Search - The Black Hand (Barker & Llewelyn, Bk 5)

With each mystery in this series, author Will Thomas explores another area of Victorian London. In The Black Hand, after the body of a well-known Italian assassin is found floating in a barrel in the Thames, we're taken to Clerkenwell. It seems that Sicily has grown too small and the Mafia is seeking to increase its territory by moving into London. The bodies begin to pile up, rival gangs are pitted against each other, and private enquiry agents Barker and Llewelyn have their hands full.

As always in this series, it is the characters and the setting that shine supreme. Barker is a mysterious Victorian version of James Bond, and his young assistant, Thomas Llewelyn, is the perfect callow foil to all his seriousness. Llewelyn talks us through the streets of Victorian London, tries to figure out his enigmatic boss, and never misses an opportunity to appreciate a pretty female. That Llewelyn genuinely wants to learn and be the best assistant to Barker that he can only adds to the story.

A bonus in The Black Hand is that we get to go on a short journey away from London and learn about the woman in Barker's life. There's so much testosterone and action in these books that the feminine touch felt like a lovely sea breeze through the pages. It also added another character about whom I want to know more!

As long as Will Thomas writes about his private enquiry agents, I will read their adventures. Thomas brings nineteenth-century London to life, his characters are interesting and fun, and the action keeps the pages turning quickly. If you're in the mood for some Victorian mystery and adventure, Will Thomas is an excellent author to try.

This is Book 5 of the Barker & Llewelyn mystery series.

After the slightly disappointing Hellfire Conspiracy, Will Thomas seems to have gotten himself back on track. This book focuses on the rise of the Sicilian mafia as it tries to establish a foothold in the London underworld. The plot was focused, the story was well written, and the pacing was spot on.

After four books of handing out tiny little morsels regarding Cyrus Barker's private life, The Black Hand was a veritable all-you-can-eat buffet of new information. There were more revelations in this book alone than in all of the previous books combined. Needless to say, it was a treat to read.

Thomas has released a new Barker & Llewelyn book every year for 5 straight years (2004-2008). I am anxiously awaiting news of the next installment (he is supposedly working hard on the next one) because these characters have too much life left to simply let them languish.

This book was easily the best in the series so far. Now all we need is five more just like it.

Will Thomas is one of my favorite authors. I have read all his books and they are certainly great mysteries and thrillers. In the Black Hand, Barker & Llewelyn are up against the mafia and put their lives on the line attempting to deal with them. A real page-turner you will find hard to put down.

This is the 5th book in the Barker and Llewelyn series. I don't really know how I happened on to these books but I am glad I have. In this novel you learn more about the mysterious Barker, and young Llewelyn is coming into his own as an first rate private inquiry agent.

The title says it all but I for one don't think of the mafia in London in the late 1880's. But as usual Will Thomas through his research and great story telling shows us another facet to a London not many know about.