moved there. SO cheap and unoriginal.

One last thing. For the "detectives" who were supposed to be good at what they do, there was no figuring out clues. There was one main detective who keeps his sidekick in the dark about his plans (I HATE this) who go around asking people their know questions and going back home. That's it. Nothing exciting or adventurous about that which is why I found this book very boring and a waste of time.

How can you make a detective story set in 1800s about people getting murdered in strange ways and two sides of people getting into a war boring?

P.S There were some nods to Dickens, Oliver Twist, fingerprinting as a form of criminal identification, and a reference to measuring skulls and other body parts to determine ones tendency to commit crimes, a method first introduced in the late 1700s by Franz Joseph Gall (1758-1828).

[Colleen · Rating 5 out of 5]

I'm going to go out on a limb and give this 5 stars. It is the fifth book after all. And usually by book #5, I expect the author not to care so much, since he already has his readership hooked.

But no! Barker & Llewelyn are as fresh as ever and the book is as good, if not better, than the first one. I now want to read more about the Black Hand/Mafia's beginning in New Orleans (which the book doesn't cover, but the notes at the end mentions). Very enjoyable and a very very fast read. Introduces more slivers of Barker's life--like the Widow and a tiny bit more about his seafaring days in China, but naturally I want to know more.

So really looking forward to the next book.

[Carl Brookins · Rating 4 out of 5]

Both fun and thoughtful. Real insight into what London at the dawn of Scotland Yard must have been like. And the beginnings of what we know today to be the world of the Private Investigator. This is another Barker and Llewelyn adventure. As the title suggests, they take on the Mafia as the Sicilians attempt to move in on established corruption on the London docks.

The characters are engaging, the setting is nicely defined and the action, while not pell mell, is lively. I thoroughly enjoyed the novel and will look for succeeding stories from this excellent author.

[Lou Kemp · Rating 5 out of 5]

A binge of a series in books instead of video takes a while. I'm trying not to hurry through them. Here is my review of book 5 of the Will Thomas series featuring a wonderfully mismatched set of Victorian enquiry agents in London.
Yes, it is a great idea to read these in order.
The characterizations of everyone from the main characters to the minor ones and the villains are spot on. Book 5 includes a great concise history of the Mafia in London during the 1880s, and all of the factors that color what happened, according to this author. The running theme is the mystery, but it reads like more of a thriller with all of the danger of the timeframe.
Highly recommended!

[erforscherin · Rating 3 out of 5]

I was ready to swear off this series, but when faced with a week's worth of computer upgrade work and this book for company, I gave in for one last round.

I don't quite know what to think of this series, really. All the right pieces are in place - I enjoy the historical asides, the main characters and even secondary characters have spirit, and Will Thomas does a fine job at descibing settings and taking readers someplace new and fresh each time. But... there's always something missing here, and the books never quite live up to their full promise.

Partly it's half-baked plots: some entries are weaker than others (reminiscent of Star Trek's "only every other movie is good" curse, you'll want to skip the even-numbered books), but for mystery novels they frankly aren't really very mysterious or suspenseful. But partly it's also lack of character development. For one typical example: finally meeting the fabled Widow in this book should have been a Big Deal, and yet... well, she just seems like a fairly mild-mannered, normal person. She's likable enough, but we never really learn much about her as a person - only portions of her backstory, info-dumped by someone else in passing. That's pretty much how I feel about all the characters in this series! They all have the potential to be fascinating people, and yet at the last second we veer off and get a half-hearted third-party info-dump instead. It's tremendously frustrating.

The Black Hand isn't a bad book, as such: it's diverting enough in its own right, I enjoyed meeting the Widow (however briefly), and I still enjoy Barker and Llewelyn's dynamic (however briefly that shows its face, too). But as before, I think this series can do better.

[Jon Frum · Rating 1 out of 5]

This one gets four stars at Goodreads? I couldn't get past the second page. The writing is so amateurish that my eyes refused to keep focus any longer. The text reads like a computer read through a pile of mystery genre books and then pulled out phrases randomly and pasted them together. It reminds me of the first Tolkien rip-off I picked up - so poor when compared to the real thing that you wonder how anyone takes is seriously.

My my.... that was negative, wasn't it? Gotta call a spade a spade.

[Spuddie · Rating 3 out of 5]

This series seems to be growing on me a little more, although I still vow to go through and count the number of times the word "lad" is used...it seemed like an awful lot. It's a good series although there is just 'something' off about it, such that I wouldn't call it a favorite. This one in particular wasn't that great since it dealt with the early days of the Mafia in England; the Mafia is one of my least favorite topics in mystery/thrillers.

[Janellyn51 · Rating 4 out of 5]

So, number 5 of the Barker and Llewellyn series, did not disappoint. I've enjoyed seeing their relationship mature and learning more about the peripheral characters like Jenkins. I would trust Barker with my life....I kind of wish I had a Barker in my life! I get a big kick out of Llewellyn too.

[Johnny · Rating 4 out of 5]

My artificial taxonomy for “shelving” my reviews on the virtual shelves of goodreads.com is falling apart. At first, I would have called the Barker & Llewelyn novels by Will Thomas, historical mysteries. Then, with all of the aspects of conspiracy combined with action, I would have shelved them as historical fiction and pulp adventure without losing the quality of mystery. The Black Hand doesn’t seem like a mystery at all. It does seem like a most interesting conspiracy novel built on a historical fiction inspired by the early history of the Sicilian mafia, also known as “The Black Hand.”

Still, even though I’m not quite sure where to shelve these novels (Note: They are still shelved on the mystery shelves of my local library.), I still enjoy reading them. The historical references are superb. I loved the implementation of the Bertillon system being integrated into Scotland Yard as an experiment (p. 59) with the attendant skepticism one would have expected from hardened detectives. I loved the convenient little setting caused by various private railway companies competing across London (p. 195). To be honest, I hadn’t even thought about the nature of the commercial docks in and around London. I knew they were there, but when Barker was scoping them out, I really appreciated Thomas’ listing: “East India; West India; London; St. Katharine’s; Millwall; and both Royal docks.” (p. 247)

But the bulk of The Black Hand is about attempting to draw out the kingpin, as it were, of the Sicilian gangsters who were murdering (perhaps, assassinating) and intimidating their way across London in an attempt to dispossess both gangs and legitimate businesses. Barker believes the threat will dissipate if the mastermind can be squashed. But what losses will occur between friends and allies before they can successfully lure the mastermind out? Can one truly count on an underworld code of honor in such circumstances?

As usual, Thomas offers a certain number of twists and turns as the plot progresses, though I may have been starting to anticipate them as I navigated this fifth book in the series. Even the major unveiling of the ultimate antagonist didn’t really surprise me (even though I missed the vital clue provided by the author prior to the unveiling—it was a “fair cop” as the crooks in the Rumpole stories used to say). But what I really enjoyed in this one was when the threats (and attempts) on the lives of Barker and Llewelyn themselves led to revelations about more of Barker’s mysterious past and more of Llewelyn’s potential future.

The one thing regular readers of the series may miss is seeing Llewelyn’s “Sucker for a Pretty Face” liability come into play. Thomas doesn’t become infatuated with any new young ladies this time. Of course, his loyalty to one lady does have life-threatening implications and there is a brief allusion to a previous infatuation (which may or may not have future bearing). So, at least, his character is consistent, even if this weakness doesn’t play into this plot (and hey, I’m all for variety and glad that Thomas doesn’t stick to the “formula” all the time—that would be tedious).

Meanwhile, the action is fast, intense, and bloody. In fact, our duo of protagonists are not immune from experiencing violent harm, themselves. It isn’t the first time and it shouldn’t be the last in their line of work. As with the other novels in the series, The Black Hand is exceedingly well-researched, cleverly written, and quite satisfying.

[Patrick · Rating 4 out of 5]

"Private enquiry agent Cyrus Barker and his young assistant Thomas Llewelyn find themselves in the middle of a conflict between "families" in The Black Hand, the fifth mystery in this series by Will Thomas.

It is 1885, and London has experienced a massive influx of foreigners. They have come to better their lives. Though most immigrants are legal, many of the Italians and Sicilians are not. Some are members of the Italian Camorra under the leadership of Victor Gigliotti, a wealthy restaurateur. Others are members of the Sicilian Mafia. The leader of this group, though to be Marco Faldo, is unconfirmed. It has been rumored that these two factions will face each other in a battle over control of the docks where many lives will be lost, undoubtedly including some innocent bystanders. Barker and Llewelyn are hired by the Home Guard to squelch these battles and find irrefutable proof of the leadership of these groups. They will receive no help from the Scotland Yard or the local police force, although if they succeed it will be Scotland Yard which gets the credit. When Barker receives a "black hand" note himself he knows the meaning: "Your days are numbered. I am the eraser that will wipe away the chalk mark of your days." Barker and Llewelyn must assemble their own group of men to covertly work with them to break up these groups. Knowing the enemy will be well armed and with no outside financial help, Barker must call in a few debts to obtain the resources he needs for this difficult task."

[Devon · Rating 3 out of 5]

This outing of Barker & Llewelyn sees the duo trying to combat the rise of the Sicilian mafia overtaking London and upsetting the already preordained grouping of criminal groups. Barker turns to said criminals for assistance, and Llewelyn trains with a knife and learns to scrutinise his surroundings in order to keep safe.

We get to properly meet Barker’s sweetie, and I like her even if her presence is brief. Llewelyn is becoming more competent, too. This book is a VAST improvement on the last even though there really isn’t a mystery. We know the what of the murders (shotguns and knives), we know the why (criminal expansion), and we know the who (Sicilian mafia, even if there’s a surprise twist of who the leader actually is). Yet it’s better anyway.

Why?

Llewelyn wasn’t running around like he was in heat the whole time. We focused on the case at hand, and even if it’s a bit silly to have an all out brawl on the docks, I found it an enjoyable enough read and ate it up rather quickly in a day or so. I wish they’d all be like this, but I know they aren’t going to be, alas. I still love the way the author writes and the little pops of humour coupled with the focus of people who aren’t just white and English. I’d give it 3.5 out of 5.

[Joe Santoro · Rating 5 out of 5]

This was definitely the best of the series so far... Thomas was able to keep all the things that are great about the series, and cut back on the things that are not so great.

In keeping with the theme of exploring different sections of the city (and different ethnic groups), this time we go to the docks, as our heroes attempt to fend off a mafia invasion. Thomas does a better job describing the Italian and Sicilian culture without bordering on racism here (as he did when exploring the Chinese in The Limehouse Text).

The story itself is the most engaging.. a good mystery with a good twist and interesting historical bits (tossing in using Bertillion and mentioning fingerprints were both really neat!). We also get some excellent back story additions to Barker, without revealing everything and removing his air of mystery.

The only down side is that this was the first book in the series that I think would suffer if you hadn't read the others... there's alot of tying things together here that I appreciated, but would be lost upon (or confusing t0) a new reader.

[Luke Christenson · Rating 5 out of 5]

Camping in remote wilderness of Ontario I got to turn on my headlamp and read with frogs and a beaver wapping it’s tail in the background. Books are amazing, I found myself in the 1800’s on the streets of London each night for a short period of time. this might be my favorite series I am following right now - can’t wait to read the next 5

[Christopher Taylor · Rating 4 out of 5]

A step up from the previous two, this is a good read and an interesting thought experiment. The Sicilians and Italians entered New Orleans and some other parts of the US and took hold there, mostly known as the "Black Hand." In this book, Thomas speculates that they went to London instead, and this is what unfolds.

The series is unfolding nicely, patiently, with Llewellyn slowly learning his trade and growing in skill. He is becoming quite deadly with various kinds of weapons, and in this book he learns knife fighting. More of Barker's past is unfolded and he is less omnipotent in this story, while being very capable. And Scotland Yard is well portrayed here: stubborn, but capable, and learning the "new" Bertillon system of identifying criminals by various bodily measurements.

Overall its a satisfying read and I look forward to the next book.

[Elizabeth · Rating 4 out of 5]

I liked the part where Lucy Worsley was in costume as both a Victorian lady and a scullery maid

[Jessica Ashley · Rating 5 out of 5]

Well worth the reading

Picked up some nice bits of information in the historical sense. Also in the sense of the characters in the series.

[Barbara Cromer · Rating 4 out of 5]

LOVE this series, but then I love almost all British murder mysteries. This series is well worth the read.

[Jock Mcclees · Rating 4 out of 5]

The story of Giuseppe Petrosino, a NY City detective and The Black Hand, a precursor to the Mafia. He was born near Padua in 1860. He came to the US and started earning money as a boot black. He decided he wanted to do better things and found another job which led to work as a policeman. This was unusual. He was one of the first if not the first Italian cop. The rest were Irish and Tammany Hall controlled the cops and the city government.

There was tremendous prejudice against the Italians. The Irish had born their share of prejudice but had an advantage because they spoke English as a native language. The Black Hand started extortions in the Italian neighborhood and spread out from there. There were some towns in the US, one mentioned was in Pennsylvania which were completely controlled by the Black Hand. They would kidnap kids and wealthy merchants and ask for ransom. They wanted businesses to pay protection money. They would set bombs in homes and businesses of people who didn't cooperate.

There were no Italian detectives but it was realized something needed to be done because the Irish detectives were having no luck with the Black Hand. So Petrosino was elevated to detective and told to go after the Black Hand.

However, because of prejudice, he was given scant resources and his cases were given low priority. Over time, as the problem grew worse he was finally given an Italian squad of detectives which he had been requesting for a while. But still was hamstrung regarding resources.

He was very creative, had lots of disguises, was fearless and was very successful at convicting a lot of people and getting many sent back to Italy.

There is a lot I am leaving out but eventually one police chief sent him to Italy and to Sicily to pull reports on criminals who might have come to the US and therefore it would be legal to send them back to Italy. He was also looking for information on the Mafia in Sicily. Unfortunately he was ambushed and killed. His funeral in NY drew more people by a large factor than for Presidents and major movie actors. He was mourned world wide.

The police commissioner sent 2 more detectives to Italy and they got a lot of the information Petrosino had been seeking. They came back to find a new Police commissioner installed. The old one had rubbed Tammany Hall the wrong way and the new commissioner had no experience and was incompetent and was put in the position because he was a toady for Tammany Hall. Their work was filed away and not used and they were transferred to scut duty. The book gave several theories but it is not entirely clear why.

Finally a new reform mayor was voted in and his new Police commissioner, a WASP named Arthur Woods moved forward to change policing. He had the police almost become social workers. Trying to get to know people and help. The amount of crime dropped significantly. However, he also vowed to break the Black Hand. He put huge resources into it and the story of how they did it is fascinating. They were able to arrest most of the key figures on the same day after a lot of shoe leather to figure out the hierarchy and structure of the organization. They managed to obliterate the Black Hand in NY.

Just as their is prejudice now against current immigrants, there has been prejudice against each new wave of immigrants. Irish, Italians, Jews, Chinese, and on and on. The book makes very clear that if it hadn't been for the prejudice against the Italians, the history of the country might have been different. The feeling to some extent was let them stay in the Italian section and kill each other. If resources had been given to Petrosino early on the way it was given to Woods years after Petrosino's death organized crime may not have been able to establish a foothold in the US or at least not as strong a one. It also pointed out that the south was in need of labor and the Italians could have filled it but after the publicity about the Black Hand nationwide, Italian families were forced out of many regions of the South. There were other examples as well.

Fascinating book about a period and events that I knew little about.

[James · Rating 3 out of 5]

6/10

[Virginia Tican · Rating 5 out of 5]

When the bodies of the Serafinis ~ a husband and wife team of assassins on retainer by the head of the Camorra Organization, Victor Gigliotti ~ were found shot inside a wine barrel floating on the Thames... an Italian underworld war seems inevitable unless B&L would do something to stop such a bloodletting from happening given that another earlier murder of a Dock Director was attributed to the Sicilians whom the dead man threatened to ban from doing business in the docks. Then there was the attack on Barker's longtime galley cook who since then re~invented himself like the rest of the tight crew of the Osprey and became a chef of the first calibre (he cooks for free during mornings at Barker's all male household) as well as a restaurateur (he experiments on them as well). Dummolard was stabbed twice on the stomach by members of the Mafia called the Black Hand... then there was an Italian 'Police Officer and fugitive from the Mafia' doing the rounds on the CID satellites around London giving lectures on finger printing. B&L would have to unravel these too many confusing and misleading events on their plates, though Llwelyn and the rest of the household would miss Etienne's dishes for a while except for Barker who has the palate of a Philistine.

P.S. ~ It was implied that Etienne so missed the all male past situation at the Osprey that he daily visits his old Captain and friend (except when someone or something offends him then he would be absent to sulk) just to get away from his equally temperamental wife and excitable daughter... naturally, to the appreciative palates of Llewelyn and the rest of the male inmates including Harm.

[Melissa · Rating 3 out of 5]

I enjoy the Barker & Llewelyn series, and I usually eagerly wait for the next book in the series.

Characters: I think this book has some great characters in it. I like that it is from Llewelyn's perspective, the author has written him with a sense of humor, intelligence, curiosity and compassion that makes him an interesting narrator for the story. Like all of the books in this series, there is a wide variety of characters in this book and I like how they interact together even though they are all so very different.

Plot: The mystery in this book was a bit different in that they weren't necessarily pinpointed on one person, while they did want to find the leader of the mob they also had a wider goal of stopping a group of people and an idea of mafia rule from taking root. While I missed the fun of trying to figure out the "who done it" character, I still enjoyed the overall plans of how to stop a mob from getting a strong hold over an area.

Writing: For the most part I enjoy Thomas's writing style, this book had a few slower parts to it but not anything that detracted greatly from the story. When it did slow down it picked back up fairly quickly.

Overall, I enjoyed this book, and I really enjoy the series as a whole. They have different types of cases outside of the typical "dead body, who did it" kind of mysteries you often run into.

I look forward to the next book in the series.

[Karin · Rating 4 out of 5]

Another good mystery with the inquiry agent and his assistant.

[LJ · Rating 4 out of 5]

THE BLACK HAND (PI/His. Mys-Barker/Llewelyn-England-Victorian) - VG
Thomas, Will – 5th in series
Touchstone, 2008, US Trade paperback – ISBN: 9781416558958

First Sentence: I stepped across the sill of the conservatory, glass crunching under the heels of my boots, and steadied my Webley pistol with both hands, reluctant to step inside.

Enquiry agent Cyrus Barker and his assistant Thomas Llewelyn are called to the docks. The bodies of an Italian assassin and his wife have been found in a barrel floating in the Thames.

Baker’s French chef is attacked and left with a threatening note signed with the imprint of a black hand. It appears the Mafia are attempting to move into London.

Thomas’ book is wonderful. It is clever, smart and filled with plenty of suspense, intrigue and action balanced with humor.

After the prologue, the story was a bit slow in building momentum, but very good once it did. The sense of time and place is excellent as is his inclusion of historical information.

I particularly enjoyed that we learn a bit more about the pasts of the characters in a way that moves the series forward.

This is a delightful series and one I hope to see continue.

[Margaret · Rating 3 out of 5]

not as strong as the other books, but I'll keep on with the series. glad to finally meet the mysterious widow

[Loy · Rating 5 out of 5]

this was another stellar installment of the Barker and Llewelyn series. Cyrus Barker is an inquiry agent in the late 1800's. the stories are written in his assistant's Llewelyn voice.
In this one, the organized crime - the Mafia- is trying to take over the London. Barker is tasked with stopping them by the Home Office.

This is a tightly woven story. You feel like you are in old London and can hear Llewelyn tell the story.
the assistant really comes into his own, being more than a student, saving Barker's life and helping with all the action.

On one slight note, I missed seeing Llewelyn's friends, which he made in the first book. Two young Jewish men that he is very close with. they are mentioned but no scenes with them. Maybe the next book!

[Miss Lemon · Rating 5 out of 5]

Don't open any of the Barker/Llewelyn mysteries if you have a busy week ahead. Once you've stepped into the latest adventure pulling out to do mundane daily requirements like...work, eat, laundry will be a monumental struggle. This series is a joy. Mr. T. has the enviable skill of creating characters that are unique and whole even down to Barker's curmudgeony (is that a word?) Pekingese, Harm. Go! Read!

[Debbie · Rating 3 out of 5]

This one got off to a rather slow start as Barker collects dock workers, Italians, the Irish and others to counter a potential takeover of London's crime by the Sicilians (mafia). It had a bit of a Magnificent Seven vibe. But on the plus side, we do get insight into both Barker's and Jenkin's backstories.